Europe’s bathing waters remain safe for swimming

From the Atlantic to the Mediterranean, the vast majority of Europe’s bathing waters met the European Union’s strictest ‘excellent’ bathing water quality standards in 2025, according to the latest annual report on bathing waters published today. This represents 85% of Europe’s bathing areas, with 96% of all monitored EU bathing areas meeting the minimum quality standards, and only 1.5% rated as ‘poor’. These figures also show that the overall quality of bathing waters across Europe has remained stable compared with the previous year.

The highest proportion of bathing waters of excellent quality is found in Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Greece, with a total of 95% or more. The quality of coastal bathing waters is generally better than that of rivers and lakes. In 2025, 88% of coastal bathing waters in the EU were classified as ‘excellent’, compared with 78% of inland bathing waters.

The assessment and interactive map, produced by the European Environment Agency (EEA) in cooperation with the European Commission, show where swimmers can find the safest bathing areas in Europe. The assessment examines the suitability of the water for bathing, focusing on monitoring bacteria that can potentially cause serious illnesses.

The excellent quality of Europe’s bathing waters is underpinned by the sustained impact of EU legislation. Thanks to the EU Bathing Water Directive and other EU water legislation, the quality of Europe’s bathing waters has improved steadily in recent years. This includes improved monitoring and management practices, investment in urban wastewater treatment plants, better wastewater collection, and improved assessment of cyanobacterial algal blooms that can be harmful to human health and the natural environment.

Thanks to these ongoing efforts, people can now also swim in many urban waters and rivers that were previously heavily polluted. At the same time, achieving healthy and resilient water systems requires ongoing progress to address broader pressures on surface and groundwater, including chemical pollution and climate-related impacts. Promoting water quality for both people and nature is a key component of the EU’s Water Resilience Strategy.

Background

The assessment in today’s report is based on the monitoring of more than 22,200 bathing sites across Europe that were reported to the EEA for the 2025 season. This includes sites in all EU Member States, Albania and Switzerland.

Alongside this year’s Bathing Water Report, the EEA has also published an updated interactive map showing the performance of each bathing site. Updated country factsheets are also available, as well as further information on the implementation of the Directive in the countries assessed.

The Bathing Water Directive, which complements the Water Framework Directive, is one of several pieces of EU legislation designed to protect water: the Environmental Quality Standards Directive, the Groundwater Directive, the Nitrates Directive, the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.

 

More information: European Commission