Copenhagen City Guide for the Design Obsessed ✨

Image credit: Ian Reid

Hi All, my name is Ian.

To be honest I was a bit surprised when Remi asked me to do a little write up on Copenhagen. I have never really documented my travels officially so I am completely new to this whole thing. But Copenhagen, being one of my favorite cities on earth, has plenty to write about so I figured I would give it a shot with this travel guide to Copenhagen.

I have been to CPH twice now. The first time I went was purely because I was broke and I was trying to find the cheapest way to get to Paris (a birthday present for my girlfriend Michelle). After like 30 minutes of trying to find a nonstop flight I realized that maybe spending a day in Copenhagen wouldn't be half bad, so I started looking into it. I quickly decided that one day was not going to be enough, I wanted to check out almost every single thing I was reading about. Everything looks incredible, the restaurants are flawlessly designed, the food looks fresh, the architecture looked insane, I was enamored by all of the things that weren’t even attractions. My one-day layover quickly turned into a 5 day trip, before continuing on to Paris and Lisbon.

Image credits: Ian Reid

As soon as we landed we realized why those flights were so cheap. Copenhagen IS COLD AF in the winter time. I had no clue how cold Denmark actually gets. So if you’re going on a trip between October and March, prepare. (Uniqlo Heat Tech leggings and Doc Martins are lifesavers). All other times of the year are pretty mild, and summer is apparently perfect. No matter what time of the year, I would always pack sweaters, jackets and boots because the nights can get chilly. The wind that comes off the Baltic Sea in the winter can be brutal, so don’t forget your moisturizer. Freck’s Rich Bitch works wonders ;).

The second time I went I was much more prepared and it made my journey way more comfortable, so hopefully, by sharing some of these tips in my travel guide to Copenhagen, you guys can get it right the first time. 

Image credits: Ian Reid

WHERE TO STAY

Location is so important in Copenhagen, the city isn’t that big and everything that is fun to do happens pretty close to the city center. Vesterborro & Norrebro would be my recommendation for neighborhoods to stay in. The first time we stayed a little bit out of the city, and although it was an easy bus ride to the center, being in Norrebro the second time made all the difference.

I stayed at an Airbnb both trips— people in Copenhagen tend to have great taste when it comes to decorating their home and I found that I got more bang for my buck. My hosts have been the friendliest people, super laid back and happy to give some pointers on the closest grocery stores and coffee shops. My favorite location by far was this Airbnb in Norrebro. I don’t mind a private room and the price was unmatchable for Copenhagen.

Image credits: Ian Reid

If you are more the hotel type, people have recommended that I stay at Hotel SP34. I have only heard good things, from what I have seen stopping by, the interior is done really well and they have all the amenities you could want from a boutique hotel in the Latin Quarter. Last time I checked It was priced around $130 a night.

Image Credit: Hotel SP34

WHERE TO EAT

Some of my favorite food in the world is in Copenhagen. I can honestly say I didn’t have a single bad meal the whole time I was there. A lot of the food is heavily taxed so it can be a bit pricey, but the regulations keep quality up— most places serve organic everything.

My favorite place to eat breakfast is a little cafe called Atelier September. It’s close to the city center, and because of jetlag I would wake up at 6:30 every morning to walk the 30 minutes from Norrebro every morning. They had some of the best coffee in the city and an amazing parfait with fresh yogurt and seasonal fruit. They also have a selection of different toasts that have never disappointed.

Image Credits: Magdelena Marseiler | Ilenia Martini

Fætter Fætter calls itself a toast bar, and that is probably the best way to describe it! This cute little spot in Norrebro is a great place to grab a toast! It was the best grilled cheese I have ever had, they melted the cheese with a blowtorch. They also have salads and other small plates if that's your vibe.

Image Credits: Anders Flygg Juul | Rebecca Fexby

Every time I have gone to Copenhagen I have been traveling on a super budget, however if you want to treat yourself to — Vækst is one of the best places in town. I have only heard incredible things and the interior of the place is like something out of a textbook on how to design a restaurant. I’ve never been myself, this place gets all of the recs from people I know who live in the city.

Image Credit: Vækst

WHAT TO DO

I can wake up in CPH at 5:00 AM and just start walking around. I have always had a blast exploring and I highly recommend it. I would just type a destination into my map and then sort of weave through the streets until I got there, checking out all the stores and such in between.

Ok, so I am a bit of a nerd for interior design. Wherever I go, my first destination is the Design Museum. Every exhibit I have seen here has been amazing. The way they curate is just perfect. The danish chair exhibit is always cool, and the last time I was there they had an exhibit on Japanese antiquities in danish interiors— it was really interesting and very well done.

Stop by the gift shop to pick up little gifts for your design-driven friends and larger art prints for your home.

The Palm House is part of the Copenhagen Botanical Gardens, It’s a massive greenhouse filled with every kind of tropical plant imaginable. It has two beautiful white spiral staircases up to a walking path along the treetops. In the winter time this place is a glowing oasis for plant lovers. The air is humid and constantly kept warm, a great place to beat the cold while having fun.

The shop at the entrance sells really cool old botanical drawings that when framed make great souvenirs. 

Image credits: Ian Reid

The Round Tower is one of the oldest buildings in Copenhagen, it’s part of a church in the center of town. Originally it was used as an observatory so they made the floor like a corkscrew ramp all the way up- it allows for heavy telescopes to be carried to the top easily. This is one of my favorite places in Copenhagen, the architecture is stunning and when you get to the top there is a great view of the city rooftops.

Image credits: Ian Reid  

The Glyptoteket. One of my favorite places in the city, an indoor tropical sculpture garden. Relax, check out the sculpture and mozey through the beautiful interior. I came here on my last day and wasn’t expecting to love it as much as I did, it quickly became one of my favorite places I went. 

Image credits: Ian Reid

Grundtvigs Church is, hands down, one of the most awe-inspiring spaces I have ever been in. It’s hard to believe that this functioning church isn’t a tourist attraction. The space is so beautiful, massive and symmetrical that I couldn’t help but wait out the service in progress to take pictures. It is pretty far off the beaten path, so If you’re going to go check it out, I would give yourself the whole morning and rent a bike. I made the walk, but it was almost an hour each way from where I was staying. If you’re a fan of architecture this place is one of the greats.

Image credits: Ian Reid

OTHER STORES & SPACES

WORTH A VISIT

FRAMA STUDIO STORE - Design Store
KING'S GARDEN  - Sculpture Garden
STORM COPENHAGEN  - Clothing and Art
NATIONAL DANISH MUSEUM - Museum
OFR COPENHAGEN - Bookstore
WOOD WOOD - Clothing Store
ACNE ARCHIVE - Clothing Store
COFFEE COLLECTIVE - Coffee Shop