Paris has been named as the worst city-break location for air quality, with an air quality score of 66, according to a new study.
The study, by QR Code Generator, explored global Google search data over the past 12 months, to determine which cities in Europe and the US were the most sought-after for a city break, and the air quality scores for each location.
According to the metric used, the higher the score, the worse the air quality. Only cities with over 100,000 average monthly searches for city breaks were included.
European cities
Other than the French capital, European cities to score highly in the rankings included Benidorm, in third, with an air quality score of 57; Barcelona, in fourth, with an air quality score of 56; and Amsterdam, with an air quality core of 55, which place fifth.
The only other European city to make the top ten was Rome (air quality score 42), which placed ninth, with US locations such as Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, New Orleans and Nashville also appearing in the top ten.
‘Concerning’ findings
Commenting on the findings, Marc Porcar, CEO of QR Code Generator, said, “It is concerning to see such high pollution levels in popular holiday spots. Poor air quality can be harmful to children and those with asthma, and exposure to pollution can also increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and respiratory illness for everyone.
“There is promise for the future, as many cities are implementing low emission zones to tackle pollution. For example, by 2030, only electric or hydrogen fuel cars will be permitted to enter Paris, which was the first city in France to introduce the concept.
“Hopefully, we will see similar developments in all of the cities in the ranking, so that people can continue enjoying them safely for travel purposes.”
European and US city-break locations, graded by poor air quality
| Rank | City | Average Monthly Search Volume per 100k population | Air Quality Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paris | 185,633 | 66 |
| 2 | Chicago | 130,968 | 58 |
| 3 | Benidorm | 101,775 | 57 |
| 4 | Barcelona | 114,431 | 56 |
| 5 | Amsterdam | 202,893 | 55 |
| 6 | Dallas | 114,778 | 52 |
| 7 | Atlanta | 114,561 | 51 |
| 8 | New Orleans | 124,521 | 48 |
| 9 | Rome | 243,513 | 42 |
| 10 | Nashville | 100,578 | 34 |
| 11 | Miami | 242,546 | 31 |
| 12 | Las Vegas | 193,000 | 31 |
| 13 | New York | 364,766 | 28 |
| 14 | Denver | 109,658 | 28 |
| 15 | London | 169,493 | 25 |
| 16 | Dublin | 112,343 | 17 |
| 17 | Orlando | 191,857 | 16 |
