Bulgaria may be a holiday hotspot, but it’s officially Europe’s unhappiest country

It might be popular with tourists thanks to ski resorts with £1.17 beer and pristine coastlines, but that’s not enough to make Bulgarians smile.

The Balkan country of Bulgaria has been named the unhappiest in the whole of Europe in a poll that analysed levels of life satisfaction across the continent.

Over the course of a year, Eurostat asked Europeans to rate their life on a scale of 0 (very dissatisfied) to 10 (very satisfied), finding that – with the exception of Bulgaria – the average levels were higher than 6.

Famous for its hot springs and stunning Black Sea beaches, these attributes sadly weren’t sufficient to increase happiness levels amongst locals, with Bulgarians life satisfaction ranking at just 5.6 out of 10.

It’s not all bleak, though; there’s plenty of joy to be found in Bulgaria. A country with a rich history, it’s renowned for its monasteries, mountains and even wine.

The capital city, Sofia, boasts landmarks that span more than 2,000 years of history, including Greek, Roman, Ottoman, and Soviet occupation, and is situated at the foot of the captivating Vitosha Mountain.

The 2022 data was extracted in November 2023 and subsequently published by the European Commission, with more recent figures expected towards the end of this year. Who knows, maybe the next 12 months will see Bulgaria’s frowns turned upside down.

Where is the happiest place in Europe?

At the other end of the spectrum, Austria, known for its stunning ski slopes, classical music and the Wiener Schnitzel, came up trumps in first place with an average of 7.9.

Poland, Romania and Finland followed close behind at 7.7, with the lowest levels reported in Bulgaria (5.6), Germany (6.5) and Greece (6.7).

The data suggested that some countries that had previously been associated with ‘low levels of income,’ including Romania and Poland, ranked amongst those with the highest levels of satisfaction – which, according to the report, represents the ‘complexity of the relation between subjective well-being and economic welfare.’

It added that influencing factors can include age, level of education, family and financial situation, with young people (aged 16-29) demonstrating a higher life satisfaction compared with over 65s.

However, this was the opposite in countries like Denmark, Sweden, Ireland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Finland.

Elsewhere, a survey by Rightmove polled 26,000 people in the UK on 13 ‘happiness measures.’ In doing so, it found that Hillingdon, West London, was the unhappiest place to live across the entirety of the UK.

In 213th place, the borough scored lowest on the happiness measures, including ‘I feel proud about the area I live in,’ ‘nature and green spaces,’ ‘artistic and cultural activities,’ and ‘I feel a sense of belonging.’

This article was first published on December 20, 2023

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