17 Things To Do In Copenhagen

My Personal List Of Ideas What To Do In Copenhagen

This page contains a list of things you can see or do in Copenhagen. You should not see the list as a top-list of the most important things too see - the list contains things that might by fun to see for somebody but might be less for others. Browse through the list and see if you find something that might be interesting for you to see. The list contains things ranging from very touristy things like The Little Mermaid to more simple tings like the office building of the shipping company Maersk. I will continue to develop on the list when I have time.

1. The Little Mermaid (Den Lille Havfrue)

The Little Mermaid is properly one of the most famous tourist attraction in Copenhagen. The Little Mermaid or Den Lille Havfrue as it is called in Danish is a bronze and granite sculpture which is based on the fairy tale from 1830 by the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen. The Little Mermaid is also known from the Disney movie by the same name. The sculpture is located at Langelinie promenade which is about 1.7 km (1 mile) from downtown Copenhagen. If you walk the distance make sure to check out the Amalienborg Royal Palace, Kastellet (old star fortresses) and Mærsk Headquarter which is located in the same area.

Danish Name: Den Lille Havfrue
Location: Click here for map

2. Mærsk Headquarters

Mærsk or Maersk is one of the biggest companies in Denmark and one of the biggest container shipping companies in the world. Maersk is doing business in different sectors but mainly within transportation and energy. The company employees more than 89.000 people around the world and has offices in more than 135 contries. The headquarter is located in the north part of Copenhagen and is within walking distance from downtown.

Danish Name: Mærsk Hovedkontor
Location: Click here for map

3. Palads Cinema

Palads Cinema is located in the center of Copenhagen and is one of the oldest cinemas in Denmark. The building which houses the theater was initially built as a train station but was later sold and converted into a movie theater. In 1989 the building was repainted using a lot of different colors - this is the look the building has to day. The theater features 17 auditoriums with a total of about 2.600 seat. In Denmark it is normal that movies have the original sound track but with danish subtitles. However, children's movies are normally synchronized into Danish language.

Danish Name: Palads Biograf
Location: Click here for map

4. The Haymarket (Halmtorvet)

Halmtorvet or directly translated into English, The Haymarket is a public square located in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen. The square is elongated in shape and has several restaurants and cafés located along side of it. The square has green spaces where it is possible to enjoy food and drinks. The area around the square is considered the old Copenhagen where it is possible to see many old buildings.

Danish Name: Halmtorvet
Location: Click here for map

5. Kebab Restaurants at Nørrebrogade

In Denmark the Kebab restaurants are located all over the city. Kebab is a type of meat, typically beef or lamb, which is spiced, put on a large spear and then slowly grilled. The meat is then sliced of the spear, as the outer layers of the meat is cooked, and then served in pita bread or as a dish together with fries or similar. The highest concentration of Kebab store is located on Nørrebrogade all along the fence to Assistens Kirkegård (large cemetery).

Danish Name: Kebab butikker
Location: Click here for map

6. Tivoli Garden

Tivoli Garden is an amusement park located at the very center of Copenhagen. The park is not a normal amusement park; besides featuring different rides, it also features many famous restaurants, small shops with everything from roasted nuts to home decorations and many small green areas with beautiful flowers and trees. The park opened back in 1843 and is the second oldest amusement park in the world. The world's oldest amusement park is located at The Dear Garden about 15 km north from Copenhagen. The Tivoli Garden has an entrance fee of about DKK 100 (USD 15)

Danish Name: Tivoli
Location: Click here for map

7. Queen Louise's Bridge (Dronning Louises Bro)

Dronning Louises Bro is the bridge crossing the Peplings- and the Sortedams-waters. When crossing the bridge our are leaving/entering the center of Copenhagen and entering/leaving Nørrebro which is a district of Copenhagen. The bridge has a beautiful view over the water. When the weather allows it, and also when it don't, the bridge is packed with people sitting on the benches drinking beer, soda, wine or eating food. In the summer period the bridge is like an unofficial party place where people meet to drink and to party during the nights. In Denmark there is no law against 'open-container' and you can drink public places.

Danish Name: Dronning Louises Bro
Location: Click here for map

8. Strøget (pedestrian shopping street)

Strøget is located in the center of Copenhagen and is a pedestrian shopping streets. The street has a length of about 1 km (2/3 mile) and is one of the longest shopping streets in Europe. The street is going from The City Hall Square (Rådhuspladen) all long to The King's New Square (Kongens Nytorv). The name Strøget actually refer to a compound of several different streets; Frederiksberggade, Nygade, Vimmelskaftet, Amagertorv and Østergade. The streets has a variety of different shops, cafes, restaurants, street musicians - it's a perfect place to stroll around.

Danish Name: Strøget
Location: Click here for map

9. Notre Dame – Shop with Cheap Scandinavian Interior

Notre Dame is a small shop with interior located on Nørregade which is a side street to Strøget (see #8). The little shop sells cheap interior in modern Scandinavian design. Notre Dame has a great range of kitchen utensils, glass, porcelain, textiles, storage, interior decoration, garden equipment, accessories and much more. The shop is really a visit worth.

Location: Click here for map

10. The Meat District(Kødbyen)

Kødbyen or translated The Meat District, is a smaller and very popular place in Copenhagen where many of the city's food wholesalers are located. Besides the food wholesalers, the area features different cafes, restaurants and art galleries. At night several clubs and bars opens up. The area has a old an industrial look and is nice place to get some good food or partying at night

Danish Name: Kødbyen
Location: Click here for map

11. Nyhavn (New Harbor)

Nyhavn is probably one of the most famous and popular places in Copenhagen. The street is just next to the old harbor and the buildings are some of the oldest and best preserved in Denmark. Nyhavn is directly translated as New Harbor and the street is located at the eastern part of downtown Copenhagen just at the end of the large square Kongens Nytorv. Nyhavn has many restaurants and bars where you can find delicious food, great drinks and cold beer. The place is both popular by tourist but also many locals come to this place to sit on the edge of the Harbor to drink some beer or wine.

When you come to the end of the street there is a beautiful view over the entire harbor and the Opera House. In the summer time, this place can be a bit crowded. However, the atmosphere is just fantastic. It is differently worth a visit.

Danish Name: Nyhavn
Location: Click here for map

12. Kongens Have (The Kings Garden)

<Kongens Have is a large garden located just next to the metro and S-train station Nørreport. Kongens Have can be directly translated to The Kings Garden and is a very popular place for the locals to hang out when the weather allows it. In the summer time people go to this place to exercise, enjoy a picnic or maybe just to drink some beers or wine. The garden is well preserved with beautiful trees, hedges and grass areas. I will recommend you to swing by this place if you are looking for a place to relax with some friends or family.

Danish Name: Kongens Have
Location: Click here for map

13. Copenhagen Opera House

The Copenhagen Opera House is located on the island Holmen just across the harbor on the eastern part of the downtown city. The Opera house was donated to the population of Denmark by the Danish container-shipping company Maersk. The construction of the Opera was completed in 2004 and is a popular and beautiful building. You can see the building up close. However, you can also just see it from the opposite shore. The Opera is built so that there is a direct view from Amalienborg (the Queens resident) to the front side of Opera - that is a great detail.

Danish Name: Københavns Operahus
Location: Click here for map

14. Bike Trackers

Copenhagen is one of the best bicycle cities in the world. When you come to Copenhagen, you will see bikes all over the place and especially around the larger train and Metro stations. Although, the public transportation in Copenhagen is really good, many locals uses their bikes to get around. As a tourist, there are bike rent opportunities several places around the city. Find them at larger train stations and popular places.

On several of the major commute bike lanes going in and out of downtown, there are installed bike counting machines. On warm summer days many thousands bikes passes through these places each day. This is probably not one of the best attractions you can see in Copenhagen, it is just a funny thing to see if you are in the area.

Danish Name: Cykeltællere
Location: Click here for map

15. Sightseeing Boats

I will recommend you to go on a ride with the Sightseeing Boats which are going around in the canales. The rides take you through the old parts of Copenhagen where you get to see many parts of the city including The Little Mermaid, Copenhagen Opera house, Amalienborg Castle and Nyhavn. The rides has guides which, are speaking several languages so they are absolutely worth a visit if you come as a tourist. The rides departs at the beginning of Nyhavn which you can read more about in point 11.

Danish Name: Kanaltours
Location: Click here for map

16. River Busses

If you need to get around in the area around the harbor you can take the Harbor boats. Some people also call these boats Nettobådene, which refers to the Danish Grocery Store Netto which has a yellow Logo. The boats has a fee but it's a part of the public transportation system so you can use the official travel payment card called Rejsekortet.

Danish Name: Havnebusser (Netto Bådene)
Location: Click here for map

16. Free View over Copenhagen

This is one of my absolute favorite experiences in Copenhagen. The view from the highest tower in Copenhagen is so amazing. This tower is simple called The Tower and it is located at the Christiansborg Palace which is a government building where most of the Danish politicians are working. There are no entrance fee and it is open daily except Mondays. The tower is open during the day and closes around 9 PM. So there are good opportunities of getting a view over the city in day light, during sunset and in the dark. I will absolutely recommend visiting this place to get a 360 degree view over the city.

Danish Name: Christiansborg Slot, Tårnet
Location: Click here for map