Peaceful, clean and homy. These are the first expressions what I can say when I'm thinking to the danish capital , Copenhagen. The city has a magical and authentic Nordic atmosphereas well.
"How expensive is the daily life in the city?"
Very expensive! In shops, you can expect prices to be about double compared to Hungary. When it comes to services like restaurants, bars or cafés, the prices are triple. The currency used in Denmark is the Danish Krone (DKK), which is about 0,13 EUR, as of the current exchange rate. So about 7,5 DKK equals to 1 EUR. I've brought you a few specific examples regarding prices, and you should also try these places:
Democratic Coffee: A latte (42DKK) and a Croissant (22DKK) together cost 64 Danish Kroner, which is almost 9€.
Jagger Burger: A burger menu with fries, a soft drink and sauce was 170 DKK, which is about 23€.
The Fat Greek: The best gyros of my life! With a soft drink and fries, I paid 149 DKK for the meal, which is around 20€.
Grød: They sell fantastic breakfasts! Freshly squeezed fruit juices, porridges, acai bowls, and much more on the menu. I paid 144 DKK (19€) for everything you can see on the picture.
How to get around in Copenhagen?
The transportation system in Copenhagen is almost perfect. All forms of transportation lives together harmoniously. Everyone has their own little space, and the danish society is not car-centric, so there's way less traffic, the city center more quiet, and there's room for both public transport and cyclists.
Public Transport: Public transportation in Copenhagen is very efficient and fast. The subways, trains, and buses are all very clean and modern. I paid 200 DKK (27€) for a 72-hour unlimited pass at the airport vending machine. I wouldn't call this cheap at all, but it's worth buying. You can find more information about other tickets and passes here.
Bicycles: You can see a lot of cyclists on the roads. Even during the morning rush hour, you'll mostly see bike traffic on the city streets. There are well-separated bike lanes almost everywhere. I highly recommend renting a bike for at least a day.
What to see in the city?
I tried to visit most of the sights into two days, which more or less worked out. I only planned two days because I spent the third day in Malmö. You can find everything about Malmö in a different post. In Copenhagen, the city center itself can be considered a sight, as it is very different from most European cities. But let's see what should you visit:
Tivoli Gardens (It was closed during my visit...)
Rosenborg Slot (castle entry: 125DKK=17€)
Botanisk Have (entry: 105DKK=14€)
Christiansborg Slot (tower is free, ticket for other parts: 160 DKK=22€)
Strøget (the main street of the city)
Dronning Louises Bro area
Børsen
Nyhavn (the famous canal with the colorful houses next to it)
Inderhavnsbroen (pedestrian bridge near Nyhavn)
Operaen
Ofelia Plads
Rundetaarn (ticket: 40DKK=5€)
Amalienborg (you have to see the guard change!!!)
Frederiks Kirke
Den Lille Havfrue ("The Little Mermaid" statue)
For more information and all the useful places, click on the map:
What (affordable) accomodation should I book?
I spent three nights at CityHub Copenhagen, which was well worth it in every aspect. It's a very decent place, exceeded all my expectations, and it's right in the city center. The room is basically an "L"-shaped Hub room, not large, but perfect for sleeping. The bed was pretty comfortable, the room's lights can be controlled with a mobile app, and you can also set an alarm with it. The bathrooms were also completely decent, consistently clean, and well-equipped.
Check-in and check-out are completely automatic, and everything needs to be managed through a screen. Upon check-in, everyone receives a comfortable bracelet that can be used to access the room and charge any on-site expenses, which will be settled upon check-out.
There is a continuous presence of a "City Host" in the lobby, who is happy to assist with any questions if needed. You can also ask them for bike rental if you're interested.
They have such hotels in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Copenhagen. They convinced me so much that if I (re)visit any of these three cities, I will definitely book with them. I highly recommend them.
Overall:
Copenhagen is a very beautiful, calm and livable city, it is quite expensive but absolutely worth a visit. Copenhagen is one of my favourite cities so far.
