copenhagen sights, attractions and itinerary
Welcome to the Drink in the Sights Copenhagen itinerary. Here we'll talk about all the best Copenhagen sights and attractions, plus we'll throw in a bit about the city and its history to give you a feel for the Danish capital.
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Beautiful Castles, Perfect Parks, and a Flamethrower.
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Denmark is currently ranked as the second happiest country in the world, and after visiting the capital it's easy to see why. There's so many great Copenhagen attractions. They have the best looking theme park in the world, beautiful castles pretty much everywhere, clean well policed streets, coupled with low levels of inequality, crime, homelessness and drug abuse. On top of all this healthcare and childcare are both state funded, so people can avoid spending time with their kids. The capital also has a beach which is always a nice touch and from there you can look out over Oresund bridge which is one of the main Copenhagen sights. They have probably the best beer in the world (although it certainly isn't) and if you don't like any of this you can go live in Christiania, the free town on the edge of Copenhagen. When visiting Copenhagen there's no need to take much, if any cash. The Danes are very much a card loving country, and in most bars they will bring the card reader over straight away, and then look perplexed when you bring out cash.
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Getting to Copenhagen
Before we talk about our Copenhagen Itinerary we have to get you there. Copenhagen is one of the cheapest locations to fly to from the UK with direct flights from London (Luton, Stansted and Gatwick), Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol. I've put them in this order as they begin with the cheapest first when I searched. Once you get to Copenhagen Airport you'll want to take the Metro from the airport costs 36DKK, or just under 5 euros but you wont be paying this...
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To purchase your card just click here
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This really is going to save you a fortune especially if you're going to absolutely blitz the Copenhagen sights. I often get city passes for the ease of use on public transport and in Copenhagen we saved over £100 each having them. As we were staying 4 nights we got the 120 hour card, which we pre booked and picked up at the airport tourist information. It costs an eye watering £118. But this is money extremely well spent as it gives free transport absolutely everywhere, free access to all the the main Copenhagen attractions including the castles, Tivoli Park, and so on. If you have any doubts about getting the Copenhagen card just go to expedia, there's a list of all the attractions you get in for free along with their normal prices. Right now that's out the way lets start using it. With so many things on a Copenhagen itinerary it's best to try and keep the price down while still seeing all the main Copenhagen sights.
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Copenhagen Sights
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Tivoli Park
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Tivoli Park is 'The worlds most perfect amusement park,' says Lisa Simpson in the episode where the Simpson's go to Denmark. So you don't just have to take my word for how good this place is. I have no doubt this would top most lists of Copenhagen attractions. I should point out that while there are a lot of rides here you aren't going to find the worlds fastest, largest, or scariest, by any stretch of the imagination. What you'll find instead is a beautifully set out amusement paradise. There are plenty of rides to go on, and some of them looked quite good fun. But really you can quite happily just wander around the lakes and parks for hours.
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The park was opened in 1843 and is one of the most visited theme parks in the world. It has been regularly updated with new rides and attractions without losing any of its charm. On top of all this there's an open air stage with live performances, and when night comes the whole place lights up to create a truly fairy tale like atmosphere. So ideally arrive not long before nightfall. There's bars, restaurants and everything else you would expect, so just sit down, relax drink in the Copenhagen sights, and enjoy.
If you haven't got your Copenhagen Card you can book Tivoli tickets here.
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Take a Copenhagen
Walking Tour
Walking Tour
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I always try to book a walking tour for my first day in any city and Copenhagen is no different. There's loads available including free ones, where you tip the guide at the end. I usually give around 10-15 euros depending on how good they are. Walking tours are an excellent way to acclimatise to your new surroundings and get a bit of history. It's also an excellent way to find more for your Copenhagen itinerary. The one problem with the free tours is that they get pretty crowded while the paid ones keep numbers down to around about a dozen, and the larger ones will provide you with a headset to ensure you can hear the guide at all times. This is why since starting this site I've started booking tours in advance. To book a walking tour of Copenhagen just click here.
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Nyhavn and a Boat Tour
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If you've ever seen a picture of Copenhagen that wasn't Tivoli Park, or The Little Mermaid it was almost certainly this 17th century waterfront. This gorgeous part of Copenhagen's canal route is not to be missed. The bars, houses and restaurants are all painted in wonderfully bold, bright colours, with old wooden ships docked up in the water. The whole area is one of the top Copenhagen attractions.
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This is one of the places locals and tourists both come to crack open a beer, and watch the world go by. It's also where most boat tours start from, and as these are free with the Copenhagen Card it would be rude not to partake. On the tours you'll see a whole new side to this wonderful city, as you pass by all the main landmarks including The Little Mermaid statue. The boat captains are quite happy for you to take a beer on-board, which only makes the relaxing hour long tour even better. Once you're back at Nyhavn just take another look around, it's a truly beautiful area.
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Visit Carlsberg
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As a real ale drinker I almost can't believe I'm putting Visit Carlsberg in my Copenhagen itinerary, but I'm here to serve. While I hope you'd agree this probably isn't the best beer in the world, the Carlsberg tour is one of the best brewery tours you'll ever do. As with most things in this guide it's free with the Copenhagen Card, which effectively means you're going to get a free beer out of the trip if nothing else. As usual with these tours you'll get to see all the brewing equipment, and discover exactly how they manage to make Carlsberg taste so bland. The place itself is actually really good fun to walk around, and the rooms with thousands of beer bottles are hugely impressive. At the end you get a choice of a Carlsberg, or a more malty Carlsberg, which I hadn't had before, and wasn't terrible. They also have cider for celiacs, which is a nice touch. Plenty of buses go to the brewery and they even put their own free one on. Drinking a Danish beer has to be one of the top things to do in Copenhagen so why not do it here. It's a nice little trip and as the zoo, Cisterns, and Frederksberg Slot are all in the same area so you can make a day of it.
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Copenhagen Attractions
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Frederiksberg Slot
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Right first things first, it's easy to confuse Frederiksberg Slot with Frederiksborg Slot. So lets clear this up right away. Frederisborg Slot is a wonderful castle way out of the city centre, which we'll get to soon. Frederiksberg Slot is a large yellow palace near the zoo that you can't get in. Right now that's cleared up you come here for the lovely lavish gardens around the yellow palace, not for the palace itself and because you can walk through these as you head towards the zoo and Cisterns.
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The Cisterns
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Beware the flamethrower!!! Isn't something I get to say often, but it's quite appropriate here. This often overlooked gem of a subterranean museum/gallery was one of my favourite Copenhagen sights, and I strongly urge you to pay them a visit. Maybe it's just that I like odd, dark things, or maybe it's because it felt genuinely unique to be wondering around a near pitch black exhibition. But it's certainly a sensory conundrum.
You start by changing into some wellies, and then head down a passage with the ominous wording 'In is the only way out.' Once inside you find yourself in an underground labyrinth with a giant gong, some hanging mirrors, some wind chimes, some metal bowls, and a flamethrower. It's difficult to explain exactly what's going on, and the exhibitions do periodically change, but whatever is going on down there when you visit it'll certainly be atmospheric. This is easily the best off the beaten track Copenhagen attractions.
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Christiania
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Visiting Christiania should be on everyone's Copenhagen itinerary. Christiania was the first, and is still the most famous free town to have popped up around Europe. If you've read my bit about Vilnius you'll know there's one there too. But Christiania takes itself much more seriously. There's only about 1000 people living/squatting in Christiania these days, and they aren't a fan of photography, so don't take too many pictures. Traditionally these free towns are areas where the rules are somewhat more ambiguous than in the city center. There's certainly a thriving cannabis trade, but the people were friendly, and it didn't feel like a dangerous area. The graffiti is for the most part excellent and it's certainly worth spending half an hour wondering around this very different part of Copenhagen.
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Rosenborg Castle
Denmark is full of wonderful castles, and we'll get to a couple more in a minute, but this 17th century masterpiece is the one closest to the centre, and it's absolutely stunning. The gardens are vast and beautiful, so make sure you leave yourself time to walk around them, while the inside is more befitting of a palace than a castle. Sumptuous ceilings, tapestries, and art work cover every room of this extraordinary building, which also houses the Danish crown jewels. If I'm honest I wouldn't imagine this castle would cope particularly well with a horde of invaders banging on the door, but it certainly has a regal magnificence to it. This has to be one of the top Copenhagen sights.
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Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
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No this isn't another tribute to a bog standard lager. This is Copenhagen's main museum and art gallery. The pride and joy of the gallery is most probably The Thinker by Rodin, but there's much more than just him to admire in this pretty impressive museum. The Glyptotek features Danish, French, and European collections, as well as a large ancient history section, with the Egyptian rooms been particularly impressive. If you enjoy sculptures this is certainly an art gallery for you. The cherry on top of the cake is that you can head out onto the gallery roof, which gives a great view over Tivoli Park and the Copenhagen skyline.
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Copenhagen Itinerary Extras
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Rundetaarn
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On the subject of views over Copenhagen we have the Round Tower. This is one of the must dos in Copenhagen and was once the city observatory, which at times is still in use today. There's no lift but there's also no stairs, you just walk up a gentle slope to the top, calling in at the exhibition center about halfway up. Which when we went had some lovely modern art in. Once you reach the peak you are presented with 360 degree views of Copenhagen. This is definitely the place to go for your panoramic shots and to drink in the Copenhagen sights.
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Go to the Beach
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With so many things to do in Copenhagen it's nice to be able to spend some time just relaxing on the beach. I never thought of Copenhagen as a summer sun location before visiting. But the beach is only 20 minutes outside the center is pretty nice and relaxing. There's also the added bonus that it has great views, not only of the city behind you, but more importantly the famous Oresund bridge, which crosses the sea to Malmo in Sweden. It's a remarkable feat of engineering and worth going over as a day trip if you get chance.
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Tours From Copenhagen
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You can book this wonderful castles tour here.
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I'm going to put these two amazing castles together because they can be done as part of a tour, which if you want to splash out nearly £100 is excellent. But for the more frugal minded they can also be done fairly easily independently as a day trip on the train, which is covered by the Copenhagen Card, as is the entrance fees. We did it on our own, but I appreciate the tour will give a greater insight into the buildings, and having transport provided can be a big bonus.
Either way the first stop is Frederikborg Castle. |
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It really doesn't matter how far around the world you travel you're unlikely to come across a much more lavish castle than this 17th century beauty built for King Christian IV. The Fountain of Neptune in the courtyard is absolutely stunning, and certainly a fitting monument to this building. The chapel and great hall are probably the most impressive rooms, but they are two of many you just have to see to appreciate. Anyone with an interest in castles, palaces, art, or architecture wont be anything other than impressed by this building. Danish castles are certainly among the most impressive Copenhagen attractions.
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Kronborg Castle is believed to be the setting for Shakespeare's Hamlet. So school children around the globe will be particularly annoyed that it was ever built. The castle sits right on the coast, and dates back to the 15th century. Despite the presence of a Ballroom and Royal Apartments, which are both stunning, this does feel more like a proper castle. But maybe that's just because it has cannons outside. As you'd expect from a Danish castle the interior is filled with wonderful artwork and tapestries, but it's far less lavish than Frederikborg. Still though if I was under siege this would be my Danish castle of choice, even if I did have to learn Shakespeare to get in. To book this tour through expedia click here. This really is an excellent trip once you've done all the central Copenhagen itinerary.
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Why not check out my guide to the best pubs in Copenhagen
I hope you enjoyed our Copenhagen itinerary. Now that we've talked about all the Copenhagen sights and attractions it's time for you to go see them yourself. Search Expedia for your Copenhagen trip using the search box below.
Need more help with your Copenhagen Trip?
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If you want more help planning your Copenhagen trip why not use the Drink in the Sights free Holiday Planning Service where all you have to do is contact me on the form below or via Facebook messenger and I'll help you plan your next trip. I'll look for the right flights, hotels, transfers and tours just for you, and it wont cost you a penny.
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