Lonely Planet just rated Norway one of the best countries to travel to in 2022

Best in Travel 2022 is Lonely Planet’s collection of the world’s hottest destinations and must-have travel experiences. This year’s list has placed particular emphasis on the best sustainable travel experiences, ensuring travellers will have a positive impact wherever they choose to go.

Source: Fjord Norway

Photographer: Terje Rakke

Lonely Planet writes: “Norway is almost unfairly blessed in terms of natural beauty. And it’s also leading the charge on sustainability, green tech, and cultural highlights.

Photographer: Vegard Stien

Norway’s “green” world firsts

• 2014: Norway implements a system allowing destinations to be environmentally certified at a national level – the first nation in the world to do so.
• 2015: The world’s first electric car and passenger ferry, Ampere, goes into commercial operation in the fjords of Western Norway.
• 2016: The Future of the Fjords becomes the world’s first all-electric cruise vessel built of weight-saving carbon-fibre material.
• 2017: Oslo Airport Terminal 2 becomes the first airport in the world to receive an “Excellent” rating under the internationally recognised BREEAM sustainability assessment due to an array of eco-friendly features, such as harvesting snow for summer cooling.
• 2018: The Global Sustainable Tourism Council announces that Innovation Norway’s Sustainable Destination Standard has achieved “GSTC-Recognized Standard” status.
• 2019: Powerhouse Brattørkaia in Trondheim becomes the world’s northernmost energy-positive office building.
• 2020: Avinor Oslo Airport becomes the first airport in the Nordic region to transport passengers between gates and planes in electric buses.
• 2021: The world’s largest all-electric ferry enters service on a route across the Oslofjord. The Bastø Electric has room for 600 passengers and 200 cars, or 24 trucks.
• 2021: Norway has the world’s highest proportion of electric vehicles. 64.5 per cent of sales are fully electric, up from 54 per cent in 2020. Expected electric vehicle sales for 2022 are 80 per cent.
• 2030: The Norwegian Ministry of Transport has commissioned Avinor and the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority to develop a programme to allow the first domestic scheduled flights of electric aircraft by 2030.
• 2040: Avinor and aviation industry partners aim to make Norway the first country in the world where electric aircraft account for a significant share of the market, and to electrify all domestic flights by 2040.