I spent an unexpected night in Copenhagen in a sleeping pod, but also had a chance to walk around one of the most beautiful and cleanest cities in Europe. Here’s a photo essay of Copenhagen after dark.
Copenhagen After Dark – A Photo Essay
I took the train from the airport into town, a clean, smooth, efficient, and inexpensive journey.
It was a cold night, but not bitingly cold and I thankfully had a jacket.
I got off at Kongens Nytorv station (eight stops from the airport) and found myself in the center of the city.
Walking toward the waterfront, I could not help but admire the beauty and wealth of this city. Fine restaurants and bars, well-manicured landscaping, clean streets, and well-dressed people.
There may be some seedy areas in Copenhagen–usually every city has them–but I did not see any.
My sleeping pods were not exactly spacious, but it had to be the nicest hostel I’ve ever stayed in, at least in terms of the building and location.
I did get hungry and went out looking for döner kebab (meat on a vertical rotisserie…). I found a “German” (Turkish) place called Keababery.
One durum döner (a wrap made with flatbread and filled with marinated meat, vegetables, and sauces) and two falafel later, I walked across the street to 7-Eleven (all over Denmark) to get some “green juice” which was quite respectable.
I walked back by the Hotel D’Angleterre…which runs about 1,000 USD per night, so quite a juxtaposition from my humble sleeping pod…
I also walked by a furniture store and peered in with some envy…I love Danish modern.
Then it was back to my sleeping pod for a quick rest and a 5:00 am rise back to the airport.
With all my SAS miles, I do hope to not only route through Copenhagen on upcoming trips, but also spend more time in this beautiful city.
“ It was a cold night, but not bitingly cold and I thankfully had a jacket.”
Sounds like the start of an entry in the J Peterman catalog.
It’s been a relatively warm winter (for Copenhagen) in Copenhagen this year. My warmest winter coats have been unnecessary or unwelcome in Copenhagen this year. The number of days with snow on the ground was low.
I am often at Hotel D’Angleterre, but I rarely stay there myself. It’s a nice hotel and the suites are great, but I tend to be a value Hunter so you can be sure my money has a different allocation preference.
” Well-manicured landscaping, clean streets, and well dressed people”
Walt Disney took notes and Disneyland was born.
Ha, speaking of that I’ll share about my recent visit tomorrow…
I would have guessed you choosing the Steel House for the indoor pool and gym.
But not at 10:00 pm with a 4:30 am wake-up call!
No seedy areas in Copenhagen? That’s funny. Copenhagen basically invented a form of sex tourism in the 60s when pornography was illegal in most places, but not Denmark. I tend to find nightlife in Copenhagen to be fairly wild compared to the region. Bars stay open late and allow smoking indoors. It has an anything goes atmosphere. I mean, they even sell beer on tap in baggage claim! Night and day compared to their neighbors in Malmo, and I love Copenhagen for it.
I saw the bars and smoking, but it didn’t feel like a red light district…
The sailor’s quarter of Nyhavn used to be seedy before gentrification but like Freetown Christiania it changed with the times. I went to Copenhagen for a family wedding about 30 years ago and a female cousin told some of us from the USA that for a while young solo females had to be careful walking around downtown Copenhagen because there was a rapist about. A rapist, as in one. Most U.S. cities would be thrilled to have just one rapist around as their big crime problem. The dichotomy of safety there compared to the USA is stunning.
The traditional red light area in the city was around the main train station in the direction going away from Tivoli.
Sweden is rather puritanical. But what I find fascinating is how the Swedish police now have a “random” stop and search “security zone” at Malmo C that is focused on trains coming from Stockholm and Gothenburg but largely ignore passengers from Denmark. It’s more harassment than anything else as nearly all the police frisking and bag searches at Malmo C catch literally nothing and are easily avoided by criminals.
Copenhagen is wonderful in so many ways. Possibly the closest area to ‘seedy’ would be Freetown Christiania, although it’s also really interesting! Maybe not somewhere to visit by night though, for a few more reasons other than you’ll not be able to see the amazing art and architecture!
Christiania has long been drug central, but the sex market stuff was concentrated closer to Copenhagen’s main train station. It’s still there around Copenhagen H, but more online nowadays than 10-25 years ago.
I have about 10 hours in Copenhagen on a layover. Did you use a self guided walking tour that you could share so that we maximize the time – or did you just wonder around