The CSH Travel Guide: A design-packed weekend in Copenhagen

Copenhagen is certainly one of the most stylish of the Scandinavian cities but it’s not bragging about it or singing it’s own praises. It’s a relaxed, down-to-earth place, with effortlessly well-dressed Danes casually cycling past, bustling cafes spilling out onto the tranquil waterfronts and smart design shops waiting to be explored. Copenhagen ranks high in surveys of quality of life, and it’s not hard to see why the Danes have it so good – that magic formula of good city planning, lively culture, tasty cuisine and a strong emphasis on community.

It may have been because it was the summer when I visited in August, but people weren’t rushing about like in London; everyone seemed to be in a calm, quietly content mood, slowly going about their business. The sun was shining and Copenhagen was soaking it up.

Copenhagen is a city built on decades of design heritage and culture – from mid-century icons such as Finn Juhl and Arne Jacobsen paving the way, to young contemporary designers like Muuto and Ferm Living making their mark on the city, and indeed the design world, today. There was so much good design to see, whether it was simply admiring how well designed their supermarkets are or how their road and bicycle lane system leaves London looking out of touch. Or the sedate, laid-back cafes that instantly make you feel at home and the trendsetting design shops bursting to the seams with the cleverest little products to make your everyday that bit better. You can’t help but be blown away with their efflortless flair for design.

I was there for the annual furniture and lifestyle fair northmodern (you can see my top picks here) so design was the first thing on my mind. After exploring what it had to offer and discovering a few new brands, I couldn’t wait to wander the streets of Copenhagen in search of coffee and culture.

So here I’ve created a travel guide for a cultural weekend in the Danish capital of design, taking in the best museums and art galleries, the coolest coffee shops and the top interiors shops and showrooms. I’ve even collated all the places I visited into a handy Jauntful map below.

Northmodern and design showrooms

There is also a downloadable pdf version which you can print off here or just click on the tab on the right above.

Copenhagen is a flat compact city built around a network of waterways. It’s not hard to lose your way and you can easily walk to most places or pretend to be a local and whizz around on a bike. In the city centre you’ll find elegant pedestrianised streets, old museums and havens of green parks, plus touristy hot-spots such as Tivoli Gardens. While in neighbouring districts, such as Østerbro, Nørrebro, Vesterbro and Islands Brugge you’ll come across quieter streets, small, independent shops, boutiques and easygoing cafes.

So here’s where I visited in brief…

Things to do

Rundetaarn
Botanical Gardens
Nyhavn
Ordrupgaard Museum and Finn Juhl’s house
Designmuseum Danmark
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

Places to eat and drink

Atelier September
Coffee Collective
Original Coffee
Torvehallerne
The Standard
Grød
Ved Stranden Vinhandel & Bar
Mirabelle

Shops and showrooms to visit

HAY House
Frama
Stilleben
Illum Bolighus

And here’s what I got up to in more detail…

Things to do

Rundetaarn

I had seen this on instagram a number of times and was intrigued to visit the Rundetaarn or Round Tower. Originally an astronomical observatory, this 34.8m-high tower was built in 1637. The gently winding Spiral Ramp is the only way up to the viewing platform, it’s 209m long and twists 7 and a half times around the tower’s hollow core. I was more taken by the light that bounced around this magical space than the view at the top. Little window seats provide places to pause on the way up or the opportunity to stop and wait for people to go by for that perfect shot!

Købmagergade 52A, 1150 Copenhagen

Botanical gardens

The botanical gardens are a green oasis in the heart of the city centre. There’s 10 hectares of garden and 27 glasshouses to explore, but it’s the old Palm House from 1874 that really captures the imagination. Narrow, cast-iron spiral staircases lead you up to a small passageway around the top of the building where palms sprawl and reach for the light. Outside there is a small kiosk where you can enjoy a drink sitting outside admiring the verdant surroundings. There’s special opening hours for some of the glasshouses, so do check their website before you visit.

Øster Farimagsgade 2B, 1353 Copehagen

Nyhavn

This 17th-century waterfront is probably the number one tourist hot-spot, but worth visiting nonetheless. Once a busy, commercial port, it was the gateway from the sea to the old city centre Kongens Nytorv (King’s Square). Today Nybavn is lined with picturesque, colourful old buildings bustling with bars and restaurants. It’s the perfect spot to watch the world go by, or sit dangling your feet over the quayside enjoying a beer.

Ordrupgaard Museum and Finn Juhl’s house

On the outskirts of the city, in a quiet residential street in Charlottenlund, you’ll discover the Ordrupgaard Museum, dedicated to French impressionist art and Danish art. The old 20th-century country house was extended with a bold, modern addition by architect Zaha Hadid in 2005. The dark building, cast in black lava concrete, juts out into the landscape. Inside, her distinctive, fluid curves transition spaces seamlessly from galleries to corridors and a cafe, while huge expanses of glass bring the surrounding landscape in.

Site-specific works by the likes of Olafur Eliasson and Carsten Holler are dotted around the gardens. But, the real reason for my visit was to see Danish architect Finn Juhl’s house in Ordrupgaard’s grounds. He was just 30 years old when he designed, built and decorated this modernist home in 1942.

His idea was to create a coherent home where everything had been designed by his own hand, right down to everyday items such as cutlery and crockery. The L-shaped house is an early example of open-plan living – sequences of rooms connect to each other, but subtle changes in level and small clusters of furniture create intimate corners. This isn’t clean, white modernism, Juhl was a fan of colour – he painted the ceiling in the living room yellow as he felt it resembled a canvas with the sun shining through. His own handcrafted furniture occupies the spaces, from his Chieftain armchair to his famous two-seater sofa that provides a curved, cocoon-like form in which to sit.

Vilvordevej 110, 2920 Charlottenlund, Denmark. There’s a major exhibition on Monet taking place until December 2016. 

 

Designmuseum Danmark

Designmuseum Danmark is Denmark’s largest museum for Danish and international design. From furniture and industrial design to decorative and applied arts there’s something for everyone. When I went there was an exhibition on Danish Design Now, reflecting on the country’s new designers and craftsmen as well as tendencies, lifestyle choices, and technological innovations. Outside, the popular cafe spills out into the courtyard.

Bredgade 68, 1260 Copenhagen

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is a must-see gallery located about an hour’s train ride out of the city. I did plan to go here, but got too occupied with everything in the city centre. The modernist building has panoramic views across the water to Sweden, while inside they have six to ten special exhibitions annually.

Gl Strandvej 13, 3050 Humlebæk, Denmark 

Places to eat and drink

Atelier September

Another hugely popular place on Instagram – snap-happy people flock here from all over the world to sample their famous avocado on rye! And boy is it worth it. The beautifully designed Atelier September also serves up natural food, fresh juices and artisan coffee in it’s light, airy setting.

Gothersgade 30, 1123, Copenhagen

Coffee Collective

These guys seriously know their coffee, they can tell you all about the bean and roast. Coffee Collective have a couple dotted around the city, including a stall at the Torvehallerne food market, but the cafe on Jægersborggade is the original. Their aim is to do away with barriers and draw the links of the coffee chain closer to one another. There is no counter separating guests from barista – forming an open coffee kitchen that creates a relaxed atmosphere.

Jægersborggade 10, Copenhagen

Original Coffee

Found in four locations across the capital, this coffee shop serves locally roasted coffee as well as sandwiches and cakes from an organic bakery.

Bredgade 36

Torvehallerne

Torvehallerne is a lively food market in the city centre where you’ll find over 60 stalls selling everything from fresh produce, meat and fish, to smørrebrød open sandwiches, tacos and tapas. There’s every kind of cuisine you could ask for as well as plenty of bars to wash it all down with.

Frederiksborggade 21, 1360 Copenhagen

The Standard

Danish-Italian design duo GamFratesi transformed this former custom house on the waterfront near to Nyhavn into a gastronomic landmark, complete with three restaurants and a jazz club. Almanak serves Danish dishes and Verandah is a contemporary, pan-Indian restaurant, while STUDIO is the more upmarket of the three. Enjoy a cocktail sitting in GamFratesi’s Beetle Chair for Gubi taking in the stylish surroundings at the bar. Or while away a couple of hours sitting outside looking over the water and watching the boats go past.

Havnegade 44, 1058 Copenhagen

Also try Grød on Jægersborggade for trendy porridge, Ved Stranden Vinhandel & Bar on Ved Stranden for a glass or two in a smart setting and Mirabelle on Guldbergsgade for breakfast and tasty baked goods.

Shops and showrooms to visit

Frama

Housed in a former pharmacy built in the 1800s and remarkably restored, Frama is a design studio and concept store in the neighbourhood of Nyboder. It’s really a very multi-functional space, oozing with creativity. There’s a kitchen where they host ‘long table gatherings’ and there was an exhibition of work from Plethora magazine when I visited. Their collection of products, from stools and shelves to stoneware and candleholders, and even clothes, focuses on solid materials with natural finishes and simple geometry. I was kicking myself that hand luggage wouldn’t let me bring back one of their softly scented hand lotions.

Fredericiagade 57, 1310 Copenhagen

HAY House

The mother ship as I like to call it! HAY House is a design mecca, two floors of beautiful Danish design from the popular brand HAY. The Bouroullec brothers’ Palissade collection was occupying a sunny spot on the top floor when I visited, while the HAY market offers small accessories to take home as the perfect souvenirs.

Østergade 61, 1100, Copenhagen

Also visit Stilleben on Niels Hemmingsens Gade for prints and home accessories and Illum Blights for all your favourite Scandi brands under one roof.

So there we have it, one design-packed weekend in Copenhagen! What a city, I can’t wait to be back, the Danes love of design really captured my heart.

I hope it’s also given you some tips for your own trip to the Danish capital too. Let me know in the comments section below if you have any questions or indeed any tips of your own that I’ve missed…

All images: Cate St Hill