What happens when conscious travel is rewarded in real time
Copenhagen’s CopenPay program might be one of the clearest examples yet of how destinations can rewire tourism behavior without alienating visitors. The premise is simple: tourists who make low-impact choices (like cycling, taking public transport, or staying in eco-certified accommodations) earn points. Those points can be exchanged for kayak tours, museum access, or other curated cultural experiences. The more sustainable the action, the richer the reward.
But the power of CopenPay isn’t in the points. It’s in what the system values.
Where most destination strategies still operate on a volume mindset (counting heads, bookings, arrivals), CopenPay rewrites the equation entirely. It doesn’t reward presence; it rewards participation. It invites tourists to engage with the city as conscious contributors, not passive consumers.
The spirit of CopenPay reflects a broader Danish ethos of shared responsibility. Think of the “3-meter rule”, where every employee (no matter their role) is responsible for what happens in the 3 meters around them. It’s not just about tidiness. It’s about agency, ownership, and respect for shared space. CopenPay extends that same principle to visitors.
The mechanics are digital, simple, and scalable. Actions are tiered, with core sustainable habits forming the baseline, and deeper engagement (like attending green workshops or joining local cleanups) offering higher returns. There are even gamified challenges for those who want to do more, turning sustainability into a playful, self-directed experience.
And it’s working. In interviews, 98% of users said they’d recommend it to others. 90% said they’d use it again. Tourists describe the experiences as fun, social, and refreshingly “non-touristy”. Launched just last summer, the program has already scaled up, with more than triple the number of participating venues in 2025, and a timeline that now stretches across 9 summer weeks.
And critically, CopenPay isn’t a marketing hook. It’s only promoted within the city, once the tourist is already there. This shifts the intent: instead of driving growth, it quietly filters for people who are open to engaging more deeply.
Copenhagen’s official website simply puts CopenPay as an invitation to participate, have fun, and help put focus on conscious tourism. The word “invitation” sets a tone of openness and shared purpose, inviting visitors to step into the city’s values rather than be lectured on them.
With CopenPay, we’re empowering people to experience more of what Copenhagen offers while placing less burden on our planet. It’s about creating meaningful and memorable experiences that are enjoyable and environmentally responsible.
Mikkel Aarø Hansen, CEO of Wonderful Copenhagen.
This approach aligns the city’s tourism vision with its broader climate goals, but it also repositions the visitor, not as a liability to manage, but as a potential agent of good. That’s a fundamental mindset shift, and one that many other DMOs have struggled to translate from strategy decks into real-world programs.
CopenPay’s early success offers a blueprint:
- Create incentives that align visitor behavior with civic goals.
- Make sustainability a source of access and enrichment, not restriction.
- Keep it fun, visible, and local.
Since CopenPay introduces a completely new way of engaging with a destination, it’s no surprise that some visitors found it unfamiliar at first. Many loved the idea once they discovered it, but often heard about it too late to plan their trip around it. A few even confused it with the more traditional Copenhagen Card. It’s a reminder that when you’re building something new, making it easy to find, understand, and join matters just as much as the idea itself.
It’s also a powerful case for cross-sector collaboration. Local businesses and cultural institutions are active participants in the program, offering real experiences (not discounts, but invitations) based on tourists’ choices. This year, the program extends the impact of tourism beyond the city, recognizing how visitors arrive, rewarding those who travel by train or choose to stay longer.
Demand is growing. Tourists want longer seasons, more time slots, and rewards that start even before arrival, like taking the train to Copenhagen instead of flying. There’s even interest in a version for locals.
As destinations everywhere wrestle with the impact of overtourism, climate pressure, and resident pushback, CopenPay reminds us thatnot all solutions require building new infrastructure. Sometimes, we just need better systems for valuing what matters.
That’s exactly the tourism we want.
