I knew I would fall in love with Copenhagen even before I set foot on Danish soil.
The Danes are the second happiest nation on earth. It comes from a place of personal and social contentedness.
‘Hygge’, a conscious feeling among Danes to savour the moment, to create a sense of self and intimacy with friends and family. Pronounced ‘HUE-GUH’.
Copenhagen breathes Hygge. You feel the individuality and happiness in the people. Everyone has a sense of style. Everyone looks happy and healthy despite the north wind and rain. Everyone is constantly talking to each other in little groups or on the phone connecting and sharing. The architecture is amazing and each neighbourhood offers something different and unique but feels cohesively one.
You can walk north east of the city centre to cool Nørrebro, south to ultra hip Vesterbro and the Meatpacking district, west to Fredriksberg with boutiques and eateries lined up on each street, north to Østerbro perfect for families and to see ‘the little mermaid’ or experience the city centre with the picture postcard area of Nyhaven.
Get your walking shoes on because you need to walk the city to feel the city.
- Or hire a bike and cycle the city. There are lanes everywhere, even a super cool fly-over called the Harbour circle.
- Take a walk through The King’s Garden and The Botanical Gardens
- Visit National Gallery of Denmark a wonderful space filled with beautiful art, creative areas and lots of kids.
- Hire a floating swan and boat on Peblinge Sø, 1 of 5 internal lakes in the city or run the 6km around the lakes to breathe the fresh air.
- Nyhaven Harbour is the postcard picture you see worldwide, multicoloured houses around a small harbour. Grab a coffee and then walk past Christianborg Palace and the Danish Playhouse to up to the Little Mermaid. It is a beautiful walk which looks across to the Opera House and Christiania and more than makes up for the disappointment of the Little Mermaid itself. An insider tip though, en route is a fab gourmet supermarket on Nordre Toldbod called Løgismose
- Tivoli Gardens was closed when we were there but I hear it is fab. They were in the process of getting ready for Halloween.
- Leave the city and head north to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and Kronborg Castle, inspiration for Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Of course walking a city makes you hungry and thirsty.
A must is a visit to Torvehallerne, a food market divided into 2 covered areas with an outdoor vegetable market and little street food booths around. Inside you can find all manner of good coffee, wine shops and eateries. We ate Vietnamese at LêLê Street Kitchen. It was fresh and delicious. Think soft bao filled with chilli, coriander and fish cakes.
Highly recommended is a reservation at Bæst in Nørrebro. It is run by ex-Noma chef, Christian Puglisi, who has drawn on his Italian roots to perfect cheese and meat platters (he makes his own mozzarella upstairs), fabulous salads and of course the best pizza I have ever eaten. It was not too big, not too thick or thin and topped with seasonal pumpkin, goat cheese and pine nut. It was amazing.
Another little gem for lunch or a coffee break is Frenchy just off Strøget . The food is simple French and perfectly done. My tartine came with a little side of nutmeg mashed potato. Lovely!
Famed for it’s foodie haunts is Værnedamsvej in Frederiksberg. It is a small street packed full of brunch spots, wine shops, boutiques and florists. We ate at Le Gourmand. Nice but expensive and portions were small.
A new obsession!
I have recently become obsessed with owning a Danish chair.
Did you know that the Danes are famed for their design of chairs? It is a real thing. The chair represents what is closest to the human being, a thing of comfort and necessity. You could say it is the ultimate manifestation of Hygge. The Design Museum Denmark has a room dedicated to the Danish design of chairs. Think Arne Jacobsen’s ANT chair or Hans J. Wegner’s Round chair . I love Hay’s designs. You should visit their shop on Strøget, the city’s main shopping street, to feel the practical versus stunning visual sense of Danish design.
We rented a beautiful apartment in Fredriksberg, a good base location for the city, through Air BnB. It is owned by an artist and felt very scandi cool. Next time though I will come without children, with my husband and stay here at 71 Nyhaven. Looks right up my street.
Copenhagen is a must for anyone who loves exploring new cities. A word of warning though, save up, it is expensive exploring
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