[imagesource: Getty]

See those smug, glowing people in the image above?

They live in the happiest country in the world, which has managed to maintain its standing in the rankings, despite the scourge of life that was 2020.

Still, unlike previous years, things weren’t as simple as crunching the numbers and producing results.

Researchers needed to adapt to the times when it came to gathering data for the 2021 World Happiness Report, as countries implemented drastic changes in efforts to combat COVID-19.

The World Happiness Report 2021 focuses on the effects of COVID-19 and how people all over the world have fared.

Our aim was two-fold, first to focus on the effects of COVID-19 on the structure and quality of people’s lives, and second to describe and evaluate how governments all over the world have dealt with the pandemic.

In particular, we try to explain why some countries have done so much better than others.

The calculations are made by taking into account the social wellbeing, and the quality of life in a given country, as well as a measure of how long, on average, people live.

People want to live well, and they want to live long. Therefore, we should judge a society by the extent to which it enables people to experience lives that are long and full of well-being.

For any individual, the measure of this is simply the well-being she experiences each year summed up over all the years that she lives.

That calculation was made using an incredibly complicated set of mathematical equations which, if you’re keen, you can check out here.

What we’re really after is the end product, so without further ado, here are the top 10 happiest countries in the world:

1. Finland
2. Denmark
3. Switzerland
4. Iceland
5. Netherlands
6. Norway
7. Sweden
8. Luxembourg
9. New Zealand
10. Austria

Read more here.

Finland has managed to hang onto its spot for the fourth year in a row, so it’s worth listening to what they have to say about happiness, and how to achieve it.

Travel + Leisure looked into what keeps them cheerful.

“Finnish happiness isn’t skin deep and immediately visible — it’s deeply engrained in our being. Sustainable happiness is our superpower, and it means we tend to take life as it comes — a trait that is helping us through these challenging times,” said Heli Jimenez, senior director of international marketing at Business Finland, in a press release.

If you’re keen to experience some of that joy, and travel restrictions permitting, you’ll find a list of activities at Finland, the country’s tourism organisation.

These include exploring one of the 188 000 beautiful lakes in the country, whether via kayak, canoe, or a horseback ride along the shore and partaking in the Finnish tradition of sitting in a sauna.

“We appreciate the small things in our daily lives, such as sitting quietly on a bench and staring at the empty lake after a relaxing sauna session, or taking a morning dip in the sea before starting the working day,” Jimenez explained.

Yeah, that does sound nice, and moreover, chilled.

We could all use a little zen right now, so it might be worth adding Finland to your destination bucket list.

[source:worldhappinessreport&travelleisure]