Copenhagen City Guide

I fell in love with Copenhagen the moment the plane landed. Everything about the city is beautiful, from the attractions and buildings to the food and the people. I couldn’t say anything bad about Copenhagen, except that it rains a lot. I spent five days in Copenhagen over Christmas in 2014 so let me show you around.

Getting Around

First thing’s first, get a Copenhagen Card. Denmark is one of the most expensive countries in the world and the card makes visiting tourist attractions cheaper and in some cases, free.  We bought the 48-hour Copenhagen Card ($100 AUD) before we left Australia so we had time to read through the booklet on free attractions and plan what to see with the map they sent us.

Taxis, trains and buses are an easy way to get around the city, but they all cost quite a lot of money. It’s extremely easy to walk around. Most attractions are located within walking distance from one another and the city is extremely easy to navigate. Just pack comfortable walking shoes and wet weather gear. Alternatively you can join the locals and ride a bike. Copenhagen has some of the best bike paths in the world!

(TIP: Go on a free walking tour of Copenhagen. These guides are extremely knowledgeable and they’ll show you how to get around on foot. They’ll also explain how to get the most out of your visit without spending loads of money.)

Attractions

If you join a free walking tour you’ll cover most of these attractions in a single day. But remember, there’s always a lot more to discover! All of the attractions we visited were free with our Copenhagen Cards so I strongly recommend you grab one!

Start with a visit to Town Hall where you’re welcome to venture inside. This is a good reference point to mark the city centre too. Just outside Town Hall is the Lure Blowers statue. Across the road is the H.C Andersen Museum which is only a small museum and takes around 20 minutes to walk through so check it out!

Copenhagen is home to a number of royal palaces and grounds which are always well kept and make for beautiful photos. The Botanical Gardensare well worth a visit in any season of the year. Walk through the grounds of Amalienborg (the royal palace) for photos of the castle and keep your eye out for the royal family! While you’re here, don’t forget to look across the water at the Opera House. The palace is also located close to Nyhavn– a canal district famous for its pubs, and the Little Mermaid statue – the most famous (and probably most disappointing) attraction in the city.  Other castles worth visiting include Kunsthal Charlottenborg,Christiansborg Palace and Rosenborg Castle.

The National Museum of Denmark is located in the heart of the city and is home to a viking ship. It’s a large museum so if you want to see everything you’ll need to put some time aside. There are hands-on activities throughout the museum to keep you interested though.

One attraction you won’t be able to escape the sight of is the Round Tower. Muster up the willpower to walk to the top because the views are worth it! You’ll be able to see right across Copenhagen and you’ll even see part of Sweden. Not too far from the tower is an old and popular church, Copenhagen Cathedral, which you can enter for free.

The Carlsberg Brewery and museum is a fun and historical place to visit, even if you’re like me and you don’t drink alcohol at all. Your entry includes two drink coupons (per person) which can be used at any of the bars throughout the brewery for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The brewery is home to the Guinness World Record’s largest beer bottle collection and a lot of beer. It was surprisingly one of my favourite attractions.

The Copenhagen Card also gives you free entry into Tivoli Gardens (the world’s second oldest theme park) twice which is great because you absolutely need to visit the gardens by day and night. Because we travelled over Christmas there were a lot of extra decorations, activities, markets and rides. Santa was there too! There are machines all over the park where you can buy ride tickets. I recommend buying the unlimited one because there are a lot of cool rollercoasters and rides that offer great views of the city.

Shopping

If you’re there over Christmas you must visit the Christmas markets. Local shops, designers and craftsman set up stalls to sell unique Christmas gifts. It’s a great place to do some inexpensive Christmas shopping, eat local foods and drink mulled wine.

The best place to do your shopping is also the main street in Copenhagen, Strøget. The road is vehicle-free so you don’t have to worry about the traffic. Here you’ll find the flagship Lego Store as well as all of your European favourites, Zara, H&M and much more.

What are your favourite things about Copenhagen? If you’re planning on staying in Copenhagen, check out my review of First Hotel Kong Frederik.

Ash
xx

Christmas in Copenhagen

Christmas for me is always about spending time with my family, enjoying the traditional lunch and dinner traditions. Our family does the same thing every year. But 2014 was the first year I spent Christmas away from my family. My boyfriend and I travelled to Scandinavia for a month where we spend Christmas in Denmark.

Christmas is celebrated over December 24 and 25 in Denmark but most of the attractions stay open on Christmas Eve.

We were in Copenhagen from December 21-25 where we were lucky enough to experience a white Christmas – the first in Copenhagen in almost ten years!

On December 24 not everything was open so we planned our sightseeing to work around that. In the morning we went for a walk through the Botanic Gardens and we admired Rosenborg Castle. We spent the rest of the day at Tivoli where we took a photo with Danish Santa, went on as many rides as we could and ate traditional Danish foods. There weren’t many people around so we didn’t have to line up for anything. We also met a lot of other tourists, some of whom we ran into a few more times on our travels through Scandinavia.

At 4pm we went to Copenhagen Cathedral for Christmas mass. We couldn’t understand most of it because it was in Danish but the songs were nice. The sun sets at around 3-4pm in winter so it was pretty dark by the time mass finished. We grabbed some dinner and went back to the hotel to pack our suitcases and get an early night.

On December 25 we woke to snow on our first white Christmas ever. We went out to take some photos in front of the Christmas tree near Town Hall. We left Copenhagen just around lunch time to board an overnight cruise to Oslo. We had dinner in one of the finer restaurants on the ship where our waiter told us great things about Oslo and Norway.

I thought it was going to be hard to spend Christmas away from my family but being with my boyfriend and travelling meant we got to experience a different kind of Christmas spirit. Plus, being Australian, my family were celebrating Christmas while I was asleep so it was kind of easy to forget. I also got my family much more amazing gifts while I was travelling.

For this year though, I think I’m going to stick to the family traditions.

Tivoli

Merry Christmas!

The Copenhagen Christmas tree

Tivoli Christmas markets

Do you have any Christmas traditions? Let me know in the comments below! Don’t forget to check out the hotel I stayed in. 
Ash
xx

Must Eats in Denmark

Denmark is a country known for its beer, ice cream and apple Danish. Well, that’s all I knew about it before I travelled there. But there are a couple of traditional and authentic foods you simply must try if you’re travelling through Denmark.

Smørrebrød
The open sandwich, usually made on rye bread, is the perfect lunch meal. It’s fresh and healthy and a much more exciting way to eat a sandwich. It’s not hard to find a café or restaurant which sell the sandwiches at lunch. I tried the chicken salad but my boyfriend went for the salmon.

Hot Dog Stands
The absolute best thing about walking around Copenhagen all day has to be the cheap and delicious hot dogs. The stands are pretty much everywhere. Don’t expect an American-styled hot dog, these are served on a small and thin roll, wrapped in bacon and topped with pickles and crunchy onion. Delicious!

Bagels
Much like their smorrebrod, bagels are a sandwich staple. You’ll see a couple of bagel shops throughout the city or you can grab one at a café or 7Eleven.

Carlsberg Beer
If you don’t have time to visit the brewery itself, be sure to grab a pint of Carlsberg at the pub or restaurant. The beer is Denmark’s most popular and is exported all around the world.

Danish Pastries
The Danes are some of the nicest people you will ever meet so pop into a local bakery and ask them for the most traditional pastries they bake. We did that a couple of times and the results were always delicious! An apple Danish is so much more than a simple pastry in this country. Don’t forget to grab a coffee or hot chocolate while you’re there.

Herring and Haddock
Copenhagen is close to the water which makes fish and seafood a huge part of the Danes’ diets. You’ll find the fish on the menu all over Scandinavia, usually pickled. It’s not exactly something I would eat but I did try it.

Pork
If you’re after a traditional dinner in Denmark, head to the pub or a restaurant and order something with pork in it. Think roast pork and pork sausages. They’re the perfect side dish to your beer.

Don’t forget to check out my review of First Hotel King Frederik in Copenhagen! And save money travelling Copenhagen with my comprehensive city guide.

Ash
xx

Copenhagen: First Hotel Kong Frederik Review

Central location that’s comfortable and convenient

If you like staying close to the action then you’ll want to stay here. The hotel is located right near Stroget (the main shopping street in Copenhagen), Town Hall and Tivoli. You’ll never have trouble finding somewhere to eat and you’ll find it impossible to get lost on your way to an attraction.

The staff are very friendly and are willing to help you find your way around the city. We stayed at the hotel over Christmas and they left us a Christmas card and chocolates which was a nice surprise.

We stayed in the standard double room which was very spacious and comfortable for two people. There is a lift to get up and down floors but it’s a bit squishy. It still beats walking your luggage up to your room. There are about three security doors to get through before you can actually get into your room which can be a bit of a hassle when you’re carrying a lot of shopping.

The best part about the room was the free mini-bar drinks (all alcohol-free) but still better than any other hotel I’ve ever stayed at. The worst part about the room was the shower. It was pretty bad.

Plenty of famous people have stayed at the hotel from Ozzy Osbourne to Meatloaf. It’s a five-star hotel at the price of a three star hotel in Copenhagen (which is the price of a five-star hotel anywhere else in the world).

I give First Hotel Kong Frederik four stars.

Don’t forget to check out my comprehensive Copenhagen city guide! 

Ash
xx

First Hotel Kong Frederik
Vester Voldgade 25,
1552 København,
Denmark

Copenhagen: Brewpub review

Traditional pub food in the heart of Copenhagen

The Danes love their beer and if you’re in Copenhagen there’s one restaurant that’s perfect for tasting traditional Danish food and beer – Brewpub. The pub/restaurant/microbrewery is located in a small lane in the middle of the city. You’ll have to follow the signs to get inside because it’s underground.

You’ll probably want to make a booking if you’re planning on eating there because the restaurant is pretty small so it fills up quite quickly. Bookings can be made online from anywhere in the world. I made a booking for my boyfriend and I from Sydney about a week before we flew out of the country.

The menu is filled with traditional entrees, mains and desserts. The way it works is you get two courses with your booking (288DKK each). My boyfriend ordered an entre of pickled haddock and a main of steak and veggies. I went for the steak and veggies main and cheese platter for dessert.

Staff are very welcoming, especially once they found out my boyfriend and I were travelling from Sydney. They recommended a couple of things to see, other restaurants to try and what food to order from the menu.

If you aren’t afraid to splash some cash on a meal and drinks, visit Brewpub.

I give Brewpub five stars for food and service. 

Don’t forget to check out my travel tips and guides for Copenhagen!

Ash
xx

Brewpub
Vestergade 29,
1456 København K,
Denmark

Copenhagen: Sort Kaffe & Vinyl

The Danes love their coffee and so do I. When I was in Copenhagen I was on a quest to find the perfect cup of coffee. And I proudly say that I have found a winner.

Sort Kaffe & Vinyl isn’t a popular café in the city but my boyfriend and I discovered it on our way to the Carlsberg Brewery so it isn’t too far off the beaten track. The café combines the delicious menu of a café with new, local and retro vinyl in a very cosy and relaxed atmosphere.

There are a couple of tables and stools to sit at and a spot at the back of the café where you can listen to the music you’ve just discovered. There are stacks of vinyl to look through so you’ll want to take your time.

As for the coffee, the cappuccino I had here was deliciously strong and brewed to perfection, just the way I like it.

The prices are fairly good compared to most cafes in Copenhagen but if you’re visiting from another country they’re going to seem quite expensive.

Music and coffee. What more could you want?

I give Sort Kaffe & Vinyl five stars.

Don’t forget to check out my Copenhagen city guide! 
Ash
xx