Trip Report: Copenhagen, Denmark

We may have left him here...

At last! Part two of the report from my trip to Norway and Denmark. Sadly, I must report that I lost the travel pirate in Oslo - he loved those crazy naked statues so much he shed his little pirate clothes and joined them, I guess. So, he didn't make it to Copenhagen, but I did and report that it now ranks as one of my very favorite cities. So let's hop right to the review:

Trip Summary: The stories are true - Copenhagen is indeed one of the happiest places in the world!

The Travel Pirates Beer Index:

• A pint of local draft and a local bar ranged from $6-$10 (New York City pricing)
• Cheapest beer found was in hippie-wonderland-Christiania for $3 (woo hoo!)
  

Trip Logistics:

• Arrived via Delta Air Lines (Copenhagen)
• Fun Fact: The departing flight is Flight 69. Yeah baby, Delta flight 69
• Best way to get to/from airport:
• Take the train or subway. At 30DK (~ $6) it's the best deal in town. You'll see the signs for it when you exit customs
  
• Stayed at the Le Meridien Palace Hotel in City Hall Square. While a very convenient location, be aware that the hotel is undergoing MAJOR renovations. If you stay there, be sure you get a completed room. Also, while the staff was incredibly nice, breakfast is a major rip off.
  

Trip Diary:

• Day One: After arriving back in Copenhagen from our trip to Oslo we checked into the hotel and headed out to:
1. Christianshavn: This artistic section of town is characterized by beautiful architecture and scenic canals. After rainy Oslo, we enjoyed the walking tour and the sunshine. We then did what we do best, admired the scenery and sat outside enjoying a brew - just like everyone else was doing!
2. Christiania: An absolute must see if you visit Copenhagen. The only way I can explain Christiania is to compare it to Alice in Wonderland when Alice falls down the rabbit hole and sees a strange new world. Christiania was established in 1971 when 800+ hippies established residence (aka squatted) in an old military barracks. 37 years later they still call the 85 acre area home. While the government is not happy about this arrangement - and has cracked down on some hippie-like behavior - Christiania pays for their keep so the government tolerates it. As part of their deal, the area must be kept open to the public, so you can definitely go visit - and Christiania welcomes open-minded visitors. It is frequently posted that photography is not allowed. We were pretty amazed by the vast police presence, but found the place very safe. Grab yourself a beer, talk to some locals, learn about their history and just wander around the place. It's unbelievably amazing.
3. Local music and drinking with the locals: We headed back to Christianshavn and went to a local bar called Fingerbollet and caught the tail end of a concert by local rocker Frede Fup. While I understood none of what he sang (save for one song in English that is totally NSFW - but you can find it on YouTube) Frede was simply awesome. And quite possibly the sweatiest performer I've ever seen in what had to be the smokiest bar in the free world. But beers were plentiful, people were grooving and fun was had by all. Great concert and a great end to the day. If you want to see him in action, click here.
   
4. Exhausted, we headed back to the hotel and ran across some Turkish soccer fans celebrating Turkey's unexpected win. They were so happy and capped off a great day and night!
   
• Day Two: Big day packed with lots of visits, so let's hop right to it:
1. Started our day with a boat tour of the city. A cost saving tip is to take the blue line which providers the same city tour without the commentary for about 1/2 the cost. We took the yellow tour, which at 60 DKs (~$12) wasn't bad and we very much enjoyed the hour-long tour. NOTE: The Little Mermaid statue is a freaking waste of time, unless you see it at the boat tour, don't waste your time going out of your way to visit this tourist trap.
2. We then headed out on the subway for the 10 minutes trip to the Carlsberg Brewery for the brewery tour. At 50 DKs (~$10) you get admission to the self-guided tour and coupons for two beers in the bar. My tip is to go back and buy another ticket to the tour and just head to the bar for two more drinks with the coupons. After all, they have so many beers there and it's your duty and sample them all! Also, big props for free wifi in the bar. My iPhone and I were very happy sipping brews and checking emails.
   
3. Ventured to the classic old-time amusement park Tivoli. Located in the center of town - and visited by locals young and old - it's a wonderful diversion. Tivoli is cheap to get in, there are many places to eat and drink and if you want to ride a ride, you pay by the attraction. It was just loads of fun and the beergarden served beers as big as your head. Seriously - they were as big as your head.
4. Rode free bikes around town...until they were "stolen" from us. Copenhagen has this great bike program where you pay 20 DK (~$4) to "release" a bike from many convenient locations in town. These bikes have advertising all over them and are free to use anywhere you want to go around town. When you return it to another location and click it in the lock, the 20 DK coin is released. It's genius! We rode around for a bit and then parked our bikes in front of - surprise - a bar. Thinking they were safe for a bit we headed inside. Well...10 minutes turned into 60 minutes and when we headed back out the bikes were gone. Yes, someone grabbed them and returned them for the 60 DKs. Too bad!!
5. More drinking and socializing with the Danish locals and off to bed.
• Day Three: Back home we go...Delta Flight 69, baby!
  

This was my second trip to Copenhagen and I just love the place. Absolutely love Denmark and Copenhagen. There is so much to do there, the people are so very friendly and the sights are simply breathtaking.

If you have the chance, you must go. Three days will do you in Copenhagen and then head out to see the countryside. That's my next destination when I head back to Denmark - the countryside.

So, my next trip? Looks like Kuwait City - this time for business and, yes, in the middle of the blazing hot summer. As I wasn't the biggest fan of Dubai, I'm anxious to file this trip report...and yes, I'll remember that sunscreen...SPF 1 million!

Stay tuned!!

P.S. Already got another travel pirate (travel pirate 2.0) and I vow to take better care of him (but, for the record, I think Travel Pirate 1.0 is quite happy living in Oslo)