Boxing Day
Boxing Day was our busiest day of the break and began after breakfast with a trip out to Rosenborg Castle. You could do guided tours or just go round on your own. Entry fee was just £15 per person and takes up to around two hours, depending on how long you stay in each room. There was an armouries area too that was in a separate building next to the main castle. Rosenborg Castle is easy to get to, as it is located in the centre of Copenhagen. It is a renaissance castle and was originally built in 1606 as a country summerhouse by Christian 1V. For 400 years the castle has protected the treasures of many Danish kings and queens. No one lives in the castle now, but it does house the Danish Crown Jewels.
The castle is beautiful inside and out and has so much intricate architecture and artifacts. There is everything in there from jewellery to armour. The castle is well worth a trip, and the gardens are also lovely. It was quite busy at the castle, but not as busy as I would imagine it to be in the height of the tourist season.
Our next stop was the Round Tower which wasn’t too far from the castle and can easily be reached on foot. The Round Tower was also built by Christian 1V in the 17th century as an astronomical observatory with a hollow core. It is the oldest functioning observatory in Europe. The tower has a long spiral ramp that is all uphill going up, and was quite tiring. It also made me feel a bit dizzy going round and round – there is no lift! The platform at the top is great, though, and is 35 metres above the street. You get lovely views at the top of the Old Town and, just before we left, the sun was starting to set and made for some great photos. If you go a bit further up, you can access the observatory up a spiral staircase – the observatory is still used today by amateur astronomers. There is also a chapel and an exhibition centre in the tower. Entry fees to this listed building were good at £5 per person.
After some refreshments from all the trekking up the tower, it was time to go back to the metro station and board an overground train to the famous Tivoli Gardens. Tivoli is an amazing place and should not be missed on your trip to Copenhagen. The park is decorated according to the season, and tickets are best purchased online to avoid any queuing issues on arrival.
Tivoli Gardens was opened in 1843 by George Carstensen, who was a writer and architect. The lights were amazing in the gardens and reminded me a bit of Kew Gardens in London. As well as gardens, there is an array of cafes, restaurants, pavilions, Christmas decorations and gifts, and a boating lake. In summertime, shows and concerts are also available. During WW11, Tivoli was sadly nearly burned to the ground, but fortunately it wasn’t too long before the place was renovated and reopened. We spent quite a while wandering around the park, and it is most certainly best to explore the place after dark during the festive season to appreciate the light displays in all their glory. There are also a number of rides in the park, which are great fun, if you like that sort of thing. You can either purchase tickets in advance to include rides, or, as we did, just purchase one or two tickets on the machines while you are there and load them to your phone. The queues weren’t long, so it didn’t take much time out of the trip queueing up.
We eventually went to get a meal in one of the pavilions and decided to try a traditional Danish Christmas dinner, as we hadn’t tried one before. We had roast duck, red cabbage, boiled and caramelised potatoes, pickled cucumber, and gravy. For dessert, we tried Risalamande which is a cold rice pudding made with whipped cream, vanilla, and almonds. It is served with warm cherry sauce that traditionally contains a whole almond and the person who finds it is given a prize or extra present at Christmas. The whole meal was delicious and a complete change to what we have in the UK for Christmas dinner. We were lucky that we just finished our meal in time to watch the firework display!
We then walked back to the train station. The park was open late until 11 pm, so you can spend quite a long evening there if you wish. It was sad to think that this was our last full day in Copenhagen, as we had to head back to the airport during the afternoon the following day. We did, however, have a bit of time left the next day to do a bit of souvenir shopping and a wander around the Magasin Du Nord – with a stop off in the lovely café on the top floor. The Magasin Du Nord is a nostalgic department store set over several floors and dates back to 1869 when it was founded by Theodor Wessel and Emil Vett.
There were other places we could have visited during our stay in Copenhagen, such as the National Museum, zoo, and aquarium, if we had had more time. Time is always an issue on holidays, so you can often only really visit the things you want to see the most, or return, of course!
So, if you are considering a Christmas getaway at the end of the year, why not give lovely Copenhagen a try and immerse yourself into the magical world of Danish Hygge!
