Ever since I saw the musical Hans Christian Andersen with Danny Kaye when I was six years old and read Number the Stars when I was ten, I’ve always dreamed of visiting Copenhagen. It is a city rooted in history, culture, and fairy tales (Hans Christian Andersen wrote The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, and Thumbelina, among others). We enjoyed our visit to this city very much!
Kevin and I visited Copenhagen at the end of November, and the city was alive with the holiday spirit and Christmas Markets (not to mention all the bicycles). If you are ever interested in visiting Copenhagen go during the Christmas season! It was magical. Around the city, Glogg (hot mulled wine) and booths with crafts abound. It was truly a delightful time of year to go, and I think we wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much without the holiday twist.
That being said, the temperature was pretty chilly. I was wearing a winter coat, hat and gloves, but after traveling quite a bit, I always prefer walking around when it’s cold vs. when it’s really warm. The chill kind of contributed to the holiday charm, but definitely prepare to bundle up.
We spent 3 full days in the city and it was definitely enough. Had we had another full day, we might have gone outside of the city to see more of Denmark, but we had plenty of time to see what we needed to see. We stayed at the Andersen Boutique Hotel not too far from the train station (we took the train in from the airport – it was very simple and clean). We were able to walk to hotel with our bags. I prefer boutique hotels (with breakfast) whenever we travel. This was an affordable option (about $190 a night) in an up-and-coming area of the city compared to many other hotels I looked at; hotels in Copenhagen are extremely expensive. Not only was there a full breakfast, but there was a complimentary wine hour from 5-6 PM. The rooms were bright and clean, but fairly small. We hardly spent any time at the hotel, so the room size didn’t bother me.
We spent our first day (late afternoon and evening) walking around Nyhavn. The restaurants along the waterfront are overpriced, but there was a Christmas Market and the scenery along the cobbled streets was to die for! No. 9, Nyhavn, is the oldest house in Copenhagen dating to the 1680s!
The next morning we ventured to Carlsburg Brewery. This brewery, dating to 1847 was a trip highlight. We did a self-guided tour and seeing the difference modern vs. historic brewing materials was really interesting, plus we enjoy Carlsburg Beer! The brewery allowed guests the option to pay for a horse carriage ride in the Carlsburg District, but Kevin and I opted to just visit the horses in the stables. It was fun to walk around the brewery/district for the morning (hey, it’s 5:00 somewhere).
In the afternoon we ventured onto the bus (which was clean, but not a lot was written in English, so have a person with good directional skills or a plan!) to go find the statue of the Little Mermaid. While the statue herself is underwhelming, she is a popular tourist attraction, and it was fun to go find her at the Langelinie promenade and take a picture (see above).
The meals weren’t great in Copenhagen – pickled herring isn’t really my thing, but we found a tasty Italian restaurant there called Bueno! And of course we stopped to buy a Danish (pastry) whenever we could.
On our third day, we went to Christiansborg Palace, one of the residences of the royal family. The royal family still hosts events at the palace, so it was interesting to see. I enjoyed the ruins underneath the palace, the artwork in the Royal Reception Rooms, and the Royal Kitchen. I also loved the library which reminded me of Beauty and the Beast! The cost was about 25 USD (or 150 Danish Kroner). We also had the opportunity to take an elevator to The Tower where we saw breathtaking views of the city (if only it hadn’t been cloudy and cold).
The evening on our third day was the experience we had come all the way to Copenhagen to experience – Tivoli! Tivoli was truly one of the most magical places I have ever been, and the entire night, I couldn’t stop smiling. Tivoli Gardens is a charming amusement park and pleasure garden in the heart of the Copenhagen. It opened in 1843 and (barely) survived Nazi occupation during World War II. The reason Tivoli was especially magical was because of the Christmas season. The lights and rides and music and ambiance and Glogg just made me feel warm inside (even though I was definitely cold on the outside!). Without a doubt, Tivoli made a good trip, a great one. If you are visiting Copenhagen you do not want to miss this on your trip, but be careful. They aren’t open year-round. They close for several weeks in the late fall to prepare for the holidays. Tickets don’t come cheap – especially if you want to go on rides. Entrance for us (no rides included) was about $40. Some may consider that a lot of money just to “walk around,” but to me the experience was worth the money.
Copenhagen was a delight, and I am glad we paired it with our trip to London. If you are looking for a European city to visit for a few days during the holiday season, Copenhagen is a fantastic opinion. Skål (Cheers)!
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