Where Are Europe’s Best (& Worst) Spots For A Swim?

With summer here, wild swimmers and beach enthusiasts may be happy to know that the European Environment Agency has once more published its annual assessment of the health and environmental quality of bathing waters in the European Union.

As Statista’s Anna Fleck reports, Cyprus, Austria, Croatia and Greece stand out for their bathing opportunities in 2023, with over 95 percent of sites in these countries having water quality rated as “excellent” last year.

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While the results seem poor for Poland, it is important to note that only 77 percent of the country’s bathing waters were assessed last year, meaning that 23 percent of waters have not yet received a classification.

Of the bathing waters surveyed, almost 72 percent were still “excellent” – a higher score than other countries at the bottom of the ranking, such as Hungary, Estonia and Belgium.