Copenhagen

Visiting the city of Copenhagen during a layover at the airport is very doable. Even if you just have 3-4 hours. This is a little guide to how you can do it.

Public transport from Copenhagen airport is excellent.

Copenhagen Airport is only 7 kilometers away from the city center. Public transport to Copenhagen airport is excellent. So you can get to the city center in less than 20 minutes, using either metro or train. You also have buses serving the airport. But the metro and train is what almost all foreign visitors will use.

Nyhavn is only 13 minutes away.

13 minutes by metro, takes you to Nyhavn, from Copenhagen Airport..

you have all seen photos from Nyhavn. The old harbour area and red light district of Copenhagen. These days Nyhavn is filled with restaurants, cafes and bars. The old sailing boats are still here, making it one of the prettiest places in Copenhagen. 

If you take the metro from the airport to Kongens Nytorv, then you are less than a minute’s walk from this charming part of Copenhagen.

Vesterbro is also just 13 minutes away from the airport.

Vesterbro is hipster Copenhagen.

If you would like to visit one of the hippest neighbourhoods in the world, then Vesterbro is only 13 minutes away by train. Vesterbro used to be an impoverished part of Copenhagen. But a massive urban renewal plan in the early 1990’s turned the area into one of the most expensive places to live in central Copenhagen.

There is still drugs and prostitution next to all the hipster cafes. So we are talking about a place that is a little comparable to St Pauli in Hamburg, or Kreuzberg in Berlin.

If you visit Vesterbro, then my suggestion would be that you pop down to Kødbyen. The former meatpacking district, which has now become a really cool part of the city, with lots of good places to eat. You could, for instance, eat at Hija de Sanchez. The place has been awarded as having the best street food in Europe.

Small town Denmark is 14 minutes away from the airport.

The old harbour in Dragør.

If you do not want the hustle and bustle of the city, while you are having a layover at the airport, then you can take bus #35 from the airport.

In just 14 minutes, that will take you to the village of Dragør. Dragør is a little fishing village that sits almost at the end of the airport runway.

Dragør has cobblestone streets and many old houses that are very well preserved. It’s super idyllic and I would recommend that you pop by the harbourfront hotel called Dragør Strandhotel, for some food and drink. It’s a 1930’s style hotel, with excellent food and good service. The harbour view from the hotel restaurant is also fantastic.

You can also visit Sweden.

Malmø.

Copenhagen airport is one of the world’s only airports where it’s realistic to visit another country, during a layover. Copenhagen Airport is actually located right in between Copenhagen and Malmø in Sweden. There are direct trains to Sweden, several times per hour from the airport. In just 25 minutes, you can be in the center of the third largest city of Sweden. If you opt for this, then make sure that you are allowed to cross the border between Denmark and Sweden, as you do not want to get stuck, trying to re-enter Denmark, for your connecting flight.

Or you can just have a few beers at one of the world’s best airport bars.

If your layover is too short. Or if you simply can’t be bothered to leave the airport, then Copenhagen Airport just happens to have one of the best airport bars in the world. 

I’m talking about the Danish brewery Mikkeller who has a fantastic little bar at the airport. Nothing big and fancy. Just a large selection of some of the best beer you will have in this world. The Mikeller bar is located right next to the A finger, by the way.

Enjoy Copenhagen and treat yourself to a Mikkeller beer.