Day-by-day programme of this 10-day itinerary across From Copenhagen to Jutland, via Funen.
Day 1 â Arrival in Copenhagen
Landing in Copenhagen, the capital of design and Scandinavian happiness: a bike-friendly city of canals, pastel houses and an enviable quality of life. A first impression in the famous Nyhavn harbour.
- âïļ Copenhagen â Aeroporto di Copenaghen-Kastrup (CPH)
- ð Nyhavn â Nyhavn is Copenhagen's postcard: a 17th-century canal lined with narrow, brightly coloured houses, once a sailors' quarter (Hans Christian Andersen lived here), today full of cafes, restaurants and old wooden boats moored. You sit in the sun with a Danish beer watching the boats go by. From here the pedestrian Stroget street leads to the centre.
- ð Stroget â Stroget is one of Europe's longest pedestrian streets, the commercial heart of Copenhagen: a succession of Danish-design shops, historic department stores, squares with fountains and street performers. It is perfect for tasting the Danish lifestyle and soaking up hygge before dinner. You return to the hotel: you sleep four nights in Copenhagen.
- ðĻ Ibsens Hotel â Centro (Indre By / Vesterbro), Copenhagen
Day 2 â Royal Copenhagen
A day among the capital's symbols: the Little Mermaid statue, the Amalienborg royal palace with the changing of the guard, Rosenborg Castle with the crown jewels and the Round Tower.
- ð The Little Mermaid â You begin with the Little Mermaid (Den Lille Havfrue), the bronze statue inspired by Andersen's fairytale that since 1913 has sat on a rock gazing at the sea: small and composed, it is the city's symbol. Along the way you pass the Gefion Fountain and the star-shaped Kastellet citadel. You continue on foot to the Amalienborg royal palace.
- ð Amalienborg â Amalienborg is the residence of the Danish royal family: four elegant Rococo palaces arranged around an octagonal square with the equestrian statue of King Frederick V. At noon, if the monarch is in residence, the changing of the Royal Guard (Den Kongelige Livgarde) takes place with their bearskin caps. Beyond rises the dome of the Marble Church (Marmorkirken). In the afternoon, Rosenborg Castle.
- ð Rosenborg Castle â Rosenborg Castle, built in the 17th century as a summer residence, holds the Danish crown jewels and royal treasures in opulent rooms, set in the lovely Kongens Have gardens. Nearby rises the Rundetaarn, the Round Tower of 1642, with its spiral ramp you can walk (on foot or, once, on horseback) up to the rooftop viewing platform. You dine in the centre. Return to the hotel.
Day 3 â Alternative Copenhagen
A day between the Christiansborg parliament palace, the anarchic free town of Christiania and, in the evening, the magic of the historic Tivoli amusement park.
- ð Christiansborg Palace â On the islet of Slotsholmen stands Christiansborg, the only building in the world to house all three branches of state: parliament (Folketing), supreme court and royal reception rooms. You visit the lavish royal halls and climb the tower (the city's tallest, free entry) for the view. All around, the old Stock Exchange and the canals. From here you cross the bridge to Christiania.
- ð Freetown Christiania â Christiania is the 'free town' born in 1971 from the squatting of a former barracks: a self-governed, car-free commune of about a thousand inhabitants, made of self-built houses, murals, art workshops, gardens and alternative cafes, set in greenery along the ramparts. A unique social experiment in Europe, to visit with respect (photography is forbidden in some lanes). In the afternoon, relaxation and then Tivoli.
- ðŊ Tivoli Gardens â Tivoli Gardens, opened in 1843, is the world's second-oldest amusement park and the embodiment of Danish hygge: vintage and modern rides, flowering gardens, exotic pavilions, theatres and restaurants, all lit by thousands of fairy lights in the evening. It inspired Walt Disney. It is magical for all ages, especially at sunset. You dine here. Tomorrow a trip to north Zealand.
Day 4 â North Zealand
A trip north of Copenhagen: Kronborg Castle, Hamlet's Elsinore, the Renaissance Frederiksborg on the water and the Louisiana art museum overlooking the sea.
- ð Kronborg Castle â At Helsingor (Elsinore), at the narrowest point of the strait towards Sweden, stands Kronborg, a mighty Renaissance castle and UNESCO site: Shakespeare set Hamlet here. You visit the halls, the great banqueting room and the underground casemates where the statue of Holger Danske, a legendary hero, sleeps. Views of Sweden opposite. You continue to Frederiksborg Castle.
- ð Frederiksborg Castle â At Hillerod, Frederiksborg Castle is the largest Renaissance castle in Scandinavia: it mirrors on three islets of a lake, with red-brick towers, spires and courtyards. It houses the Museum of National History, with sumptuous portraits and furnishings, and splendid symmetrical Baroque gardens. A Nordic fairytale. In the afternoon you reach the Louisiana museum on the coast.
- ð Louisiana Museum of Modern Art â The Louisiana, at Humlebaek, is one of the finest modern-art museums in the world: not just for the works (Giacometti, Warhol, Bacon) but for the dialogue between art, architecture and nature, with glass halls opening onto a sculpture park sloping towards the sea, with Sweden on the horizon. A serene, inspiring experience. You return to Copenhagen for your last night in the city.
Day 5 â Roskilde and Odense
You head west: the Viking ships and royal cathedral of Roskilde, then across the Great Belt to Odense, on the island of Funen, birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen.
- ð Viking Ship Museum â Half an hour from Copenhagen, Roskilde was the ancient Viking and royal capital. The Viking Ship Museum displays five original 11th-century ships, sunk to block the fjord and recovered from the seabed; in the boatyard alongside, replicas are built with period techniques and you can even sail. Nearby, Roskilde Cathedral (UNESCO) holds the tombs of 40 Danish kings and queens. You continue to Odense.
- ð Hans Christian Andersen House â Across the long Great Belt bridge (Storebaelt), you reach Odense, on the island of Funen, where in 1805 Hans Christian Andersen was born, the father of modern fairytales (The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, The Emperor's New Clothes). The museum dedicated to him, set in a fairytale garden, tells his life and stories in an immersive way. Odense's centre, with its lanes and half-timbered houses, looks straight out of a fairytale. You sleep here.
- ðĻ First Hotel Grand â Centro storico, Odense
Day 6 â Egeskov and Aarhus
The fairytale Egeskov Castle, the best-preserved moated castle in Europe, then across to Jutland and Aarhus, Denmark's lively second city.
- ð Egeskov Castle â In the heart of Funen, Egeskov Castle (1554) is the best-preserved moated Renaissance castle in Europe: it rises directly from the water of a small lake, built on oak piles. Besides the period rooms, it hosts mazes, spectacular gardens and vintage car and motorcycle museums, great for families too. From here you cross to Jutland and Aarhus.
- ð Aarhus â Aarhus, on the Jutland peninsula, is Denmark's second city: young, student and design-led. The harbour district (Latinerkvarteret) is a maze of cobbled streets, cafes and boutiques, while the waterfront is all contemporary architecture. It is a lively, creative city, great for dinner and the evening. You sleep two nights in Aarhus.
- ðĻ Hotel Oasia â Centro, Aarhus
Day 7 â Aarhus between history and art
A day in Aarhus: the open-air museum Den Gamle By, which recreates old Denmark, and the ARoS museum with its famous rainbow panorama on the roof.
- ð Den Gamle By â Den Gamle By ('the old town') is an extraordinary open-air museum: 75 historic Danish houses, dismantled from all over the country and rebuilt here, recreate a town spanning the centuries, from 1500 to the 1970s, with working shops, costumed inhabitants and even period smells. An immersive journey through time. In the afternoon, the contemporary art of ARoS.
- ð ARoS Aarhus Art Museum â ARoS is Aarhus's main art museum, famous above all for 'Your Rainbow Panorama' by artist Olafur Eliasson: a circular walkway of coloured glass on the roof, walked while seeing the city through all the hues of the rainbow. Inside, Danish art and installations, including the giant 'Boy'. A colourful finale to the city stop. Dinner in the centre, return to the hotel.
Day 8 â Skagen, where two seas meet
Towards the far northern tip: Aalborg on the fjord, then Skagen, where the North Sea and the Baltic meet on Grenen beach, a land of painters and magical light.
- ð Aalborg â Heading up Jutland you pass through Aalborg, Denmark's fourth city on the Limfjord: a fine old centre with Renaissance houses, the lively bar street Jomfru Ane Gade and a modern waterfront with the House of Music. A pleasant stop before continuing to the tip. You head north, to Skagen.
- ð Grenen â Skagen is the very tip of Denmark, where the Grenen sandspit reaches into the sea: here the North Sea (Skagerrak) and the Baltic (Kattegat) meet, and you can see the two currents clash forming crossed waves - you can put one foot in each sea. The clear northern light made Skagen, in the late 19th century, a famous colony of painters. Nearby, the shifting dune of Rabjerg Mile. You sleep in Skagen.
- ðĻ Skagen Hotel â Centro, Skagen
Day 9 â Ribe and Legoland
Heading down Jutland: Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark and Scandinavia, and Billund, where Lego bricks were born and the world's first Legoland stands.
- ð Ribe â Ribe, founded around the year 700, is the oldest town in Denmark and all of Scandinavia: a perfectly preserved gem of cobbled streets, half-timbered houses leaning with age and the imposing Romanesque-Gothic cathedral. In the evening, in summer, the night watchman (Vaegter) still makes his round singing. A plunge into the Viking and merchant Middle Ages. In the afternoon, the world of bricks at Billund.
- ðŊ Legoland Billund â In Billund, in 1932, Lego was born (from the Danish 'leg godt', play well): here stands the world's first Legoland, opened in 1968. Among Miniland - with whole cities and monuments rebuilt from millions of bricks - rides, dragons and themed worlds, it is a paradise for children and the nostalgic alike. Nearby is also the Lego House. A playful finale to the trip. You sleep nearby for the next day's flight.
- ðĻ Zleep Hotel Billund â Billund / Vejle, Jutland
Day 10 â Departure from Billund
Return flight from Billund airport. End of the journey among fairytales, Vikings and design.
- âïļ Billund â Aeroporto di Milano Malpensa (MXP)
