Copenhagen, Denmark

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Welcome to my favorite city on the planet (at least what I have discovered so far). 

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Tips

• Credit/debit card is king. Don't both getting out cash because many places don't even accept it anymore. Unless of course you want to tip street performers. Then make sure to always have coins. There is also a mobile payment app commonly used in town but it only works with local banks.

• Book a table at restaurants for dinner. It's near impossible to just walk in to any place worth eating for dinner without having reservations. Spare yourself the search time and frustration and already book dinners for some of your evenings. Almost all have online booking systems on their websites.

• Hi=Aloha. Say it when you enter and leave. Other than that there is no point in learning Danish. I'd be shocked if you managed anyway. I'm fascinated by the language but I believe you need to have genius level IQ to understand it.

• Take advantage of the electric city bikes, Bycyklen. They are the best I have found in a city. They have a tablet on the bike in which you can enter locations and use GPS. It has a bike return button which will guide you to the closest bike return station. You can also sign up and pay directly through the tablet to access the bike.

• US tourists can get their VAT (Tax) paid on all purchases back at the airport when leaving. Make sure to ask each cashier at checkout about this and add some extra time at the airport to do this. It adds up easily and will give you the feeling of an extra bonus paycheck at the end of your trip.  Wh

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Where to Stay

• Steel House Copenhagen is a modern day hostel. You can share a room & bathroom with as little as 3 people. They also offer private rooms at a price equal to other private room hotels. This is a benefit in case you are with a group of people who have different room preferences. The best part of Steel House is the ammenities. You can take a dip in their indoor pool or cook in their shared kitchen for small fees. They also have a great happy hour, live music, yoga classes and other cool events happening almost daily.

• First Hotel 27 is a great modern hotel in the heart of the tourist area and one block from the Strøget. I also happen to like their interesting wallpaper in the the bar/lounge area. its pole dancers. its a conversation starter right?

• Airbnb is a great option in Copenhagen is you want a feel of beautiful old homes and some good photos. One thing that may be a shocker for many is the size of the bathrooms and showers. They can be VERY small or weird shaped in these old apartments. I would recommend this Airbnb which is 1 block from the Nørreport subway station.

 

By Hood

-Strøget may be the shopping street and most popular tourist spot, I would encourage you to check out some other neighborhoods and get a feel for the local hot spots. Either way, here is a list of things to check out while cruising the strip. Hay, Illums Bolighus​,  Magasin du Nord, are the quintessential Danish design shops. If you want to be inspired and take home with you something uniquely Danish then these are the stores for you. Note: If you are a tourist show your passport at Magasin for a discount on your purchase. Eataly (inside Illums department store) is smaller than the Eatalys in other countries but if you like Italian then it is a good stop for food. Two bars worth checking out are Ruby and The Bird & The Churchkey. They are a block away from each other and worth bar hopping to get two different experiences. Ruby is high end cocktails with fancy ingredients and even fancier presentation of the cocktails. The Bird & The Churchkey is a gin & tonic bar. Its rough around the edges but has soul and energy. Its like a dive bar turned hipster haven.  The Greasy Spoon is a great spot for all times of day but especially breakfast. They have American breakfast favorites and is the perfect hangover cure. Barburrito is a nice spot for Mexican dishes if you need a break from Danish food. It's one of the best Mexican I have found in Scandinavia in my 3.5 years here.  At the East end of the Strøget is Nyhavn. This is the small canal with brightly colored homes that makes for the perfect tourist photo as proof you are actually in Copenhagen. If you are ending the night here then I recommend booking a table at Fuego. This is an annual dinner reunion spot for me and ex-colleagues  each year. They know great food and they have some of the nicest staff.

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-Nørrebro neighborhood is a hipster haven with great photo ops, shopping and eating. Snap an Insta-worthy photo at Superkilen park where they have painted the pavement in cool designs. Head to Jægersborggade street for some statement fashion items & home decor. Gågrøn is worth a stop. Even if you aren't into sustainability this store will make you want to be. Housewares with great design and a sustainable message. Head around the corner to Mikkeller & Friends for some tasty bear and bar snack. Book a table for dinner at Manfreds and enjoy a Noma alum meal fit for the super foodie. My suggestion is the Chefs selection of 7 dishes. You can also ask for special diets (vegan, gluten free). 

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-Vesterbro district has become the hottest hood in Copenhagen in the past years. This is a location I would recommend for bar & food hopping. You can end the night at Vega for a concert but the food & drink is by far the highlight in this neighborhood. Since there is so much to eat & drink here I am going to split this section into 2 parts: The square &  around.

Meatpacking: Inside the actual old meatpacking buildings hosts numerous spots with all types of foods represented. Warpigs is a take on America BBQ and a Mikkeller friend. They have different regional BBQ sauces from America and have the shared picnic table dining atmosphere. Kødbyens Fiskebar is in the top seafood restaurants for me. It's small sharable plates of gourmet quality. They also have vegetarian dishes too. Noho is a fantastic cocktail bar but totally misjudged a book by its cover. It looks a bit small and almost like a strip club from the outside but the downstairs bar is huge and has great atmosphere. When you enter Noho, go straight downstairs where it say "bathrooms." You'll never expect what you find. 

Around: The Mikkeller hub is in this hood and includes many different Mikkeller spots. First and foremost, Mikkeller the actual bar. Right next door to this bar is Øl & Brød and Restaurant Hyggestund. All Mikkeller and all good. Just one block north of these is Curfew. A "typical Chicago 1920s era speakeasy" as my Swedish friend would describe. It's another fancy ass cocktail place where they light things on fire and wave the smoke around an empty glass for smokey essence. Maybe it's not your thing but the names of the cocktails and the delivery of them is fun enough to check it out. Heading toward Vega and the west side is my favorite indoor food hall, WestMarket. They have small eats from all over the world and some bear stalls as well. The open dining concept makes it easy for everyone in your party to get a different meal that suits them and happily nosh together. Before or after your concert, head one block to Ramen to Biiru for some tasty Ramen and beer. You can even order your meal through a typical Japanese ordering system where you get a ticket from the machine and hand it to the employee. And in case you haven't picked up on the trend yet, yes, its Mikeller.

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