Denmark

Denmark is Schengen, so entry is the standard European affair — 90 days in 180 visa-free for the main Western passports, with the EES biometric system now live and ETIAS expected in 2027. The thing people misjudge is the money: Denmark is in the EU but not the eurozone, and uses the Danish krone, pegged to the euro at roughly 7.46.

Some tourist spots accept euros, but at poor rates with change in kroner — so pay in DKK, which in practice means paying by card almost everywhere.

Don’t arrive expecting euros to work smoothly — it’s the krone, and the real answer is to pay by card or phone (Denmark is near-cashless), skipping currency entirely. There’s nothing to arrange for the EES beyond your passport; ETIAS isn’t live yet.

Copenhagen packs the set-pieces: the painted 17th-century harbour of Nyhavn, the royal palaces of Amalienborg and Rosenborg (the crown jewels), the Little Mermaid (brace for how small she is), and Tivoli Gardens, one of the world’s oldest pleasure gardens — but strictly seasonal, closing between its summer, Halloween and Christmas runs.

It’s a city of superb museums and design-and-hygge atmosphere — and one of Europe’s most expensive, so budget accordingly.

Check Tivoli’s calendar before you plan around it — it shuts entirely between its three seasons (so a May or late-September visit can find it closed), and the Christmas season is arguably the most magical. Book the big museums and Tivoli online to skip queues.

To feel Copenhagen, get on a bike — separated lanes line nearly every street, and the elevated orange Cykelslangen ramp is a small landmark. The city gave the world mid-century Danish design (Arne Jacobsen, Hans Wegner, the PH lamp), and it reshaped dining through the New Nordic movement.

But note the Noma reality: Noma closed as a conventional fine-dining restaurant at the end of 2024 and is now “Noma 3.0,” a food-innovation lab with pop-ups and products — not an everyday bookable table. The New Nordic influence lives on across the city’s other restaurants.

Don’t plan a trip around dinner at Noma — it’s no longer a regular restaurant. And as a pedestrian, stay out of the cycle lanes: they look like pavement but carry fast, constant bike traffic with priority. Hire a bike yourself (city shops or the station OV-fiets equivalent) to see the city as locals do.

Denmark beyond the capital is small and well-connected. Aarhus, the Jutland second city, has the ARoS gallery crowned by Olafur Eliasson’s circular rainbow walkway; Odense on Funen is Hans Christian Andersen’s town; Roskilde holds five original Viking ships and a royal-burial cathedral. At the northern tip, Skagen is where the Skagerrak and Kattegat seas meet in a visible line, under the clear light that drew a school of painters.

Add the chalk cliffs of Møns Klint and Legoland at Billund, and there’s a week here beyond Copenhagen — all reachable by train.

• Design and modern artSkiponly doing CopenhagenGoAarhus — ARoS and its Rainbow Panorama
• Fairy tales and familiesSkipskipping JutlandGoOdense (Hans Christian Andersen) and Legoland Billund
• Vikings and royal historySkipstaying in the capitalGoRoskilde — the Viking ships and the cathedral

Don’t stop at Copenhagen — the trains make the whole country a day-trip radius, and Aarhus, Odense and Roskilde each justify an outing (or an overnight). For families, Jutland’s Legoland Billund is the draw, but it’s seasonal, so check it’s open for your dates.

Denmark runs on trains and bikes. The DSB network links the cities, Copenhagen’s driverless metro runs 24/7, and the airport has a station ~15 minutes from the centre. The showpiece is the Øresund Bridge: a 35-minute train ride delivers you to central Malmö, Sweden.

A car is only worth it for rural Jutland; if you drive, note the Great Belt Bridge toll between Zealand and Funen. Pay for transit with Rejsekort or contactless.

Skip the car for a city-and-rail trip — Denmark is flat, compact and superbly trained, and parking is costly. Use the 35-minute Øresund train to Malmö for an easy day in Sweden (carry your passport — it’s an EU internal crossing but ID checks happen), and pay everything by contactless.

Summer (June–August) is the peak — long days, outdoor life, festivals — with spring and autumn the quieter shoulders. Winter is short-lit and cold, but it’s the hygge season of candlelit cafés, Christmas markets and Tivoli’s Christmas garden, which has its own appeal.

The climate is otherwise mild and maritime — grey, damp and changeable rather than extreme — so pack for rain in any season.

There’s no softening it: Denmark is the EU’s most expensive country, around 140% of the European average and dearest of all for eating out and hotels. The upside is transparency — the 25% VAT is in every displayed price, and tipping isn’t expected (service is included), so the sticker is close to the total.

It’s also near-cashless: contactless, Apple/Google Pay and local MobilePay are accepted virtually everywhere, and you can travel without touching a banknote.

Save where Danes do: bakeries, smørrebrød lunches, hot-dog stands and the free tap water beat restaurant dinners, and a city card or the free museum days trim the sightseeing. You never need cash — but you do need to accept that even modest meals cost more here than almost anywhere in Europe.

Denmark is a high-trust, egalitarian welfare society that reliably sits near the top of the world happiness rankings — the home of hygge — with near-universal fluent English. On the plate it’s smørrebrød (open rye-bread sandwiches), the pastries the world calls “Danish,” and the Carlsberg brewing heritage.

Two autonomous territories fly the Danish flag far afield — the Faroe Islands and Greenland — each a self-governing long-haul destination in its own right, not a day trip.

If the Faroes or Greenland tempt you, treat them as separate expeditions reached via Copenhagen, not Danish add-ons — each has its own weather, cost and logistics. In Denmark itself, lean into hygge: the country is at its best not in grand sights but in a candlelit café on a grey afternoon.