Copenhagen

One day in Copenhagen: The ultimate bike route

Having only one day to visit Copenhagen? No worries! With Copenhagen being the city of cyclists, a bicycle is the perfect means of transport to see the city. With this ultimate bike route, you will see the most important sights in only one day!

The Bike Route

The tour starts at Christiansborg Castle. This is where the Danish Parliament is positioned. Parts of the palace are also in use by the Danish Royals. If you are very interested you can visit the Palace from the inside. After this first sight you bike along the Børsen, a 17th-century stock exchange, towards the Church of Our Saviour. If you would like to you can go to the top of this church with an outdoor spiral staircase for a nice view. Later in this tour you will have another opportunity to go to the top of a tower, so it is your choice which one you would like to climb.

The next stop in this bike tour is the freetown of Christiania. Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous town in the centre of Copenhagen. Inspired by the red-light district in Amsterdam, Christiania has a green-light district, where drugs are ‘legally’ (according to the laws of Christiania) sold. Visiting Christiania is a must do and very interesting. However, it is not without a risk. Taking pictures is prohibited and residents might become violent when it turns out that visitors are not interested in buying drugs. Make sure that you do follow the rules of Christiania and you will have an amazing experience visiting this freetown.

On your way to the next sight you have to bike along the Church of our Saviour and the Børsen again. You will follow a road alongside the water and you will end in the famous Nyhavn. Nyhavn is known for its bright coloured houses. Take your time and walk around the Nyhavn for a while and maybe enjoy a drink on one of the many terraces. Make sure you leave the Nyhavn around 11.45 to go to The Amalienborg Palace. Amalienborg Palace is the palace where the Danish royal family lives and every day at 12.00 you will be able to see the changing of the guards. Also this palace is open for visitors. Very close to Amalienborg Palace is the Frederiks Kirke, or also known as the Marble Church. There is no entrance fee for this church and therefore it is a much to see from the inside. Don’t forget to look up to the amazing dome. During the summer months, and all the weekend all year round, the dome can also be visited, this only happens at 13.00 and 15.00.

The next stop is probably the most famous sight of Copenhagen. The little mermaid. Be prepared, the statue is very small and most of the times very busy. This does, however, not mean that you won’t be able to get a nice picture with it. You can get very close to the statue. The statue was inspired by the fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. Andersen lived at the Nyhavn for almost 20 years. Before leaving the little mermaid you could also quickly walk around ‘Kastellet’. To be honest I’m still not exactly sure what it is, but I believe it had something to do with protecting the Danish from the English back in the 1800s. And for other people like me, there is a bathroom down there.. haha!

The drive to the next stop is a bit longer, about 2 kilometres. You will arrive at Rosenborg Castle. Also this castle can be visited and it is also the place where the crowns of the Danish kings and queens are kept. Besides the castle are the gardens also worth a visit. After this castle you will bike towards the Rundetaarn. This is the oldest functioning observatory in Europe and another place where you can go to the top and enjoy the view of Copenhagen. To get at the top you need to walk a 209 meter long spiral walk, while the tower is only 36 meters high. On your way to the top there also is a glass floor where you can look 25 meters down. Scary, but fun.

The last stop on this tour is the Radhuspladsen with as most impressive building Copenhagen’s town hall. From here you can finish off your day with some shopping at Copenhagen’s most famous shopping street Strøget, or with a visit to the famous amusement park Tivoli.

Some final notes on biking through Copenhagen

Biking through Copenhagen is pretty safe and other road users are pretty much used to bikers. Also renting bikes is very easy. Almost every hotel in Copenhagen rents bikes to its guests and otherwise are there many many bike shops around the city. Do make sure that you always lock your bike when you park it somewhere to visit a sight, you don’t want your rented bike getting stolen. And a last tip if you want to bike during winter: bring gloves! Must have! The bike route is approximately 9 kilometres. Walking it is also doable, when using special walking paths it will only be 8 kilometres. I do also want to stress out that even though you will be able to see the most famous highlights of Copenhagen in one day, I would not recommend staying for just one day, since there is so much more to see and do in the city!