The Hidden North
North European travel guide
self-guided walks
Copenhagen City Centre
Explore the highlights of Copenhagen with this in-depth self-guided walking tour.
What you get
Historic overview of Copenhagen (with photos of what the city used to look like)
Link to a Google Map that can be loaded into your phone for easier navigation
Clear directions with English & Danish names of places, addresses, and step-by-step guides
Photos of each point of interest
This guide is 12 pages and comes in a PDF format.
Copenhagen - Denmark's Capital
Copenhagen is arguably one of the most interesting Scandinavian cities to go walking around in. There’s so much history here thanks to the Danish monarchy, the Vikings, and the early establishment of Copenhagen. On this walk around the city centre, you’ll pass palaces, historic trading homes, castles, parks, churches, and squares. This walk can be broken up over a couple days or combined with our Copenhagen neighbourhood walks.
Trip Highlights
- Visit the historic palaces and capitals home to the Danish monarch
- Discover secret streets with old trading houses
- Get an understanding of Copenhagen and explore the city's best parts.
Distance
4km (2.4 miles)
Activity Level
Level 2 – flat path, no stairs, paved. However, this is a long walk if done in one go!
Start Location
Copenhagen City Hall
End Location
Nyhavn
Itinerary
This is a summarised itinerary. More stops are included in the walk.
City Hall
Copenhagen’s city hall is the headquarters of the municipality and the Lord Mayor of Copenhagen. The current building was inaugurated in 1905 and is designed in the national romantic style with inspiration from the Siena City Hall in Italy.
Tivoli Gardens
You can see Tivoli Gardens, the second-oldest amusement park in the world that is still operating. The area was outside of the city walls, so a man called Georg Carstensen received a charter to build an amusement park on the land, convincing King Christian VIII that “when people are amusing themselves, they don’t need to think about politics”.
Copenhagen Museum
Copenhagen museum is a museum dedicated to the history of Copenhagen. At the moment many of their exhibitions are focused around the archaeological digs during the expansion of the Copenhagen metro.
Christiansborg Palace
The site where Christiansborg Palace is today is where there has been a castle ever since Copenhagen was founded in 1167. Until 1794 this was the main residence of the Danish Kings, and ever since 1849 it has been the seat of Parliament.
The Stork Fountain
This was a present to Crown Prince Frederik (later Frederik VIII) and Crown Princess Louise in connection with their silver anniversary in 1894.
Church of the Holy Ghost
The Church of the Holy Ghost (“Helligaandskirken” in Danish) is one of the oldest churches in Copenhagen. The first abbey in Copenhagen was a Franciscan monastery founded in 1238, just 12 years after the death of Francis of Assisi.
The Round Tower
The Round Tower (“Rundetaarn” in Danish) is an astronomical observatory that was built under a major initiative by King Christian IV. The tower is part of the Trinitatis Complex, which also provided the scholars of the time with a university chapel, the Trinitatis Church, and an academic library which were the first facilities of the Copenhagen University Library which had been founded in 1482.
Rosenborg Castle
The Round Tower (“Rundetaarn” in Danish) is an astronomical observatory that was built under a major initiative by King Christian IV. The tower is part of the Trinitatis Complex, which also provided the scholars of the time with a university chapel, the Trinitatis Church, and an academic library which were the first facilities of the Copenhagen University Library which had been founded in 1482.
Kongens Nytorv
Kongens Nytorv (“The King’s New Square” in English) is the public square of Copenhagen and it is located at the end of the pedestrian street Strøget. The street was laid out by King Christian V in 1670 in connection with an expansion of the city. The old market square, Gammeltorv, was becoming overcrowded, so it was decided to build a new market. The idea from Kongens Nytorv came from the royal planning seen in Paris in the early 17th century.
Example of what the guide looks like.