Sightseeing
Copenhagen while you are here
Places we go ourselves, a short walk or a metro ride from the floor. Lanes, castles, the harbour, the gardens and the food halls, with the nearest metro stop for each.
Getting around is easy. The metro runs through the night, every night, so a late milonga is never a problem, and bikes can be rented all over the city. Copenhagen is one of the most bike friendly cities in the world: flat streets, wide cycle lanes and a bike path on almost every road, which makes the whole city reachable in a saddle.
The old town
Magstræde
One of the oldest streets in Copenhagen, and one of the quietest. Half-timbered houses, cobbles underfoot and almost no traffic. Come early in the morning or just before dark, when the lamps come on and the lane belongs to the people walking it.
In the old town, a few minutes from the City Hall square.
Nearest Metro: Gammel Strand, lines M3 and M4
Around Nyhavn
The lanes behind the harbour
Copenhagen is best seen from a bicycle, and the small streets behind the harbour are where the city still looks like itself. Brick, plaster, coloured gables and doorways that have been there for three hundred years. Turn off the main street and keep walking.
Nearest Metro: Kongens Nytorv, lines M1, M2, M3 and M4
Slotsholmen
Christiansborg Palace
The parliament, the royal reception rooms and the ruins of the old castle all sit in one building. Take the lift to the top of the tower for the best free view of the city, then walk down to the riding ground and watch the horses exercise in the morning.
The tower is free and sits in the middle of the old town.
Nearest Metro: Gammel Strand, lines M3 and M4
Christianshavn
Christiania
A freetown inside the city, with its own rules and its own look. Wooden houses, workshops, food stalls and murals everywhere. Walk through respectfully, ask before you photograph people, and leave the camera in the bag in the parts where the signs ask you to.
Ten minutes on foot from Christiansborg, across the canal.
Nearest Metro: Christianshavn, lines M1 and M2
The King’s Garden
Rosenborg Castle
A small Renaissance castle with a moat, a garden and the Crown Jewels in the basement. The rooms are dense with silver, ivory and portraits, and the walk around the moat takes less than half an hour. In May the garden is full of people on the grass with coffee.
Between Nørreport and the lakes, an easy stop on the way into town.
Nearest Metro: Nørreport, lines M1 and M2
Købmagergade
The Round Tower
A seventeenth century observatory with a spiral ramp instead of stairs, wide enough for a horse and carriage. Walk up the cobbled spiral, stop in the library hall halfway, and come out on the platform above the roofs. The view covers the old town and the harbour.
In the middle of the old town, on the walking street.
Nearest Metro: Nørreport, lines M1 and M2
Frederiksstaden
Amalienborg
Four rococo palaces around one of the finest squares in Europe, and the queen’s winter home. The guard changes at noon, and it is worth standing still for. The Marble Church dome closes the view at the end of the street.
At the end of Bredgade, ten minutes from Nyhavn.
Nearest Metro: Marmorkirken, lines M3 and M4
The harbour
Nyhavn by day
The postcard, and it earns it. Gabled houses from the 1600s, wooden ships along the quay and tables on the sunny side of the canal. Walk to the end and look back for the full row of facades.
Ten minutes on foot from Kongens Nytorv.
Nearest Metro: Kongens Nytorv, lines M1, M2, M3 and M4
From Nyhavn
The canal tour
An hour on the water, out through the harbour and into the narrow canals of Christianshavn. The guide points out what you would otherwise walk past, and you see the city from the side that made it rich. Sit outside if the weather allows.
Boats leave from the quay at Nyhavn through the day.
Nearest Metro: Kongens Nytorv, lines M1, M2, M3 and M4
Next to the City Hall
Tivoli Gardens
Opened in 1843 and still the strangest, prettiest evening in the city. Gardens, lanterns, a lake with boats, a Chinese pagoda and brass bands. Go after dark when the lights come on, and stay for one ride you would never try at home.
Right beside the City Hall square, in the middle of the city.
Nearest Metro: København H, lines M3 and M4
Israels Plads
Torvehallerne
Two glass halls full of food, a few minutes from the railway station. Smørrebrød, fish, cheese, olives, coffee and something sweet. This is where the city shops for a picnic, and the place to buy bread and cheese before a long afternoon in a park.
Beside Nørreport station, on the way to the old town.
Nearest Metro: Nørreport, lines M1 and M2
Langelinie
The Little Mermaid
Small, famous and always surrounded. She sits on her rock at the harbour edge, and the walk there along the water is the real reason to go. Continue to the park and the old fortifications afterwards, or rent a bike and keep going north.
A short bike ride north of Nyhavn along the harbour.
Nearest Metro: Østerport, lines M3 and M4
Frederiksstaden
Amalienborg at dusk
The same square after sunset, when the lamps come on and the cobbles turn gold. The Marble Church dome sits at the end of the street like a piece of scenery. A good place to end a walk before dinner.
Nearest Metro: Marmorkirken, lines M3 and M4
The harbour
Nyhavn at sunset
The canal at the end of the day, when the water goes still and the houses repeat themselves in it. Ships, reflections and the low light on the brick. Bring a jacket and take your time.
Nearest Metro: Kongens Nytorv, lines M1, M2, M3 and M4
Holmen
The Opera House
A wide copper roof over the harbour, glowing from the inside after dark. The building is free to walk around, the foyer is open before performances, and the view back across the water to Amalienborg is the best part.
On Holmen, a short walk from Nyhavn over the bridge.
Nearest Metro: Marmorkirken, lines M3 and M4
Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg Gardens
A huge park around a yellow palace, with long lawns, canals and a small Chinese pavilion. On a warm afternoon half the city lies on the grass here. Bring bread, cheese and something to drink and do the same.
A metro ride west, or a long walk through the city.
Nearest Metro: Frederiksberg, lines M1 and M2
Photo credits: hotel.com.