In the Rick Steves Snapshot Copenhagen & the Best of Denmark book, in the section on Roskilde, he mentions that Wednesday and Saturday are flower/flea/produce market days (8:00-14:00). Has anyone been to this market to know if it is near the Cathedral or where in the town? And will it be going the last week of April? We are planning a lovely day seeing the countryside driving from Copenhagen to Roskilde and then up to Hillerod to see Frederiksborg Castle so any direction or suggestions anyone can give would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks!
Posted by
Copenhagen, Denmark
971 posts
Any reason for the car?
Both Roskilde and Hillerød are well connected by trains to Copenhagen. Though there is only a rather slow bus between Roskilde and Hillerød. You might consider visiting on two seperate days and trow in Helsingør and Kronborg Castle with Hillerød. All can be made by train and if you get the Copenhagen Card both train tickets and entrance fees to the Viking ship museum in Roskilde, Frederiksborg and Kronborg Castle are covered.
Use www.rejseplanen.dk to plan all public transport in Denmark.
The market is on the town square in front of the cathedral and as far as I can tell, it's all year round.
Posted by
Massachusetts
404 posts
Agreed with Morten - we went to Roskilde, Hillerod, as well as Helsingor, all by train. I'm sure driving is fine, but why pay for parking in Copenhagen? The trains are relatively cheap and extremely convenient.
The market in Roskilde is really close to the Cathedral. We were there in late September, so not sure how it is in April.
Do you have time to break Roskilde and Hillerod into two different days? Maybe head to each destination in the morning, and then spend the rest of your time each day in Copenhagen? I just feel like you'd be rushing to do both in one day.
Last, in Roskilde, strongly consider going to the Viking Ship Museum too. It's really awesome. Maybe a 10-15 minute walk north from the Cathedral.
Posted by
OP
28 posts
Thank you to Morten and Steve for your help. The reason we were renting a car for the day was so that we could see both Roskilde and Hillerod and be able to stop along the way and see churches in the small towns. I love visiting these churches and their cemeteries. We are only in Copenhagen for two days before we take a Baltic cruise. We have been to Copenhagen and seen the city before but the days we were there the Rosenborg Castle was closed so that is what I wanted to see for certain on our other day. Let me know any other thoughts you might have and if stopping along the way using the train worked for you.
Posted by
Copenhagen, Denmark
971 posts
I see, then the car makes more sense, since there is only a bus between the to towns (it takes 1,5 hours). The stretch between Copenhagen and Roskilde is pretty dull, it's mostly build up and you have to make a bit of a detour either north or south of the main road to see some country side.
Between Roskilde and Hillerød you get to see more country side and there are a few old village churches along the way. The church in Slangerup could be worth a visit, it's one of the few village churches from the renaissance period and it is remarkably big compared to the rather dull town around it and has a rich collection of fixtures from the middle ages and renaissance.
On the way back from Hillerød to Copenhagen you can visit Birkerød Church and see some of the best church frescos in the country.
Posted by
OP
28 posts
Thank you Morten! I SO appreciate your insight and direction. I will mark those two churches to visit for certain. In the tour books there is not much mention of the small churches so your help is invaluable. Have you visited the Viking Museum in Roskilde that Steve mentioned? We are scheduled to get to visit the Viking Museum in Oslo so I am trying to figure out if I should take the time on this day to see the one in Roskilde or if the one in Oslo is as nice. If you think of anything else, just let me know! Thanks again.
Posted by
Copenhagen, Denmark
971 posts
You're welcome, I'm glad that I can provide some local insight. You could also have a quick look at Jørlunde Church, in the small village just before you enter Slangerup. It's an old, village church, that's very typical of Danish village churches. It has some nice frescos as well.
it's been a while since i've visited the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, but I went to the one in Oslo last year. The ships in Oslo are nicer, since they are better preserved, but the museum itself is pretty old school, not a lot of information. The ships in Roskilde are not as well preserved, but the museum is much more informative. Your learn a lot about who the vikings where, how they build the ships and so forth. They also build replica ships using the old techniques, so you can learn a lot about the shipbuidling as well and see the replicas. I say visit both, The ships in Oslo are better, but Roskilde has the better museum.