I visited the beautiful city Copenhagen, Denmark November 23-26, 2018 for leisure. I will share insight on public transportation, social atmosphere and sites of interest.
This was my third time visiting Copenhagen, though my longest time staying there. I visited Copenhagen two times in 2007, but each time was only for a few hours. This time I was able to analyze the city in more depth.
I recommend researching Copenhagen’s public transportation before going there since it can be a bit tricky. When I first arrived I bought a tourist ticket that allowed unlimited rides on trains and buses. Surprisingly, the metro does not go to the central station, and there is no direct transfer on the metro to get there either. A person must get off the metro, go to the surface, cross the street and then go down again to the S-tog, a completely different rail system. There is a train that goes directly from the airport to the central station, but it runs less frequently. Also the train map took me a while to understand, so I’m glad I bought the tourist ticket that allowed me to hop on and off the trains easily and understand how the system worked.
The social atmosphere of Copenhagen is a bit more lively than Stockholm, though it still had the cold Scandinavian feel. One reason why it felt more social was because there were so many people riding bikes. Often people would be riding bikes side by side while talking. I have a theory that all the bike riding gives people endorphins and therefore they have a more “happy” personality. I was in the city core the whole time, so I also saw lots of tourists, which also contributed to the city’s more social feel.
While visiting I went to Tivoli, one of the most popular attractions in all of Scandinavia, and even Europe. It is the second oldest amusement park in the world. Surprisingly, the first oldest amusement park in the world is also in Denmark. I went later at night because I wanted to see the park’s beautiful Christmas light displays, and also bypass the crowds. The displays were really a wonderful site to see. The park is nice enough to offer a reduced ticket price for people who simply want to stroll around the park and not go on rides, which is the option I went with since it was too cold to go on the roller coasters and swing rides.
I also went to the National Museum of Denmark located in central Copenhagen. I should have arrived much earlier, though, rather than two hours before closing time. There are so many exhibits in the museum that it would take a whole day to go through. I particularly enjoyed learning about the indigenous people of modern-day Denmark, and seeing tools, jewelry and pottery they produced. There were also wonderful exhibits showcasing viking runes, and how the Romans influenced powerful Scandinavian families. There were many more exhibits, but I ran out of time to see them.
I finally visited Nyhavn, the most visited location in Copenhagen. Nyhavn’s primary draw are colorful buildings standing side by side along a canal. There are also exotic restaurants, shops and vendors that line the canal, as well as beautiful boats. Large canal tour boats circle in the canal while passengers look at the stunning city structures.
All in all, Copenhagen is a fun city to visit. I wouldn’t say it is a city I would go out of my way to visit again, but it does have a cozy atmosphere once navigation is figured out.
Lauren Ell is an American blogger born and raised in Southern California and is currently based in Sweden. She discusses Epilepsy, Politics and Fun. Professionally Ell is an Online Marketing Consultant and Virtual Assistant. She is also founder and president of Republican Atheists and GunSafetySociety.org. Connect with Lauren on Facebook and Twitter.