THE SOLO TRAVELLER
Your world. Your way.
Destinations
Skógafoss, Iceland. Photographer: Jonatan Pie | Unsplash.
A measure of peace
Briefly …
Iceland, New Zealand and Switzerland have been named the three most peaceful countries in the world in the 2026 Global Peace Index – another reason to celebrate these three remarkable destinations.
Each year the Global Peace Index (GPI) examines 163 countries and territories across 23 indicators covering societal safety and security, domestic and international conflict, and militarisation. Founded by Steve Killelea, an Australian technology entrepreneur and philanthropist, the GPI ranks 163 countries (99.7% of the world’s population) based on 23 factors that identify a nation’s absence of violence or fear of violence.
Measured by what the GPI refers to as ‘The three domains of peacefulness’ – Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict, Societal Safety and Security, and Militarisation – reflects the link between a country’s level of military build-up, access to weapons, and its level of domestic and international peacefulness.
In 2026, three familiar destinations occupy the top of the list: Iceland, New Zealand and Switzerland. Together they offer three very different expressions of peacefulness – from the volcanic landscapes of the North Atlantic to the mountains and coastlines of the South Pacific and the lakes and alpine communities of central Europe.
Kirkjufell, Iceland. Photographer: Joshua Earle | Unsplash.
Iceland
For Iceland, first place has become an extraordinary tradition. The country has now been ranked the world’s most peaceful for 19 consecutive years, holding the top position since the Global Peace Index began. Its position reflects characteristics that have long distinguished Iceland, including very low crime, strong social cohesion and the absence of a standing military. The country also performed strongly across the Index’s Safety and Security measures in 2026.
For travellers, those qualities accompany a destination already defined by extraordinary natural experiences. Waterfalls tumble through enormous landscapes, geothermal pools steam beneath open skies and roads lead towards glaciers, black-sand beaches, volcanic country and small communities scattered around an island with a population of fewer than 400,000 people.
Fiordland National Park, New Zealand. Photographer: Sam Ferrara | Unsplash.
New Zealand
Across the world in the South Pacific, New Zealand takes second place, making it the most peaceful country in the Asia-Pacific region. New Zealand continues to rank among the world’s leading countries in the Index’s Ongoing Conflict and Safety and Security domains, while recording the lowest Ongoing Conflict ranking of any country in the Asia-Pacific.
For visitors, peacefulness sits comfortably alongside many of the qualities that have made New Zealand such an enduring destination for independent travel. Its compact cities give way quickly to mountains, lakes, beaches, forests and long stretches of countryside, while an extensive network of walking trails encourages travellers to experience those landscapes at a human pace.
There is also something fitting about New Zealand sitting immediately behind Iceland. Separated by half a world, these two island nations share an ability to make landscape feel immense and our presence within it comparatively small.
The Chapel Bridge in the historic city centre of Lucerne, Switzerland. Photographer: Bluejayphoto | iStock.
Switzerland
Completing the top three is Switzerland, which remains one of the strongest performers in Western and Central Europe for Safety and Security. Switzerland brings a distinctly different character to the trio. Here, peacefulness accompanies one of the world’s most celebrated networks of cities, villages, railways and mountain communities.
The scale can change remarkably quickly. A morning beside a lake can become an afternoon high in the Alps; trains climb towards communities surrounded by peaks; walking routes thread through valleys and meadows; and cities including Zürich, Geneva, Bern and Lucerne place centuries of history within easy reach of the countryside. For solo travellers in particular, that combination of accessibility, transport and security can make moving independently through the country unusually straightforward.
Iceland, New Zealand and Switzerland could hardly look more different. One is shaped by volcanoes and the North Atlantic, another stretches across two principal islands in the South Pacific, while the third sits among the mountains at the heart of Europe. Yet perhaps their place at the top of the Global Peace Index adds something less easily photographed to everything we already know about them. Peacefulness becomes part of the experience itself – the freedom to wander, explore and engage with a place with confidence.
Source: The Global Peace Index 2026.