Am I crazy to try to visit Copenhagen on way home with a 6.5 hour layover- land at 9am next flight 3pm? Luggage checked thru.
What would be recommended to see- just canal boat tour?
What is recommended to eat?
Any Covid restrictions?
Or just hang in the airport- suggestions for there?
Both my to and from flights have long layovers- another blog thread has Stockholm questions.
In between doing Rick Stevens’s Munich Salzburg Vienna. Thanks!
Posted by
Sweden
6434 posts
That is certainly time to see a bit of Copenhagen, you can reach the city centre in 15-20 minutes by train or metro.
As for things to eat, you could try a smørrebrød or two. Two classics I can recommend are Dyrlægens natmad and Sol over Gudhjem.
Posted by
Glostrup, Denmark
1323 posts
If you land 09:00, then you are through the airport around 09:45. If you are going out of Shengen you need to be back 3 hours before take off - perhaps you can stretch it a bit because your luggage is already checked in. Let's say 12:30. Using the metro you can be in Copenhagen Center around 10:00 and you need to leave there around 12:15.
If it is summer time:
Take the metro to "Kongens Nytorv" ("Kings New Square"). Take canal boat from "Nyhavn" ("New Harbor") ending around 11:30. Find somewhere to take a quick bite and then back to the airport same way you came.
If it is winter:
Stroll throug the pedestrian street ("Strøget") to Rådhuspladsen ("Town Hall Square"). Then take the metro back to Kongens Nytorv and change to the metro for the airport.
For your limited time this is the best I can come up with.
Posted by
Sweden
6434 posts
Since you will be checked in and your luggage will already be at the airport I would be comfortable with less than 3 hours at the airport before departure.
Posted by
Freedonia
15117 posts
To the OP, Tivoli Gardens in across the street from the main rail station. If it is a nice day, and you want to just wander the park and get something to eat.......on the side of Tivoli Gardens closest to the rail station there is a building with numerous small restaurants. One serves traditional open faced Danish sandwiches. You don't need to enter Tivoli Gardens to eat there.
To buttes.rem06......if you are traveling from the states, you will have to go through Schengen immigration in Copenhagen if you want to go into the city. Being an American gives you no privilege at airport security.
Posted by
Florida, USA
12172 posts
If I were doing this. I'd choose metro over train. Get off in Kongenstorv (means Kings Square, no more than 15 minutes from the airport). From Kongenstorv you have some choices, all within walking distance of the metro stop. My top choice would be Rosenburg castle. It's a very nice visit and small enough to get through in a relatively short amount of time. Crown Jewels are in the basement (separate admission). You can walk around Nyhavn, (means Newport, literally a stone's throw from the metro stop) and find a nice place for lunch or ice cream. Or just sit near the water and have a drink/sandwich you purchased at a nearby store (very normal Danish activity day and night). There are boat tours that run out of Nyhavn. You probably have time for a boat tour, maybe do that first then decide what you have time for afterwards. Amalienburg palace is just a few blocks north. You could either take a tour of the palace, watch the changing of the guard and/or explore the ruins under the palace. Afterward, it's a short wait for the next metro and a 15-minute ride that lets you out in the airport.
The train takes at least 20 minutes (feels longer) and drops you in the center. Around the center are city hall and at least a few museums. The Glyptotec is a nice visit and doesn't take long. The National Museum has some great displays of Danish history but it's a long visit, depending on how much you want to see. There is also Tivoli but I don't think it opens until later. The trains back to the airport don't run as often as the metro but when the train leaves the station, you'll have about 20 minutes to be in front of the airport.
You won't have time to see everything. Either of these choices is remarkably convenient and productive. I'd choose the metro and the sights near Kongenstorv. You should review the sights and see which you think make the most sense for you. You can get tickets or a Copenhagen card (which includes admissions and both train and metro transportation) at the TI in the airport. You can also buy a Copenhagen card(s) online and simply have it on your phone to show at the door.
Copenhagen isn't one of the massive airports. Lines should be manageable both getting out of and into the airport. I recall it being somewhat hard to find the TI in the airport and the line there was slower than immigration. By the time we got our Copenhagen Card and took a train into the city, it took quite a while. If you get your Card online and walk straight to the metro, however, you'll be in town in no time.