Best Things to Do in Copenhagen

Copenhagen is best explored by alternating historic royal interiors with open-air walks along the harbour, canal rides and long breaks in neighbourhood bakeries. Here are the ten experiences that anchor a visit.

1. Walk from Nyhavn to Amalienborg and Kastellet. Start early along the sunny northern quay of 17th-century Nyhavn before tour groups arrive, continue past the octagonal rococo courtyard of Amalienborg Palace, and walk the grassy ramparts of the star-shaped Kastellet fortress.
2. Inspect the Crown Jewels at Rosenborg Castle. Built by Christian IV in Dutch Renaissance red brick inside the King's Garden (Kongens Have), Rosenborg preserves its 1600s royal chambers, glass collection and subterranean treasury.
3. Spend an afternoon and evening inside Tivoli Gardens. Opened in 1843 right across from Central Station, the world's second-oldest operating amusement park blends flower gardens, open-air concerts and a 1914 wooden roller coaster with thousands of evening fairy lights.
4. Climb the spiral ramp of the Round Tower (Rundetaarn). Walk up the wide, step-free whitewashed brick equestrian ramp built in 1642 to an outdoor rooftop platform overlooking the spires of the Latin Quarter.
5. Explore Christianshavn's canals and the Church of Our Saviour. Cross the Inderhavnsbroen pedestrian bridge to wander along Overgaden canalside houses, climb the external corkscrew spire of Vor Frelsers Kirke and walk the car-free paths of Christiania.
6. Relax in the Winter Garden of the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. Admire ancient Mediterranean marble sculptures and French Impressionist paintings by Degas, Monet and Gauguin arranged around a glass-domed subtropical palm court.
7. Ride a canal boat or the yellow public Harbour Bus. See the Black Diamond Royal Library, the Opera House and the historic naval buildings of Holmen from water level.
8. Sit down for traditional smørrebrød and a morning cardamom bun. Pair a classic rye-bread lunch with a plate of curried herring and a chilled glass of caraway snaps.
9. Swim in the clean water at Islands Brygge Harbour Bath and eat at Reffen. Join locals diving off wooden pontoons right in the middle of the city before heading out to Refshaleøen for waterfront street food.
10. Take the coastal train to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Forty minutes north of the centre, acclaimed modern art pavilions open onto a clifftop sculpture park looking across the water to Sweden.