With only one day to see the capital city of Denmark, Copenhagen, we put on our walking shoes and explored the city by foot and boat. We saw a lot and learned a lot about this great city. It is a definite must-visit when in Europe.
Things to do in Copenhagen
Canal Tour
We decided to explore Copenhagen with a canal tour that took you through the city via boat. It was a fun and different way to see the city and the guides were very educated and gave us some fun facts. We learned that the famous “Little Mermaid” sculpture has been beheaded multiple times and dyed with paint in the past; that divers dove off the roof of the opera house during the Red Bull Cliff Diving competition; that the statue of the founder is actually not the founder of Copenhagen, but there’s already a statue so they stick with it; and that the staircase going up to the top of one of the churches was actually built in the wrong direction, but it’s still functional. Our boat tour was also only ~8 USD for an hour long tour, which is great if you’re traveling on a budget like us.
Carlsberg Brew Tour
I highly recommend a visit to Carlsberg. There is a free shuttle from the city to the brewery and back. The tickets are also a good price as you get entrance in to the brewery along with a complimentary drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic). The brewery is beautiful with its cobble stone roads, sculpture garden, and horse stable. You can do a self-guided tour or sign up for a guided tour. We did the self-guided tour and my favorite part was the World’s largest unopened bottle collection that they have. The total collection has 22, 606 bottles! We learned that in their sculpture garden they have a miniature version of the Little Mermaid statue that was done by the same artist that did the famous version of it. I enjoyed seeing this one because it wasn’t surrounded by tons of tourists and it is the exact same statue, but smaller. Throughout the day Carlsberg offers different activities that you can join for free if you are there at the time. We were there during a horse and carriage ride through the gorgeous neighborhood that the brewery is located in. I recommend getting your free beer for the ride. This way you can sit back and relax with a nice beer. After we toured we went into their brew house to try some more of Carlsberg’s beer. The Elephant is a beer that is only sold in the Scandinavian region and it is a very strong beer for those looking to get a buzz.
Places to See in Copenhagen
There are so many sights to see in Copenhagen that this blog would turn in to a novel if I listed them all, but here are the highlights of some of my favorites:
Nyhavn
This is a must-see in Copenhagen. Nyhavn is a beautiful waterfront district that is full of restaurants and bars. The canal is lined with colorful buildings and ships in the water. It is the perfect place to socialize and relax after a busy day of exploring Copenhagen.
The Old Stock Exchange
This is one of Copenhagen’s oldest buildings and was built after King Christian IV realized the importance of increased trade. My favorite part of this building is that is topped with a spire of four intertwined dragon tails that have three crowns on top of them. I learned that according to legend the dragon tail spire guards the building from enemy attacks and fires. And apparently, the buildings next to it have had fires and the Old Stock Exchange has been spared.
Amalienborg Palace
There are four identical buildings in the square and Denmark’s royal family still resides in the palace. Unfortunately I did not get to meet any of them the day I visited. But the buildings are gorgeous and you can watch the changing of the guards.
The Little Mermaid
As one of Copenhagen’s most famous tourist attractions, the Little Mermaid was a gift from a Danish brewer Carl Jacobsen to the city. It was obviously inspired by the fairytale “The Little Mermaid”. Carl Jacobsen was captivated by the fairy tale and ballet that he saw at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen so he had the artist Edvard Eriksen create the sculpture. I also recommend going at off hours to see the statue or she will be surrounded by tourists (I’m lucky I even got the picture I did because there were 50+ people trying to take pictures with her).
The King’s Garden
The King’s Garden is also known as the Rosenborg Garden. The garden is absolutely beautiful with flower beds everywhere and it is lined with trees and hedges. The garden is the country’s oldest royal gardens dating back to the 1600s. This was one of my favorite sites we saw while in Copenhagen.
Food and Drink
Joe & The Juice
I have been seeing Joe & The Juice in the past few countries we have visited and finally decided to try it in Copenhagen. I went in with the mind set that I was going to get coffee and came out with a shake. And it was delicious! I got the Power Shake… yummy!
Bubbly Waffle
We decided to splurge and get an ice cream from Bubbly Waffle and it was one of the best decisions we have made. We got 1 scoop of forest berries and 1 scoop of pomegranate in a bubble waffle cone with chocolate drizzled on top. The cone tasted just like a waffle you would make for breakfast, but better. It had the perfect softness to it and went great with the ice cream. I would recommend this place to anyone and I bet you’ll start drooling from the picture below!
Copenhagen is one amazing city in my opinion!
