Copenhagen in 4 Days
Copenhagen, the enchanting Danish capital, is a city brimming with charm, history, and festive spirit, especially during the winter months.
If you're planning a trip to this captivating city, I hope that my 4-day itinerary will guide you in your planning. If you’re tight on time, a 2 day trip is more than long enough to explore, so feel free to skip out Day 2 and Day 4.
Day 1: Arriving and Immersing Yourself in the City
For our festive trip to Copenhagen, we opted for a morning flight from Manchester, which arrived into Copenhagen (+1hr time difference) at 10:55. Shortly after arriving at Copenhagen Airport, we opted to take the convenient train from Kobenhavn Lufthavn St. (Airport) to Kobenhavn H (City Centre)(36DKK, £4.13pp) which only took 20 minutes.
Half Day in Copenhagen
- Take the chance on your first day to stroll through the picturesque streets of Magstræde and Snaregade, soaking in the local atmosphere.
- Explore Strøget, the longest pedestrian shopping street in Europe.
- If you’re okay with heights, I’d recommend climbing the iconic Rundetarn (Round Tower) for breathtaking panoramic views of the city (40DKK pp).
- Next, immerse yourself in the vibrant Nyhavn harbour, lined with colourful houses and lively bars. This is a must when visiting Copenhagen.
- Whilst here, if you’re visiting in the winter like we were, savour a warm cup of traditional Gløgg (mulled wine) to embrace the festive spirit.
- Optional: If you find yourself with extra time to explore, take a walk to admire the architectural grandeur of Christiansborg Palace.
- Depending on when you’re visiting Copenhagen, you may find that a daytime trip to Tivoli Gardens is more fulfilling, however, if you’re visiting around Halloween or Christmas, I’d urge you to visit when it’s dark.
- Tivoli Gardens was the highlight of my trip to Copenhagen after seeing Nyhavn. We spent a few hours in the whimsical gardens which had been transformed into a Christmas wonderland adorned with twinkling lights, enchanting rides, and festive cheer (165 DK, £19pp + Ride Costs, we paid 60DKK, £7pp for the Wooden Roller Coaster).
Day 2 (Optional): Exploring Beyond - A Day Trip to Malmö
If you find yourself with a day to spare whilst visiting Denmark and want the opportunity to visit a second country, Sweden’s city of Malmo is easily reached by train. Although not an overly large city with limited sights to see, it is culturally diverse and a worthwhile pit stop for a couple of hours.
We opted to take the early 8am scenic train journey across the Öresund Bridge to Malmö, Sweden. We bought our ticket from the machines in Kopenhagen H, however, you could also get tickets online from Omio (354 DKK, £26pp). We’d planned to visit Malmöhus Castle, a historic landmark with fascinating exhibits, however, on the day we visited it was closed.
Instead, we walked through Slottsträdgården and Kungsparken, a beautiful park offering stunning city views before heading back to the city centre, where we wandered through the charming Lilla Torg square, lined with cafes and shops.
As there wasn’t too much to see in Malmo, we took the opportunity to explore the retail offerings of Malmo, and try authentic Swedish Meatballs. For this, I’d highly recommend the Spoonery chain. We ate at Spoonery St Knut and had a lovely meal.
Day 3: Delving into Danish Culture and History
For our first full day in Copenhagen, we opted to delve into Danish history and culture at the National Museum (120DKK, ~£14pp), showcasing artefacts from Viking times to the present day. If you’re a fan of museums, you can easily spend a few hours here and we did, before having lunch here too.
In the afternoon, we got back on our feet and walked over to the Botanical Gardens, a haven of diverse plant life. These were mostly covered over by snow when we visited, but I suspect these are even prettier in the height of summer.
On our walk back to the hotel we walked to the picturesque Rosenborg Castle and through The King's Garden. If the crown jewels are of interest to you, it is here where you can see them if you opt to visit inside (130DKK, £15pp).
Optional: If you enjoy walking through historic and colourful streets, consider a stroll through the historic streets of Nyboder, a former naval district.
Day 4: Unveiling Hidden Gems and Saying Farewell
If you’re tight on time for your trip to Copenhagen, feel free to remove Day 2 and Day 4 of the itinerary as I feel a trip to Copenhagen could be complete without our Day 4 sights.
With our last full day in Copenhagen we opted to walk to the highly debated Little Mermaid statue. En route, we walked through Kastellet, a star-shaped fortress offering stunning views of the city before paying homage to the iconic Little Mermaid statue, a symbol of Copenhagen - a statue much smaller than it looks on photos and certainly overhyped.
With our afternoon, we decided to wander through Christianshavn district, to visit the much written about Freetown Christiania, an intentional community and commune which began in 1971 as a squatted military base. Although flagged as a popular tourist destination, unfortunately it wasn’t somewhere I’d recommend as it felt sketchy in parts. We’d planned on climbing the tower at the Church of Our Saviour for panoramic city views, however, this had been closed due to the bad weather.
With extra time to spare before our evening flight, we found ourselves at Bastard Cafe on Rådhusstræde, where we ordered some drinks and played board games before heading to the airport. If you've time to spare, I'd highly recommend visiting here to try the games on offer.
Places to Eat & Drink in Copenhagen
We found food and drink in Copenhagen to be noticeably more expensive than in the UK, however, that didn’t stop us tasting our way around the city.
For a civilised drink, the Library Bar inside ProfilHotels Copenhagen Plaza is the perfect spot. Expect to pay a bit more for drinks here, but the atmosphere and service is great.
If visiting Tivoli, there’s plenty of restaurant options inside the grounds. Even if you’re not visiting, the Tivoli Food Hall is accessible to all with plenty of independent stalls to choose from.
For a cosy ‘pub’, we tried Glogg at Hviids Vinstue, just off Kongens Nytorv, a very busy spot off the landmark square.
We ate at Apotek 57 for lunch one day - the savoury croissant and cheese toastie from here was incredible.
We were recommended a visit to Mad & Kaffe for brunch and would highly recommend the food, however, be prepared to wait a while but the breakfast platter will be worth it.
We’d tried to visit the much hyped ‘Fabro’ restaurant but found ourselves waiting in the bar for 45 minutes plus so gave this a miss and opted for Sole D’Italia for our tea instead.
I’d recommend checking out Restaurant Karla near the National Museum for authentic Danish food, but consider booking ahead as it gets busy.
If you’re wanting to try Smorrebrod , I’d urge you to take a look at Palae Bar near Kongens Nytorv. We only had a drink here, but the food beside us looked great!
We opted against food or drink in the Nyhavn district, but if you are happy to pay slightly more for the Nyhavn experience, there are plenty of options with indoor and outdoor seating here.
Bonus Tips:
Consider purchasing a Copenhagen Card for free access to public transportation and discounts on attractions. We costed up our itinerary and opted against this as we were happy to walk between sites, but if you’re wanting to travel further afield and visit the zoo, this option may work out more cost effective for you.
We stayed at Saga Hotel near the central train station and found the location perfect for our itinerary.
Have you visited Copenhagen? Where would you recommend?
