There’s a lot you can see with just 24 hours in Copenhagen. Even on a short visit, it’s easy to see why Denmark is consistently ranked one of the happiest countries in the world. The morning commute is bicycles instead of cars, the city is walkable, the food is delicious, and the people are lovely. 24 hours in Copenhagen is enough time to take in the highlights and must-see spots!
My visit to Copenhagen was a little bit last minute, and I would have loved to spend more time there. While you certainly need more time to get to know a city well, 24 hours in Copenhagen is a great addition to any Europe trip and it is a relatively expensive city. Here’s how you can make the most of a short visit!
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24 Hours in Copenhagen
Copenhagen Tours: Free Walking Tour
The Copenhagen free walking tour takes pride in being the number one Copenhagen activity on TripAdvisor. It’s for good reason! I loved this walking tourGo Enjoy the number one Copenhagen activity on Trip Advisor. I went on the Grand Tour of Copenhagen, which included Christiansborg Palace, Nyhavn Harbour, and the Royal Palace of Amalienborg – just to name a few!
Over 3 hours you will learn tons about Denmark’s history, their current parliament, and the royal family. I love starting with walking tours because the guides often have amazing tips on other things to see and do while you’re in the city.
Copenhagen Free Walking Tours offers 4 tours. These include 3 free walking tours; the Grand Tour of Copenhagen, the Classical Tour which covers more renaissance Copenhagen, and a tour of the Free Town of Christiania. There is also a pub crawl (which is not free, but it’s a reasonable 25USD/ 30CAD).
On the “free” tours, plan on giving a generous tip!
- Tip for Luggage Storage: since you’re only in Copenhagen for a short while, leave your bags with LuggageHero so you don’t have to carry them around all day. LuggageHero is a network of more than 50 storage points in local shops. Locations are around transportation hubs and popular districts, such as Nørreport Station and Nyhavn. Use the map at the LuggageHero reservation platform to find a verified storage site. Each bag receives a safety seal, and the bag and contents are insured for €2,500. Storage prices start at €1 per hour, with a daily max of €10 and a one-time €2 handling charge. If your plans change, there’s no cancellation fee. I’ve used the service in Montreal!
Tivoli Gardens (evening)
Hans Christian Andersen and Walt Disney visited Tivoli Gardens many times, because it has a magical feel that inspired them. Ride one of the oldest roller coasters in the world, and bash around in vintage bumpers cars. Though some rides are built in the early 1900’s, you’ll find they have more kick to them than you expect.
Visit Tivoli Gardens at night, when the buildings and trees are lit by tiny, multi-coloured lights. Ride the Odin Express (a train/ laid back roller coaster) for an awesome view of the city lights at night. I rode the train 3 times, because the view was so beautiful.
- Entry: 110 DKK
- Ride pass: 230 DKK
- That’s about $50 USD, and totally worth it.
Plan on spending a few hours here to make the most of your ride pass, and stay til the end of the night for a beautiful light show.
Check out Tivoli’s website to learn more.
Go for a long walk to see the Langelinje Pier
Nyhavn, and Stroget (morning)
Walk along the water to the Little Mermaid statue. It’s rated the second most disappointing tourist attraction in the world, but I loved it. Remember that it’s just intended to be a beautiful statue, and enjoy the waterfront walk.
Return to Nyhavn on your own (outside of a walking tour) to take photographs, and walk along Stroget, one of the oldest and longest outdoor walking streets in Europe. A couple tips for Nyhavn:
- it’s very quiet early in the morning.
- eat like the locals by getting a (cheap) slice of pizza on the West side of the water and sitting down on the canal to eat.
Copenhagen is a very walkable city, and it’s completely flat. It’s also very easy to navigate, especially by following routes along the water and the shopping streets.
Copenhagen is on my bucket list. Sounds like you had a wonderful trip.
It’s a beautiful city, you’ll love it!
Copenhagen sure looks like a relaxing city! Love the fact that you can enjoy the harbour view right in town! It reminds me of Hobart, which is a beautiful habour city in Tasmania. If you love Copenhagen, I’m sure you’ll fall for Hobart too.
I’ve heard great things! I’ll add Hobart to the list 🙂
Copenhahen is an amazing city and thanks for the tip. I am defintiely going back to explore so much more!
One of my favourites cities, I would love to return as well 🙂
I pinned this!! I love getting ideas on spending a short amount of time and seeing the HIGHLIGHTS of cities. Sometimes the amount of activities in capital cities can get overwhelming, so it’s awesome that you shared the “must sees” of Copenhagen! (Free activities are fabulous too!)
The city I lived in was settled by MANY Danish people way back when, so we have quite a few Danish bakeries all around town. I’d love to visit Denmark also just to see how Americanized the Danish treats have gotten over the years, haha!
I’m so glad you found the suggestions valuable! It was definitely a highlights trip. The one thing I missed out on was trying a Danish while I was there haha, so you’ll have to let me know! Overall, the culture is not what I considered Americanized, which is great, Denmark has a very unique and authentic feel!
Copenhagen looks beautiful! I haven’t been there yet but thanks for the tips, now I have an idea of what I need to see if I ever get to go to Copenhagen 🙂
You’ll love it if you do!
I agree with you that Nyhavn is a must see. I’ve visited CPH many times (I even moved there!) and never tired of the city, especially Nyhavn. Great post and lovely photos!
It’s such a lovely spot!
Visiting Copenhagen is such a dream and I hope it will happen for me soon, though It is generally the high costs that are stopping me. You’ve listed many cool things but the Tivoli Gardens is my favourite. I had no idea there are some of the oldest roller coasters.
The old rides are amazing! Copenhagen was not cheap, but it wasn’t expensive either. I stayed in a hostel and shopped the grocery store for food. Tivoli was something of a splurge but once I found out what was there I had to go!
Wow you managed to fit so much into 24 hours! Sounds wonderful. We are hoping to visit Copenhagen as have heard so many fantastic things about it there. It’s definitely on our ever-growing bucket list ?
Haha yes, I was determined to see as much as possible! The bucket list gets so long haha! It’s a wonderful city, you’re going to love it.
I would love to visit Copenhagen! One day!