This Island Has Been Revealed As The World's Best Place For Women

Clearly, the last 150 years of women’s rights campaigns have been a part of Icelandic consciousness, as the nation continues to be ranked the best place to be a woman. Perhaps it is written in the history of the country as a seafaring nation whose men were out at sea for long periods of time, which caused the women to be in charge of managing household affairs. A low gender pay gap and excellent maternity leave are only a few of the reasons why many often claim this island to be one of the best places to be a woman.

Active Women’s Rights Movement

While the popularity of recent female empowerment movements such as #FreeTheNipple and SlutWalk have been extremely popular in Iceland, the tiny island in the North Atlantic has actually had a long and surprisingly radical women’s rights agenda. Beginning in 1850, Iceland became the first country to grant unconditional equal inheritance rights to men and women. Not much time after that, women got the right to vote in 1915, five years before the United States.

For more details on Iceland’s active involvement, check out our article on the defining moments of this most feminist country.

Most gender-equal country

According to the World Economic Forum’s global gender gap report for 2017, Iceland remains the world’s most gender-equal country across all indicators. Only Iceland has closed more than 70% of its gender gap when it came to political empowerment while only four other countries have crossed the 50% threshold. Since the forum began their reports in 2006, Iceland has closed 10% of its total gender gap, making it one of the most fast-improving countries in the world.

Best parental leave policies in the world

Iceland has one of the top ten best parental leave policies in the world with parents having nine months of post-childbirth leave. The leave can be split in three with mothers getting three months, fathers getting three months, and the couple can split the remaining three however they wish. The portions cannot be altered, however, as the government wants to ensure both parents get time with the kids. Also, each parent receives 80% of their salary while on leave.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.