Copenhagen Museums: Glyptoteket, SMK, Designmuseum and BLOX

Even on a breezy or rainy afternoon, Copenhagen's museum mile easily rivals capitals three times its size. Rather than trying to cover huge encyclopaedic halls in one go, pick two of these four standout collections depending on whether your eye is drawn to French Impressionism and marble sculpture, landmark mid-century chairs, Dutch and Danish masters, or contemporary urban design.

1. Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek (Dantes Plads, beside Tivoli)

Founded in 1888 by brewer Carl Jacobsen (son of the Carlsberg founder) to house his personal art collection, the Glyptotek is many visitors' favourite interior in Copenhagen. At its core rises the glass-domed Winter Garden (Vinterhaven), filled with towering date palms, ficus trees, a goldfish fountain and marble sculptures. Flanking the conservatory are two acclaimed wings: an ancient Mediterranean wing (holding Etruscan bronzes, Egyptian sarcophagi and rows of remarkably expressive Roman marble portrait busts) and a 19th-century wing designed by Henning Larsen, holding one of the largest collections of Auguste Rodin bronzes outside France, more than forty paintings and bronze dancers by Edgar Degas, works by Paul Gauguin, Cézanne and Van Gogh, and luminous canvases from the Danish Golden Age (Eckersberg and Købke). Don't miss the rooftop terrace looking over Tivoli Gardens.

2. Designmuseum Danmark (Bredgade, Frederiksstaden)

Housed in the beautifully restored 18th-century rococo former Royal Frederiks Hospital just south of Amalienborg Palace, Designmuseum Danmark explains why Danish design became a global benchmark for human-centred functionality. Walk through the permanent gallery of landmark chairs (Arne Jacobsen's Egg, Swan and Ant chairs, Hans J. Wegner's Wishbone and Round chairs, Poul Henningsen's artichoke lamps and Kaare Klint's safari chairs), porcelain from Royal Copenhagen, textiles and contemporary sustainable design, then rest in the tranquil lime-tree courtyard garden.

3. SMK (Statens Museum for Kunst, the National Gallery of Denmark)

Sitting between Sølvgade and Østre Anlæg park near Rosenborg Castle, Denmark's largest art museum links an 1896 Italian Renaissance building with a bright modern white glass atrium. Highlights include Lucas Cranach, Mantegna, Rembrandt, a lively room of Fauvist paintings by Henri Matisse, and the quiet sunlit interior paintings of Vilhelm Hammershøi.

4. Danish Architecture Center (DAC at BLOX) and the Black Diamond

Along the Slotsholmen waterfront stand two striking modern icons: the stacked green-glass cubes of BLOX (home to DAC, interactive urban exhibitions and a waterfront café) and the polished black granite extension of the Royal Danish Library, nicknamed The Black Diamond (Den Sorte Diamant).