2 day Copenhagen itinerary – The PERFECT way to spend two days in Copenhagen

• Instagram
• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Mail

Based on our recent visit, you can do a lot of a things in a 2 day Copenhagen itinerary with minimal fuss in the process.

Particularly visiting from Ireland as we were, Copenhagen is ideal for a weekend city break as the flight is less than 2 hours and as Copenhagen is a very walkable city, two days in Copenhagen was the perfect amount of time to explore the city and visit the main attractions without feeling too rushed.

The Danish lifestyle centres around the concept of Hygge, which is essentially all about getting cozy and content, while enjoying the simple things in life. With that, you will want to spend at least 2 days here to allow yourself to approach your trip in the Danish style, rather than the fast paced nature of some other city breaks where you can find yourself running from one tourist attraction to the next.

We found that the best way to approach a trip to Copenhagen was to focus on enjoying good food, casual walking tours over long days on a bus and exploring the quirky and colourful neighbourhoods dotted around the city.

2 Day Copenhagen Itinerary Overview

Before we go into more detail, here is a quick snapshot of everything you are going to cover during your two days in Copenhagen.

You can access quick links to some of the best activities we did during our trip below to help you start planning your itinerary out early and avoid missing out on some of the best things Copenhagen has to offer.

Where to stay in Copenhagen – at a glance

Where you choose to stay in Copenhagen will largely come down to the type of trip you would like to have and budget, with city centre hotels often exceeding prices you would typically see in other European cities. (See our detailed guide on where to stay)

• Vesterbro – Trendy area full of shops, funky bars and restaurants. Great for anyone wanting to enjoy the nightlife in Copenhagen. We would recommend staying at Villa Copenhagen for a luxury home away from home.
• Norrebro – Lots of bakeries, bars and filled with culture. A better option for budget friendly hotels. We would recommend staying at Numa Copenhagen, which is the best hotel in this area.
• Østerbro – Laid back area with great shops and the little mermaid – great for families. We would recommend staying at Adina Aprthotel, which has an onsite indoor pool and gym available to guests.
• Indre By (City Centre) – Main attractions like Tivoli Gardens and Nyhavn. Great for easy access to the main attractions and suitable for families. Luxury stay at Sanders Hotel, possibly the best hotel in the city.

Our top picks for things to do in Copenhagen

To save you money on the top things to do in Copenhagen, we would suggest purchasing a Copenhagen Card, which provides access to lots of the cities top attractions including Tivoli Gardens (excludes cost of rides); A canal tour, access to castles and all public transport, including to and from the airport.

The card is particularly useful if you are visiting Copenhagen with kids as one adult pass also covers two kids aged 11 and under.

• Tivoli Gardens Amusement Park
• Home of Carlsberg Tour
• Canal Cruise
• Walking Food Tour
• Copenhagen Zoo

Day 1 – Croissants, Castles & Colourful Streets

Morning – Buka Bakery & Nyhavn

Our Copenhagen itinerary started in much the same way the first morning of every city break starts when we go somewhere new. We scope out the best local coffee spots, grab a coffee and pastry and simply walk around the city centre for a while with no set agenda to get a feel for the area.

Luckily for us, there are no shortage of great coffee spots in Copenhagen and there is certainly no shortage of great bakeries. We had been told before coming to Copenhagen that we would end up on a bakery hunt and sure enough, we tended to have a new bakery marked out on the map for every area we visited.

We grabbed a coffee and cardamon bun from Buka Bakery before taking the short walk to one of Copenhagen’s most renowned areas: Nyhavn.

Nyhavn runs along the waterfront canal, this area is probably Copenhagen’s ‘s most recognisable and the one you are most likely to see in your social media feed.

The area is lined with colourful houses and cobble stone streets, as well as docking a number of wooden ships. If you’re planning to get some nice colourful photos to remember your stay in Copenhagen by then Nyhavn is the area to visit.

Nyhavn is a great place to sit outside along a terrace and enjoy the feeling if not needing to be anywhere in particular for a little while and a great place to kick start your 2 days in Copenhagen.

Afternoon – Frederick’s Church, Food Tour & Rosenborg Castle

A short walk from Nyhavn, you will find Frederick’s Church, a beautiful church building with a striking green dome, which has beautiful views looking out over the city towards Amelienborg Palace.

The back of the church also faces one of the best bakeries in the city, Hart Bageri, so it can’t hurt to grab another pastry here to fuel your exploring. With Copenhagen being such a foodie destination, we couldn’t help doing this Walking Food Tour, which allowed us to make sure we got to taste all the local delicacies and we were honestly so glad we did it.

The tour took us through the heart of the city where we got lots of great advice from our guide Sonia on things to do in Copenhagen. We were able to try out Danish meatballs, Smørrebrød (a local specialty open sandwich), roast pork crackling, hot dogs and of course, more of those amazing local pastries. Trust me, the food coma was very real afterwards.

As well as being a great experience in itself, the other upside of the food tour is that it takes all the guesswork out of deciding where to eat for the day, which can be a bit of a stressor for some people.

If you would prefer not to do a food tour, then we would highly recommend spending the afternoon visiting the nearby Amelienborg Palace & Rosenborg Castle.

We visited a very aesthetic cafe called Lille Petra on the way over to Rosenborg Castle while we were there but we would also recommend grabbing a burger at Gasoline Grill while you are in this area as well.

Evening – Reffen Street Food Market

If you don’t end up taking a food tour, then the next best things is to take the bus out to Reffen Street Food Market.

This trendy market is lined with shipping container style food stalls with everything from pizza to Argentinian steaks. We sampled a few of the stalls while we were there and our favourites were Fuego for a Grilled Black Angus sandwich with homemade chimichurri.; and Holy Krapow as we love trying out some Thai food whenever we get the opportunity.

To get to Reffen you need to catch the 2a bus and get off at the last stop, which takes around 20 minutes. Bus tickets generally need to purchased in advance so you can download the Dot app and purchase your bus ticket online before boarding.

The street market is a really good place to visit during the evening for sunset views looking back towards the city. One thing we would say though it make sure to bring a coat.

Copenhagen gets quite chilly in the evenings and with Reffen being a bit further out from the city centre, you won’t want to be left with the regret of forgetting it, particularly as most of the seating there is outdoor.

Day 2 – Rollercoasters & Craft Beers

Morning – Tivoli Gardens

Day two in Copenhagen is all about having some fun, from the adrenaline seeking at Tivoli Gardens, (one of Europe’s oldest theme parks), to the nightlife of Copenhagen’s trendiest area, Vesterbro.

The park itself is in the heart of the city so it is really easy to access by foot but it does only operate at certain times of the year so make sure to check this before arriving in the city.

Tickets for Tivoli Gardens are quite expensive and it is important to note that there is a separate charge for entry and ride access. The best approach is to get the Copenhagen Card to cover entry and then you can make a decision around the ride access when you are there.

We really enjoyed Tivoli Gardens while we were there but must admit we did grapple with the cost a little bit, which is why we ended up going for the city card to make it feel less like a standalone expense.

Afternoon – The Home of Carlsberg

As you make your way into Vesterbro, it is time to check out another of Copenhagen’s famous exports, the Home of Carlsberg Tour.

Of course, Copenhagen isn’t just synonymous with food, it is also renowned globally as the home of Carlsberg.

The home of Carlsberg tour tickets cost around €30 per person and we found the origin story of how the father and son duo came to set up the factory. The tour was really interactive and engaging throughout and definitely one for the Liverpool fans out there.

We don’t often drink much ourselves but have always found trips to these breweries to be quite enjoyable, particularly on days when the weather isn’t in your favour.

That being said, a brewery tour won’t be to everyone’s taste so we would recommend exploring some of the boutique shops and quirky streets dotted around Vesterbro instead if this is not of interest to you.

Evening – Nightlife in Vesterbro

Vesterbro, is the final stop of your 2 day Copenhagen itinerary. This area is renowned as being one of the trendiest areas in Copenhagen, with lots of niche bars and restaurants, craft beers and boutique shops throughout. This is the area to visit if you want to experience modern nightlife in Copenhagen.

Vesterbro was once home to Copenhagen’s red light district, as well as being widely associated with the drug trade in the city.

In recent years though, it has taken on a completely new life and as has often become the norm in many cities, it has been transformed by trendy coffee shops, boutiques and nightlife.

There are some great micro brewery style bars in this area to check out like Warpigs and Mikkeller, as well as some cocktail bars as well. We tried out Maple for dinner, which does hearty meat based dishes like ribs and steaks, as well as having a great cocktail menu before going for a drink at Duck & Cover, as well as 1656 Cocktail bar. This was a great way to end our two days in Copenhagen.