Copenhagen
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Vivid and energetic is Copenhagen is the place of hygge – Danish way of enjoying life and having a good time.
The city is located on eastern shore of Zealand, partly on the island of Amager and on a number of natural and artificial islets between these two. Copenhagen has about 580,000 residents, whole metropolitan area having population 1,9 million.
Shopping
Pedestrian mall Strøget, linking City Hall, Kongens Nytorv, and Nørreport station, is the main shopping district of Copenhagen. Here are luxurious design stores and cafés. There is also a good and cheap-priced flea market in Halmtorvet, Vesterbro area, near the central station.
Recreation
There is two harbour baths, where is possible to go for a swim from early June to late August: Copencabana on Vesterbro or Havnebadet at Island Brygge in Amager. There is good sand beaches at Charlottenlund Fort in Charlottenlund and the newly erected Amager Strandpark (The Lagoon) on Amager. The Meatpacking District in Vesterbro is the trendy center of nightlife, here is good nightclubs Bakken Kbh (Flæsketorvet 19-21) and Jolene (Flæsketorvet 81-85).
Something to explore
Christiania
Freetown Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood constructed in the former military area in heart of Copenhagen, and it is definitely a must-see. This former military area has appr. 850 residents – hippies, artists and practitioners of various countercultures. Beatiful murals and graffiti art makes atmosphere boheme. Christiania Cykler is a bike rental here.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
This glyptotheque museum (Dantes Plads 7) is built around personal art collection of Carl Jacobsen (1842–1914), the son of the founder of the famous Carlsberg brewery. It houses exhibition mainly concentrated on antique sculpture from the ancient cultures around the Mediterranean Sea including Egypt, Rome and Greece, and also modern sculptures such as a collection of Auguste Rodin works, considered the most important outside France. However, the museum also exhibits the significant amount of paintings by French Impressionists and Post-impressionists, and painters representing the Danish Golden Age.
Tivoli
Tivoli is one of the most important landmarks of Copenhagen, and definitely the place of joie de vivre. This amusement park and pleasure garden is one of the oldests amusement parks in the world, being opened in 1843. Here is e.g. 4 roller coasters, mini-Ferris wheel for kids, a pantomime theater, and a concert hall. There is also one on-site hotel at the park. A splendid all-family site near the city center, which houses the Christmas markets December.
Rosenborg Castle
This Renaissance castle was used as a royal residence until around 1710. It was constructed between 1606-1624 by order of the Danish king Christian IV. Today it houses a museum, which depicts the Royal Collections, artifacts of royal Danish culture, from the late 16th century of Christian IV to the 19th century. Specially the Knight’s Hall with its stucco ceiling is the glorious part of the castle’s interior. The Rosenborg Castle Garden Kongens Have is the country’s oldest royal garden and was embellished in the Renaissance style by Christian IV shortly before the construction of the main castle.
How to get around in Copenhagen
Public transportation in Copenhagen is efficient. Main hubs are Central Station ( Hovedbanegården/København H) with S-trains, intercity trains and buses, and Nørreport Station with S-trains, metro, regional trains and buses. With the Copenhagen Card one have unlimited access to all public transport. Journey planner is here, ticket prices here.
Copenhagen is a good city for biking, and many hotels or bike shops rent out bikes. Rent a Bike in Copenhagen, Baisikeli or Rent a Bike Copenhagen are the examples of various bike rentals in the city area.
How to get in Copenhagen
Copenhagen is served by the international Kastrup Airport in Amager. List of its airlines is here.
Train journey from Kastrup to the Central Station (Hovedbanegården) takes about 12 minutes.
There is also a metro hub connecting the airport and the city center, trains leaving every four minutes during the day and every fifteen minutes at night.
Danish State Railways (DSB) operates all domestic trains in Denmark. See the travelling information here.
Most international buses stop somewhere around the Central Station (usually next to DGI-byen), but one should be sure to check the exact location while buying the ticket. Domestic long-distance buses mostly terminate at Toftegårds Plads, near Valby station in the Vesterbro district.
From Jutland bus number 888 connects Copenhagen with Aarhus and Aalborg several times per day. Journey time is five hours and fifteen minutes from Aalborg. On Zealand there are additional stops in Holbæk and Roskilde. Line 882 runs between Copenhagen and Fjerritslev in Northwestern Jutland once every day.
Eurolines offers bus lines to/from e.g. Hamburg, Paris and Amsterdam.
DFDS operates daily ferry line between Oslo and Copenhagen, journey takes 16 hours.
Highways E20 and E47 leads to Copenhagen. There is bridge crossing the Øresund Strait and connecting Copenhagen with Swedish Malmö.
Top 5 in Copenhagen
- Christiania
- Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
- Lovely day in Tivoli
- Rosenborg Palace
- Biking around the city
Text: Timo Hellman
Photos: Wikipedia Commons with the CC licence / Jim G, Karin Beate Nøsterud/norden.org, Jamin, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, København, Zairon[/fusion_text]
