As I discovered this weekend, Copenhagen is a fantastic city. Denmark’s capital is a perfect city break destination and I fell in love with the place for so many reasons.
I get the feeling I will be waxing lyrical about this Scandi gem for weeks to come, but before you pack your bags to join me in this state of post-CPH euphoria, here’s a few things about the Danish capital you should know…
No eating after 10pm
This is a particular concern if you land in the evening, as we discovered…
Denmark is a relatively early-rising country and so it’s impossible to find a restaurant open past 10pm, and quite a struggle after 9pm. The best solution? Do as the Danes do and have tea around 6pm.
Looking for somewhere to eat in Copenhagen?
Click here for some cheap suggestions.
Copenhagen is FAR cheaper than anyone lets on
The biggest surprise of Copenhagen by far was just how affordable everything was. Sure, it’s easy to blow a load of money if you eat out in up-scale restaurants every night, but with minimal effort, you can find food for the price you’d pay in Manchester.
Some bargains:
- all-day hop on/hop off boat pass: £8 (75 DK)
- croissant and hot chocolate from a bakery: £4.50 (40 DK)
- bottle of cider in a Nyhavn cafe: £5.50 (49 DK)
- 3-hour guided bike tour (inc. bike hire): £33 (299 DK)
I really don’t understand why people put it on a par with places like these.
Danish Kroner are unfathomable
WHY ARE THE NUMBERS SO SMALL?!
Danish people are absolutely lovely
We were greeted with nothing but smiles the entire time we were in Copenhagen (we were asked for directions about 10 times). The people we spoke to were incredibly friendly, every tour guide we had was hilarious and everyone seemed so keen to show off their country – even a ticket inspector at the Central Station was suggesting places for us to visit.
It’s not easy being green
It’s no secret that Copenhagen is a green city (Eurovision 2014 in the city was the greenest in history) but I had no idea how green. The city aims to become the first carbon-neutral city with over 1 million inhabitants by 2025.
Unfortunately for the meantime that means quite a few road works to fit more energy-efficient pipes underground – but all in the name of a good cause!
“The Latins of the North”
As our tour guide explained, the Danes are pretty chilled; shops don’t stay open late, the trains don’t run on time and people aren’t always punctual (all of which we experienced first-hand). This has apparently earned them the nickname of “the Latins of the North” among their more straight-laced neighbours.
The perils of visiting off-season
Our flights to CPH were an absolute bargain… for one key reason: the tourist season starts in April. (We visited mid-March). This brings one main drawback – the infamous Tivoli Gardens are closed. We were pretty gutted not to be able to visit, but we still had plenty of things to keep us occupied.
The perks of visiting off-season
Despite Tivoli Gardens being shut, I would definitely recommend hitting Copenhagen off-season: we had brilliant weather (a definite chill in the air, but very sunny), Nyhavn wasn’t swarming with people (we even had a beer garden all to ourselves) and the tours were quiet (we were the only two on our Bike with Mike tour and we didn’t have to queue for more than a few minutes for a boat).
No need for the metro
There is literally no need to travel by metro in Copenhagen. Denmark’s capital is one of the best cities in the world for cycling, it’s hugely walkable and has fantastic boat tours.
Walk, sail or cycle – there’s no need to disappear underground.
(There is a city beach called Copencabana)
We didn’t go, I just thought it was worth mentioning.