Where cultivating joy prevails
Copenhagen is the world’s happiest city according to the Institute for Quality of Life’s recently released
2025 Happy City Index.
But makes a happy city? For some it might mean walkability, coffee, culture and sea breezes (we’re looking at you IMEX HQ Brighton and Hove!), for others it might mean green spaces, education and mobility.
According to the Institute the top 20 happiest cities are “committed to cultivating and growing happiness, where education, inclusive policies, the economy, mobility, environmental protection, access to green areas and innovation, are not only important components of official policies but are also evident in the solutions implemented.”
Of the top 20, 18 are here at IMEX 2025. Copenhagen takes the top spot for being a supremely livable space, a hub for green innovation, cutting-edge architecture and renowned restaurants. Where cycle-power rules, where bracing harbor-swims are followed by visits to one of the city’s many (many) excellent bakeries. City number two, Zurich’s stunning Lake Zurich setting is enhanced by its old world Alstadt and design-led Zurich West. The term “cultural melting pot” might be overused but it’s the best way to describe the tropical city-state of Singapore, with world-class culture, food and shopping sitting alongside temples and jungle trails. We’re unsurprised to see Vancouver (where 25 IMEX team members lived out a coming-out-of-the pandemic two-week remote-work dream pre IMEX America 2021) on the list. Surrounded by extraordinary water and mountain-scapes, it’s a city where you really could ski in the morning and paddleboard in afternoon.
Munich makes the list, not just for Oktoberfest but also for its network of cycling an walking paths, 100-plus museums and galleries—and of course amazing Kaffee und Kuchen. City of art and culture, Vienna, creative and eco-friendly Stockholm, kaleidoscopic and dynamic New York join Aarhus, Antwerp, Seoul, Taipei, Rotterdam, Paris, Helsinki, Aalborg, Berlin, Dresden, Brussels and Geneva to round out the list.
Visit your happy place at IMEX 2025: Antwerp,
booth E150; Berlin,
booth F010; Brussels,
booth E120; Copenhagen,
booth F260; Dresden,
booth G125; Geneva,
booth E155; Helsinki,
booth F250; Munich,
booth F150; New York,
booth C170; Paris,
booth D250; Rotterdam,
booth E100; Seoul,
booth C460; Singapore,
booth C400; Stockholm,
booth F200; Taipei,
booth B410; Vancouver,
booth C300; Vienna,
booth E160; Zurich,
booth E155
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