I pretty much spent the last year boring the shit out of my friends/family/anyone who would listen talking about how great Copenhagen is, “well in Copenhagen they do this, that, & the other thing… blah blah blah… Copenhagen is everything…. blah blah blah.” on repeat.
Now that our trip is nearing an end, I am beginning to start to feel the depression sink in. Don’t get me wrong… I miss my family & friends like crazy and I literally dream about the day Bitzy & I are reunited (I am picturing a romantic beach scene w/ us running towards each other & embracing while the waves splash at our feet. LOL!), but that doesn’t make saying goodbye to my spirit city any easier.
In a perfect world, I’d like to just orb all of my people over here so we can all just drink wine in the park, ride bikes along the water, & eat endless amounts of elderflower gelato for the rest of our happy HYGGE lives.
Moral of the story: I don’t want to leave & every single one of you reading this need to put Copenhagen on your freaking bucket list ASAP. Out of all the cities abroad I’ve visited, this one is the only one that has literally stolen my heart.
In hopes that you do one day make it here, I have compiled a little “guide to Copenhagen” featuring all my favorite places to eat, things to do, shopping destinations to hit up, etc.
x, E
p.s. I highly highly highly reccomend downloading the Pinbox app to your iPhone before any future trip. It’s a total travel lifesaver– all you do is create a map (i.e. Copenhagen) & search for your desired destination, once the name pops up you can drop & save your “pin” on the map. This makes being a tourist/visiting all of your desired destinations 100x easier as you can see what is near what (kill two/three/four birds with one stone) & makes navigating the city you’re in a breeze!
One of the best things about Copenhagen is by far the food. Majority of everything you eat here (even in convenience stores) is organic & GMO-free. Tons of restaurants we’ve visited even have cheeky signs that say “don’t panic, it’s organic!”. I 100% believe that plays a major role as to why the people here are so freaking gorgeous, in shape, & have insane skin. Really though, it’s not normal.
Here are all my top fave places to eat + what I reccomend:
» The Living Room: a charming little café complete with comfy couches, cow skulls, plants galore, & free wi-fi. I suggest trying on of their insane caesar wraps (make sure they don’t heat it up!), fresh mint tea (which you can make at home via this recipe), & the blended Ginger Rumba (it’s alcoholic, cause at night this place turns into a cozy little bar).
» Mirabelle Café: this place is SO cute! The floor is definitely one of those #ihavethisthingwithfloors moment & the coffee/rosé (pick your poison) is amazing.
» Torverhallerne Market: This is our go-to spot! It’s an indoor/outdoor market with tons of different little booths. You will find homemade cheeses, cold pressed juices, gluten free sandwiches, amazing Italian/thai food, wine bars, gelato stands, handmade scrubs (yes, for your hands), and so much more.
» Höst: We went here for my birthday dinner & oh em gee, it was literally next level! You get to choose from two set 3 course meals w/ a few chef’s surprises in between courses. Just to get an idea: we had salted scallops with sunflower seed cream, goose breast glazed in sweet prune juice, beet meringue cookies, salted caramel ice cream with popcorn meringue, lemoncello yogurt with pop rocks, & so much more (cause honestly, I have no idea what it all was). This restaurant is part of the Cofoco group, so I’d definitely reccomend any of their restaurants!
» Cocks & Cows: If you’re looking for an amazing burger, this is the spot, which was pretty convenient for us as it’s located at our hotel. Be sure to get a strawberry milkshake, it hold the title of the best milkshake I’ve ever tasted.
» Palaeo: primal gastronomy + “stone age eats for the modern man”. They are known for their wraps, which instead of a wrap use a very thin omelet (so cool!) & we loved the smoked salmon one with pomegranate seeds & avo cream. We also got the carrot pasta which was amazing & a strawberry ginger juice sprinkled with chili powder.
» Østerberg Ice Cream: we literally walked 4+ miles just to get to this place, & it was worth every minute (plus, made the ice cream guilt free!). I got the elderflower sorbet which was to-die-for and Zack got rhubarb & strawberry which was so good he could barely share a bite.
» Olufs Popsicles: Popsicles on acid! Seriously though, the base is already a delicious popsicle & then they dip it in all sorts of insane ingredients. Honestly, it was all in Danish so I can’t tell you want I got exactly, but it was damn good (some sort of chai creation).
Where to stay? Easy, SP34. It’s our second year here & I honestly think I could move in for life.
It’s a chic/semi-new boutique hotel in the Latin Quarters and it’s just one good Instagram moment after another. The rooms are beautiful, but I definitely suggest asking for one with a window view. The design throughout just screams Denmark- minimalistic & so rad.
They have wine hour from 5-6pm where they offer free wine to the guests & everyone mingles in the cozy lobby, cinema nights at 8pm, the best damn breakfast you’ve ever had, two bomb restaurants (including Cocks & Cows), bikes for rent, & it is centrally located/very close to just about everything.
» The Little Mermaid: being one of the most popular tourist destinations in Copenhagen, you’ve got to see The Little Mermaid atleast once. It was a gift given to the city back in 1913 from Danish brewer Carl Jacobson. It was modeled after the original Little Mermaid fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson where the mermaid would swim to shore & perch on a rock each day and each night looking for her prince on land.
» Christianshavn/Christiania: Commonly referred to as the Freetown, Christiania is a must must must see. It’s a total mind blow. It used to be an army barracks, but in 1971 a group of people took it over & turned it into a sort of commune. Now there are around 1000 residents & for the most part, it really is a Freetown. Let me put it this way, it’s kinda like Amsterdam… if you catch my drift, but so much more! There are little shopping stands with handmade goods, realllllly good gyros, a total food court/outdoor area called Nemoland where they host free concerts during Summer on Sunday’s.
A few tips: do NOT bring your camera or take photos, there are zero photos allowed & there is a chance if you try they will smack that camera out of your hands, be respectful (they are all about respect), & leave before it’s dark. I know that sounds scary, but it’s not, just some precautions.
» Bike Riding: they say the best way to see the city is by bike, so rent one! They are everywhere, and you can even find ones with a full on GPS system. This is our plan for tomorrow.
» The Copenhagen Lakes: make like a Dane & sit by the lakes on a blanket with a bottle of wine, feed the huge swans, lounge on the sun deck, or take a ride in a pedal boat shaped like a swan.
» Samadhi Spa: for Zack’s bday, which is two days after mine, I surprised him with a couples spa day at Samadhi Spa & was a totally amazing experience. It started off with ginger tea in the gorgeous waiting area, then onto strong ass Danish detox massages, next we had a private hot tub with smoothies/champagne/chocolate fondue/handmade scrubs/ & a hugeeee rain shower. After we spent an hour eating fondue, we had a full blown sushi dinner in our comfy robes. Perfection!
» The Round Tower: The tower has no elevator (built in 1637), so to get to the top you have to climb a beautiful spiral walk all the way to the top. Once there, the view is breathtaking.
» Tivoli Gardens: the Disneyland of Denmark! This place is such a site to see. The rides are like nothing I’ve seen before in the states (almost questionable how gnarly they are), there are so many delicious gourmet restaurants (nothing like Disney– super healthy & diverse), & the grounds are stunning (especially at night when it all lights up).
» Rosenborg Castle: We didn’t make it here this year, but we did last year & it was seriously so breathtaking! It’s a Renaissance style castle that hasn’t been touched since 1624 & houses the crown jewels. I especially loved roaming the King’s gardens, the oldest garden in the country.
» Shopping: I suggest taking a day just to walk along Amagertorv where you will find stores such as COS, & Other Stories, Weekday, & BikBok (to name a few). You will also find street performers & the weirdest of all- Fish Kiss, a place where fish nibble at your feet to remove calluses. It was a little to much for me, but if that’s your thing…
I love a good Thrift Store, so obviously I had to hunt down a few. For a more hunt & gather experience, hit up København K & if you’re look for designer stuff like Saint Laurent & ACNE, definitely get yourself to O.S.V. second hand. For more thrift store Copenhagen 411, check out this site.
Lastly, if you’re a fan of ACNE, you have got to head over to their archives store. It’s the only one in the world & is basically full of samples & rad one offs.
& I officially think that covers all of it! Stay tuned for Copenhagen Fashion Week & some of my travel looks.