The Urbanist’s Copenhagen: What to Do

By Valerie Rains
Published Jul 31, 2015

Picnic on a Boat. Or With 2,000 Deer.
Where to spread out a blanket, and the dishes to pick up on the way, according to Copenhagen Cooking festival director Lonnie Svarre Hansen.

GoBoat (left) and Superkilen’s Black Market.

(Photo: Courtesy of the vendor (GoBoat); Iwan Baan (Superkilen's Black Market))

Near a Castle
Kongens Have (Øster Voldgade)
Spend a semi-soused summer afternoon at the city’s oldest park, on the grounds of the moated, 17th-century Rosenborg Castle. Claim your spot in the shade of the Mikkel Kjærgård Christiansen and Jesper Kort Andersen–designed Around Pavilion, a Nordic-pine pop-up events space that’s up through the end of August.
Fill your basket: “Just a few blocks away, Torvehallerne market has everything you need: Arla Unika (Frederiksborggade 21) for cheeses like bog myrtle and Fiskerikajen (Frederiksborggade 21) for traditional Jutland fish cakes made with pig lard.”

Rosenborg Castle

(Photo: MyLoupe/Getty Images)

In a Trippy Park
Superkilen (Nørrebroparken)
Divided into three sections — the Red Square, the Black Market, and the Green Park — the highly conceptual tract designed by Copenhagen art crew Superflex features a hilly cycling track painted with swerving stripes and an octopus-shaped playground slide modeled after one in a Tokyo suburb.
Fill your basket: “Det Eksotiske Hjørne, which translates to ‘the Exotic Corner’ (Jagtvej 127), is a short walk and really stands out among Copenhagen’s countless sandwich and salad places. Get the hummus and some tzatziki to go.”

Next to Kierkegaard
Assistens Cemetery (Kapelvej 4)
The lush, stately 18th-century graveyard is the final resting place for some of the country’s most famous names and has become a popular venue for less spiritual activities: chatting with friends, cycling along tree-shaded paths, and sunbathing topless.
Fill your basket: “Ahaaa, the Arabic Food House (Blågårdsgade 21), has Copenhagen’s best falafels. And don’t miss a stop at the nearby Mikkeller & Friends bottle shop (Stefansgade 35); try Spontan Cherry Frederiksdal, made from cherries grown on the Danish island Lolland.”

Jægersborg Dyrehave

(Photo: DPA Picture Alliance/Alamy)

At Sea
GoBoat (Islands Brygge 10; $59 per hour)
It’s hard to imagine this flying elsewhere, but here anyone over 18 can rent and pilot one of GoBoat’s solar-powered, eight-seater boats designed specifically for picnicking in the harbor (there’s even a table built into the center of each craft). And starting this summer, you can drop anchor alongside your fellow boaters for floating midweek indie-pop and classical concerts ($29 a person) in different nooks of the city’s canals.
Fill your basket: “Take the easy route and spring for a ready-made picnic kit from GoBoat’s own dockside market (make sure to order 36 hours in advance), where they also sell beer and chilled bottles of white wine to go.”

Among the Deer
Jægersborg Dyrehave (2930 Klampenborg)
Locals in need of a nature fix find peace and quiet — and a population of more than 2,000 (more or less fearless) deer — at the 2,700-acre forest seven and a half miles north of Copenhagen (its name translates as “the Deer Park”). Presiding over the landscape is the Baroque hilltop Hermitage Palace, completed in 1736 as a hub for royal hunts.
Fill your basket: “Madcooperativet (at Copenhagen Central Station), where you can catch the train to the park, has really helped class up the station. Go to Meyer’s Bakery there and get their signature Øland wheat bread, as well as some classic Danish rye.”

Bring Back a Sofa

Christian Holmsted Olesen, head of exhibitions and collections at Designmuseum Danmark, picks out wares from exciting contemporary Danish designers, all of whom are involved in the museum’s “MindCraft15” exhibition (September 18 to January 31).