When I told friends I was off to Copenhagen for a mini
break, the recommendations for restaurants, activities and places to stay came flying
in. As it turned out, Copenhagen is popular for very good reasons – and it’s an
easy city to fall in love with – clean streets, gorgeous, friendly people and healthy
transport (over half the population ride bikes to get to work).
I’ve been to Stockholm before, so felt fairly
prepared, but yes, this wonderfulness comes with a fairly hefty price tag, and
although flights and accommodation were more than reasonable, what I class as
‘fun activities’ such as dining out and drinking were much pricier than London,
so we ended up spending quite a bit. I don’t regret it at all though, because
we had an absolutely incredible time and got a tantalizing taste of how great
Scandi life can be.
Here’s a city guide to help you with your Copenhagen
trip.
A STYLISH
GUIDE TO COPENHAGEN
THINGS TO DO
Before you do anything else, buy yourself some booze
at the airport. But not too much of it. We made this unnecessarily expensive
mistake.
Get bikes! It’s really the only way to travel. We got
ours from Copenhagen Tourist Info in the main train station. They were cheaper
than the city ones.
Tivoli Gardens was amazing – an incredibly stylish
amusement park where you can easily stay the whole day. The gift shop was
excellent, the rides included a nice variety of high up and blood-curling and
calm relaxation.
Hang out by Copenhagen Harbour. You can also swim
there if it’s not too cold – so nice. Havnefronten
Islands Brygge T23713189
Visit Christiania, the city’s hippie hang-out. I
didn’t enjoy it at night (sure it was fine, but it felt dodge) but during the
day it was really fun – live music and a full gathering of the city’s hot young
things.
Go shopping in Prag, an awesome haven of vintage,
reasonably-priced clothes and accessories. I got some excellent parrot and
chandelier earrings. It was hard for the boyf to drag me out.
Louisiana, an art gallery about an hour and a half out
of town is meant to be incredible but we ran out of time! Next time.
PLACES TO
STAY
We stayed in Frederiksberg– posh, suburban and quiet,
without being too far from the action. We stayed in this AirBnB – such a lovely
flat, thanks Julie! It was right next to a Lidl so we stocked up for cheap
breakfasts and snacks.
These places all came recommended by friends but were
fully booked when we wanted them:
My mates Lynne and Neil stayed in this AirBnB and
loved it.
FOOD
Radio – a fabulous restaurant run by a chef who used
to work at NOMA. You choose from a narrow selection of dishes. Each one was more
exceptional than the last - you really can’t go wrong. Try not to stare at the
waiter
Pate Pate – gorgeous food in the trendy Fiskebaren
area. Get oysters and the Burrata if it’s still on the menu
Hansens Gamle Familiehave – nice traditional food,
hearty fare with a home-cooked vibe
Granola – we didn’t make it here, sadly, but it comes
highly recommended by everyone who’s been
Kadeau – another recommendation we sadly didn’t have
time for – a 20-course tasting menu dinner
DRINKS AND
GOING OUT
Salon 39 – exceptional cocktails. I had one that was
basically a very adult icecream and another, which was like a lemony,
biscuit-coated dream…
Kødbyens Fiskebar – trendy fun, big tyre tables, great
cocktails
Tivoli Gardens is open until midnight and it’s so
pretty. There are bars inside. They have fireworks which you can see outside of the gates too.
Sunny Tivoli Gardens
An amazing fairytale journey through the world of Hans Cristian Andersen
Loved this light
Even the bar was gorgeous
Giraffes coming out of mirrors - what more could you need?
Liked this guy
Caught the fireworks!
Amazing food in Radio
More amazing food in Radio
Great bikes
My new fave shop
Chilling on Copenhagen Harbour in my BHS cossie, vintage jewellery and Ray Bans.
