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Key Attractions
Rundetårn (The Round Tower)
In the streets to the north of Strøget is the Rundetårn, the oldest observatory in Europe. Built by Christian IV, the building forms part of a 17th-century scholastic complex that also included a university library (now an exhibition hall) and student church. A 209m (686ft) spiral ramp leads to the top of the tower, from where there is a good view over the old parts of the city.
Købmagergade 52A
Tel: (33) 730 373. Fax: (33) 730 377.
E-mail: post@rundetaarn.dk
Website: www.rundetaarn.dk
Transport: Bus 5, 14, 16, 31, 42, 43, 73E, 173E, 184, 185 or 350S; S-train to Nørreport.
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 1000-2000, Sun 1200-2000 (Jun-Aug); Mon-Sat 1000-1700, Sun 1200-1700 (Sep-May).
Admission: Dkk20 (concessions available).
Tivoli
One of the most famous European amusement parks, Tivoli is a bizarre mixture of the natural and the artificial. Designed by Georg Carstensen, in the 1840s, as a pleasure ground for the masses, there are two theatres, an open-air stage and a museum in addition to the rides. The Tivoli Boys Guard parade through the gardens at 1730 and 1930 on weekends and public holidays, with a full orchestra, stagecoach and horses. Crowded, pricey and unbelievably kitsch, Tivoli remains strangely appealing, particularly at night when the trees are illuminated with lanterns. There are numerous concerts and special events held here from April to September, as well as a Christmas market in December.
Vesterbrogade 3
Tel: (33) 151 001 or 012 for the ticket centre. Fax: (33) 750 381.
E-mail: info@tivoli.dk
Website: www.tivoli.dk
Transport: Bus 1, 2, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 28, 29, 30, 34, 40, 67, 68, 69, 150S, 250S, 550S or 650S.
Opening hours: Sun-Tues 1100-2300, Wed-Thurs 1100-2400, Fri-Sat 1100-0100 (Apr-Sep); Sun-Wed 1100-2100, Thurs-Sat 1100-2200 (Nov-Dec); closed at all other times of the year.
Admission: Dkk40 (Mon-Thurs); Dkk55 (Fri-Sun); Dkk10 for a ride ticket (rides cost one, two or three tickets); concessions and discount schemes available; Dkk20 (museum).
Waterfront
Den Lille Havfrue (The Little Mermaid) has become a global symbol of Copenhagen. Erected in 1913, the statue commemorates the Hans Christian Andersen heroine and, despite being decapitated a few times, she remains perennially popular with visitors. The pleasant Langelinie path leads to the spot in the northeast of the city where the mermaid stares wistfully out to sea.
Nyhavn (New Harbour) is an inlet off the Inderhavnen, towards Kongens Nytorv (King’s New Square). Until recently, brothels and bars serving the visiting sailors dominated this seedy area. Now the multicoloured, 17th-century, gabled buildings accommodate bustling restaurants and pavement cafés serving traditional Danish food beside a pedestrian thoroughfare and the masts of traditional yachts. Hans Christian Andersen lived at three different houses here.
Den Lille Havfrue
Promenade, Langelinie
Transport: Bus 29.
Nyhavn
Inderhavnen
Tel: (33) 123 233.
Website: www.nyhavn.org
Transport: New harbour bus service (tel: (36) 131 415); or bus 1, 6, 7, 9, 10, 28, 29, 31 or 41.
Opening hours: Daily 24 hours.
Admission: Free.
Rosenborg Slot (Rosenborg Castle)
Built between 1606 and 1634, Rosenborg Slot was the chief residence of Christian IV and the main royal palace until the end of the last century. This redbrick, Dutch Renaissance-style palace displays the Crown jewels and other royal treasures dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries, on the ground floor. The gardens (Kongens Have) surrounding the palace were laid out in 1606 and are one of the most attractive spaces in the city.
Øster Voldgade 4A
Tel: (33) 153 286. Fax: (33) 152 046.
E-mail: museum@dkks.dk
Website: www.kulturnet.dk/homes/rosenb
Transport: Bus 5, 10, 14, 16, 31, 42, 43, 184, 185 or 350S; S-train to Nørreport.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1100-1400 (Nov-Apr); daily 1000-1600 (May and Sep), 1000-1700 (Jun-Aug).
Admission: Dkk60 (concessions available).
Amalienborg Slot (Amalienborg Castle)
Amalia’s Castle has been the winter residence of the Danish royal family since 1794. The four identical Rococo palaces face each other across the octagonal Amalienborg Slot, where the changing of the guard takes place each day at noon, when the family is in residence. A museum, featuring some of the private chambers and royal treasures dating from 1863-1947, is open to the public.
Amalienborg
Tel: (33) 120 808. Fax: (33) 933 203.
E-mail: amalienborgmuseet@c.dk
Website: www.kulturnet.dk/homes/rosenb/aborg.htm
Transport: Bus 1, 6, 9, 10, 29 or 650S; S-train to Østerport.
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1600 (May-Oct); Tues-Sun 1100-1600 (Nov-Apr).
Admission: Dkk40 (concessions available).
Nationalmuseet (National Museum)
Housed in a former royal palace, the National Museum is the country’s premier historical and cultural institution. Permanent collections include the history of Denmark from the Ice Age to the 17th century, Egyptian, Greek and Italian antiquities and a survey of indigenous populations. There is also an interactive children’s museum.
Ny Vestergade 10
Tel: (33) 134 411. Fax: (33) 473 300.
Website: www.natmus.dk
Transport: Bus 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 10, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 550S or 650S.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1700.
Admission: Dkk40; free on Wed; concessions available.
Statens Museum for Kunst (Royal Museum of Fine Art)
The Royal Museum of Fine Art houses Denmark’s largest art collection, including paintings by Rembrandt, Brueghel and Rubens, works by Titian, Mantegna and Picasso, and an excellent Matisse collection. The museum reopened in 1999, after renovation and expansion.
Sølvegade 48-50
Tel: (33) 748 494. Fax: (33) 748 404.
E-mail: smk@smk.dk
Website: www.smk.dk
Transport: Bus 10, 14, 40, 42, 43, 72E, 150S, 184 or 185; S-train to Østerport.
Opening hours: Tues and Thurs-Sun 1000-1700; Wed 1000-2000.
Admission: Dkk40; free on Wed; concessions available.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
The Carlsberg Glyptotek was built by the Carlsberg brewer, Carl Jacobsen, in 1897. Today, the museum houses a superb collection of Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquities, Impressionist masterpieces and Danish art. Concerts are staged in the palm-filled winter garden.
Dantes Plads 7
Tel: (33) 418 141. Fax: (33) 912 058.
Website: www.glyptotek.dk
Transport: Bus 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 10, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 550S or 650S; S-train to Kobenhavn H.
Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1600.
Admission: Dkk30; free Wed and Sun.
Christiania Free Commune
On the eastern edge of Christianshavn, situated on the derelict site of a former military barracks, Christiania, the ‘Free City of Copenhagen’, is a working experiment in alternative lifestyles and communal living. First occupied in 1970, it is now home to about 1000 people and several hundred dogs. Once away from the drug vendors, clothes stalls and eco-cafés, the area is seductively rural, with picturesque farmhouses and wooden cabins overlooking the calm waterways of the Stadsgraven. Guided tours can be arranged (see Tours of the City).
Prinsessegade/Badsmandsstræde
Tel: (32) 579 670. Fax: (32) 576 005 (for tours).
Website: www.christiania.org
Transport: Bus 8 to Prinsessegade.
Opening hours: Daily 24 hours.
Admission: Free; Dkk30 (tour).
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