Summer Weekend in Copenhagen

After a Christmas weekend in Copenhagen with mum a couple of years ago, this year Mr T and I decided to head to Copenhagen in summer. Although he had been to Denmark a few times as a kid, Mr T had never actually been to Copenhagen. Since it was his birthday and I needed to ‘get rid’ of a BA companion voucher, we decided on a summer weekend in Copenhagen. 

With a friend roped in to look after the dog, we headed to the airport Saturday morning and flew to Copenhagen for 3 nights. It being early June, it wasn’t quite high season yet and the weather forecast was a little mixed. But we were hoping for the best. Since my last trip was in winter, I was very much looking forward to seeing Copenhagen in summer.

We would be spending 3 nights in Copenhagen, arriving late Saturday afternoon and heading back Tuesday evening. Giving us ample time for everything Copenhagen has to offer in summer.

We picked a hotel in the centre again, although this time it wasn’t directly on Nyhavn. But it was only a short walk away. Truth to be told, it was pretty much whatever we could find that wouldn’t break the bank. We didn’t clock until after we booked our flights that it was a bank holiday weekend in several European countries, so we weren’t the only ones having a summer weekend in Copenhagen. And hotel prices reflected that. Luckily, we did manage to find a nice hotel, centrally located just a short walk to Nyhavn. 

So how does Copenhagen in summer differ from a pre-Christmas trip to Copenhagen? Well, first of all, you get a lot more day light in summer. And much more of life happens outside. Yes, the city and sights are the same summer and winter.  But you might not experience them the same way. Let me tell you, what we got up to during our summer weekend in Copenhagen. 

Read my First Timer’s Guide to Copenhagen for general information about getting around, budget and where to stay. 

Exploring Copenhagen on foot

The original plan was to buy a 72-hour ticket for public transport as soon as we’d arrive at the airport. However, we then decided to just buy the ticket to get from the airport into town and play it by ear. We could always get a 24 or 48 hour ticket once we actually needed it. In the end, the only public transport we took during our summer weekend in Copenhagen were the trips from and to the airport.

Copenhagen is very walkable. Most sights are within easy walking distance. Obviously, it makes sense to group the things you want to see (rather than walk back and forth several times). And the benefit of exploring a town on foot rather than taking an underground train? You see more. Not just the big sights, but the small hidden alleys and lesser walked roads.

Summer weekend in Copenhagen: Canal boat tour

We briefly considered a canal boat tour when I visited Copenhagen with mum. But with temperatures around 0 degrees that weekend, the idea of being on the canals for an hour or longer didn’t feel quite so tempting.

When heading to Copenhagen in summer, I knew this was one of the things I really wanted to do. 

As you walk up and down Nyhavn, you will see several canal boat tours on offer. And they all seemed to include more or less the same route. We didn’t really compare prices too much. But somehow still ended up with the cheapest tour on offer. We paid 60DKK (around 7GBP / 8 EUR) each for a one hour tour with Nettobådene. Whereas the one hour tour with Stromma (which departs from the more popular spot at the top end of Nyhavn) would have costed a staggering 169DKK each, so more than double what we paid. 

As it had rained a little earlier, our boat that evening was rather empty with less than 20 people on our tour. Which had the advantage (and disadvantage) that our tour guide had plenty of time to address us all individually. And truth to be told, the failed stand-up comedian come tour guide (his words, not mine) needed some getting used to. But overall, we enjoyed the canal boat tour. 

I didn’t really care too much for the running commentary; I just wanted to see the sights. The tour offered some interesting views of Copenhagen. Including a seal swimming by, as we headed towards the Opera House (aka the ugliest building in Copenhagen according to our tour guide, can’t say that I agree) and the Little Mermaid.

Al fresco eating 

Thanks to the warm weather, we had plenty of opportunity to eat outside during our summer weekend in Copenhagen. In fact, we barely ate indoors at all.

We went for dinner on Nyhavn twice. Which looked quite different from the last time I visited. Gone were the cosy fairy lights and Christmas market booths. And in its place, the restaurants all had large outdoor seating areas. 

There are also several street food markets available in Copenhagen. They may well have been open in winter, I honestly don’t know. But they certainly weren’t on my radar when visiting in the run up to Christmas.

But Copenhagen in summer means I’m all up for it.

We visited Broens Street Food market, just across the bridge from Nyhavn. Open seven days a week from early lunch to late evening, the street market offers a selection of small food stalls around a central seating area. Some of it is covered with large umbrellas and canopies, just in case the weather isn’t quite as summery as you’d like it to be. 

As with any food market, we’d do the rounds first to get the lay of the land and decide what we’d fancy (or in which order). There’s a variety of international foods available. And lucky for us (who never carry cash, let alone in rarely used currencies), paying by card was no problem at all at any of the stalls.

Visiting Tivoli Gardens

No trip to Copenhagen is complete without a visit to Tivoli, one of the oldest amusement parks in the world. 

The experience however varies, depending on the season. When we visited in winter, we went there to see the Christmas market and the giant Christmas tree in the middle of the park. But it didn’t cross our minds to go on any of the rides. It was all about mulled wine, hot coffee and the Christmassy experience. 

But when visiting in summer, chances are you might enjoy the rides a little more. 

Plus, there are summer concerts in Tivoli Gardens. Check their website to see what is on offer when you visit.

The day we visited, the Tivoli Symphony Orchestra was having a free lunchtime rehearsal in the Tivoli Concert Hall. We sat and listened to them practising for an hour. Not quite the same as seeing an actual concert, but nevertheless an interesting thing to do. And it gave us a chance to experience the concert hall and its acoustics completely for free.

Visiting the Botanical Gardens

I love botanical gardens. We didn’t see the botanical garden when visiting Copenhagen before Christmas. Nothing necessarily to do with the weather or season. More with the fact that we were running out of time. But I was determined not to make the same mistake twice, so this time the botanical garden was quite high on my list of things to do during our summer weekend in Copenhagen.

There has been a botanical garden in Copenhagen since the 1600s and the current garden (opened in 1870) is its third location. 

The general garden is free to visit, but you will need to buy a ticket if you want to go into the glass houses. At the time I paid 70DKK (approx. 8 GBP / 9 EUR). I think that was a reduced fee, as the main palm house was closed for refurbishment at the time. I was only able to visit the smaller glass houses either side of the palm house, as well as the butterfly house. But unfortunately, not the main central dome dating back to 1874 and housing a 200 year old palm tree. Better luck next time, it was still good fun to visit. 

And the butterfly house had some amazing species that I had never seen before, including one nearly the size of my hand and one with translucent wings. 

Having experienced Copenhagen now both in winter and in summer, I would be hard pressed to decide which is the better time to visit Copenhagen. Both seasons have their own unique flair, and I enjoyed both Copenhagen trips. Therefore, I won’t decide and instead recommend you do both. Experience a Christmas weekend in Copenhagen and visit Copenhagen in summer. I’m sure you won’t regret it. 

Tell me, have you visited Copenhagen in summer? What did you enjoy most? Anything to add to my list of things to do during a summer weekend in Copenhagen?