10 Top Things to Do in Copenhagen

Nyhavn (literally New Harbour) is the row of brightly painted 17th-century townhouses on a 400-metre canal that dominates every Copenhagen postcard. Dug by Swedish prisoners of war 1670-1675, it served as a busy commercial port until the 1970s when it was pedestrianised. Hans Christian Andersen lived at numbers 18, 20, and 67 - plaques mark the buildings.

The sunny northern side is lined with restaurants and bars; the shaded southern side has the prettiest facades and far better photos. Wooden tall ships are moored along the canal year-round - several function as floating museums. Restaurants are touristy and expensive (250-400 DKK for a main); locals come for a beer on the harbour wall rather than dinner. Harbour cruises depart from the canal head every 30 minutes.

Pro Tip: Buy a beer from any of the riverside kiosks (around 50 DKK) and sit on the southern wall facing the painted buildings. The light is best 1 hour before sunset and the queue-free view is everyone's Copenhagen wallpaper.

Open since 1843, Tivoli Gardens is the second-oldest operating amusement park in the world (after Bakken north of the city) and the inspiration Walt Disney cited when designing Disneyland. The 8-hectare park sits beside Copenhagen Central Station and combines vintage rides, ornate gardens, an open-air concert stage, and 40+ restaurants across pavilions modelled on Moorish palaces and Chinese pagodas.

Tivoli runs four seasons: summer (April-September), Halloween (October), Christmas (mid-November-January), and winter (February-March). The 100-year-old wooden roller coaster Rutschebanen is operated by a brakeman in every train. Evening fireworks on summer Saturdays at 23:45 are a Copenhagen tradition. Gate ticket 175 DKK adult; rides are extra at 30-90 DKK each, or buy a multi-ride pass at 269 DKK.

Pro Tip: Enter at 19:00 on a summer weeknight - day-tickets stay valid all day and the lights come on at 21:00. The Star Flyer ride at 80 metres is the best free-with-pass view of the city after dark.

Edvard Eriksen's bronze statue of the Little Mermaid has perched on a rock at Langelinie harbour since 1913, modelled after the heroine of the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale. Commissioned by Carl Jacobsen of the Carlsberg brewery, the statue is small (1.25 metres) and famously underwhelming on its own - but the 30-minute walk to reach it through Kastellet fortress and Amalienhaven gardens makes the visit worthwhile.

The statue has been vandalised dozens of times since 1964 (decapitated twice, painted, blown up) and the head and arms have been replaced more than once. Kastellet, the star-shaped fortress right next to it, is one of the best-preserved 17th-century citadels in Europe and is free to walk. Combine the two for a 90-minute scenic loop from Amalienborg Palace.

Pro Tip: Visit before 09:00 to beat the tour buses. Walk from Amalienborg Palace through Amalienhaven and into Kastellet; exit on the north side and the Mermaid is 200 metres further. The whole loop takes 90 minutes from Nyhavn.

Christiansborg on Slotsholmen island is unique in Europe - the only building that simultaneously houses a country's parliament, supreme court, and prime minister's office, with parts also used by the royal family for official events. The current building is the third on the site, built 1907-1928 after fires destroyed the previous two. The Royal Reception Rooms, ruins of the medieval Absalon Castle below ground, and the royal stables are all separately visitable.

The Great Hall houses 11 tapestries by Bjørn Nørgaard depicting 1000 years of Danish history - commissioned in 1990 and installed in 2000. The Tower (free entry) at 106 metres is the highest tower in Copenhagen with views the cruise crowds miss. Combined ticket 175 DKK; Tower only is free year-round.

Pro Tip: The Tower restaurant Tarnet on the 6th floor takes lunch bookings 2 weeks ahead - the smorrebrod menu plus the view is the best value formal meal in central Copenhagen. Book online via tarnet.dk.

Built 1606-1633 by Christian IV as a summer house, Rosenborg Castle is a Dutch Renaissance brick palace set in the King's Garden (Kongens Have) - Copenhagen's oldest royal park. The 24 rooms preserve 400 years of royal furnishings, paintings, and curios across 3 floors. The basement Treasury holds the Danish Crown Jewels including the 1671 crown of Christian V.

Highlights include the Long Hall with its 7-metre stuccoed ceiling and 3 silver lions guarding the throne, the Glass Cabinet, and the Knights' Hall. The 1671 sword used in the crowning of every Danish monarch since is on display. Gardens are free and famously beautiful in spring tulip season. Admission 145 DKK adult; combined Rosenborg+Amalienborg ticket 220 DKK.

Pro Tip: Arrive at 10:00 opening to see the Treasury before tour groups arrive - it is a single narrow vault and gets crowded after 11:00. The King's Garden makes a perfect picnic spot afterwards.

Freetown Christiania has occupied a former naval base in Christianshavn since 1971, when squatters declared the 34-hectare area a self-governing community. With about 850 residents, it operates as a partially autonomous neighbourhood with its own rules and economy. The site contains hand-built houses, vegetarian restaurants, a music venue (Loppen), and the well-known Pusher Street where the residents removed the cannabis stalls in 2024 following years of negotiation with Danish authorities.

The architecture is the actual reason to visit - some of Copenhagen's most original self-built housing alongside restored military barracks. The fortifications on the eastern edge along the moat are excellent for a slow walk. Photos are not permitted on Pusher Street; elsewhere they are fine. Allow 90 minutes for a leisurely walk through the main area. Entry is free.

Pro Tip: Enter via the rear gate on Refshalevej rather than the main entrance to see the architecturally interesting self-built houses first. The vegetarian restaurant Morgenstedet does a 145 DKK lunch buffet most days - the longest-running cafe in the freetown.

Strøget is the 1.1 km east-west pedestrian artery linking Kongens Nytorv to City Hall Square, and was the first long pedestrianised shopping street in Europe when cars were banned in 1962. The eastern end near Kongens Nytorv houses luxury brands; the western end towards Vesterbro contains chain stores and a streetwear scene. Side streets like Strædet and Larsbjornsstræde hold the best independent boutiques and design shops.

Highlights along Strøget include the original 1869 Royal Copenhagen porcelain flagship, the 1796 Magasin du Nord department store, Illums Bolighus for Danish design, and the Caritas Fountain on Gammeltorv square (1608, Copenhagen's oldest fountain). Allow 90 minutes for a slow shopping walk. Performers cluster on Amagertorv square in the middle.

Pro Tip: Walk the parallel side street Strædet one block south instead - same direction, half the crowds, twice the small design shops and proper Danish cafes. Particularly Andersen Bakery on Bernstorffsgade for the best canelé in town.

Built 1637-1642 as part of the Trinitatis Complex, Rundetårn is the oldest functioning astronomical observatory in Europe. Christian IV designed it without stairs - instead, a 209-metre spiral ramp winds up the inside, originally so the king could ride a horse-drawn carriage to the top. Peter the Great rode a horse up it in 1716. The structure is 41 metres tall.

The top observation platform offers a 360-degree view of central Copenhagen - the only public viewpoint inside the old city walls. The Library Hall halfway up hosts rotating exhibitions and concerts. The base contains a small museum about the tower's astronomical and royal history. Open daily 10:00-21:00 in summer, 10:00-18:00 winter. Admission 40 DKK adult.

Pro Tip: Time your visit for 30 minutes before sunset for the best photos of the city's red rooftops. The ramp is easily wheelchair-and-stroller accessible - a rare feature among Copenhagen's old monuments.

Denmark's National Museum is one of Europe's best-organised cultural museums and entirely free to enter. The collection covers Danish prehistory (including world-class Bronze Age finds), Viking history, ethnography from across the Inuit and Greenlandic colonies, classical antiquities, and a children's museum that families rate highly. The building itself is the 18th-century Prince's Palace facing Christiansborg.

The standout Viking section displays the Trundholm Sun Chariot (a 3500-year-old bronze horse-and-disc), several runestones, and silver hoards. The Egtved Girl, a 1370 BC Bronze Age woman found preserved in an oak coffin, is the museum's most-asked-about exhibit. Allow 3 hours minimum. Free admission applies to all permanent exhibitions; temporary shows charge 95 DKK.

Pro Tip: Use the free coat-check (mandatory for backpacks larger than a daypack), then head straight to the Viking Hall before tour groups arrive at 11:00. The cafeteria on the 1st floor serves a 95 DKK Danish lunch better than most tourist restaurants nearby.

Amalienborg is the official residence of the Danish royal family and one of the most under-rated Rococo palace ensembles in Europe. Four identical 18th-century mansions face an octagonal cobblestone square around a 1771 equestrian statue of Frederik V. The royal family lives in one wing; another two are open as the Amalienborg Museum showing royal furnished rooms and a costume collection.

The Royal Guard changing ceremony happens at noon every day - free to watch, less crowded than London's equivalent. The Marble Church (Frederiks Kirke) immediately west has the largest church dome in Scandinavia (31 metres across, completed 1894). Tower visits cost 35 DKK; 260 steps to the top with sweeping harbour views. Combined Amalienborg ticket 125 DKK adult.

Pro Tip: Position yourself on the western side of Amalienborg square at 11:55 - the guards march in from Rosenborg via Bredgade and the view back through the gates to the Marble Church is the standout Copenhagen photograph for the day.