The gorgeous view from my bathroom at the fab mid century modern Radisson Blu Royal hotel in Copenhagen (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Copenhagen may be the best city in the world for a business trip. It’s also one of the most expensive…but getting there is cheaper now that upstart Norwegian Air is forcing all airlines (especially SAS) to lower fares– even business class fares– into historically expensive Scandinavia.
Copenhagen is compact, walkable and easy to navigate. The travel time between the airport and city centre is just 15 minutes via easy, frequent rail links. Its upscale hotel stock is plentiful, varied, well-maintained and design-inspired. Fine dining and entertainment options abound. And while English is widely spoken, most residents possess a firm command of three or four other languages.
Danish cuisine has come a long way since pickled herring. This delicious and gorgeous dish, Skate with winter vegetables, is from the popular Kadeau restaurant. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Despite its laid-back reputation (and the presence of an amusement park in the heart of the city), Copenhagen is very serious about business. For example, the World Bank’s Doing Business 2013 Index ranked Denmark as the easiest place in Europe to do business for the second year in a row. Companies are drawn to the southernmost Scandinavian country for its sound infrastructure, innovative thinking and efficient government, leading investment bank Goldman Sachs to recently state that Denmark has the highest commercial success potential of any country in the world, thanks to these factors.
This post originally appeared on Chris’s Business Trip series BBC.com
Most visitors’ first impressions are formed when stepping off the plane and onto the homey hardwood floors at compact Copenhagen Airport, which has ranked as Europe’s most efficient for eight of the last 10 years by the Airport Research Society. SAS Scandinavian Airlines is the flag carrier of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and Copenhagen Airport is its primary hub, offering nonstop flights to points across northern Europe and around the world plus a bright two-storey business class lounge.
Homey hardwoods at the airport in Copenhagen. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Also known among locals as simply Kastrup, (the name of a nearby suburb) the airport is located 8km south of city centre, and is connected to the city, suburbs and outlying regions by both metro and rail links. Fares to city centre by S-train or Metro are 36 Danish kroner each way. S-trains depart from Terminal 3 every 10 minutes during the day for the 15-minute trip to Copenhagen Central Station.
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Automated Metro trains depart as often as every four minutes during the day, and make multiple stops along the Airport metro line. Taxis take about 20 minutes to reach the city centre (depending on traffic) and cost about 250 Danish kroner; credit cards are accepted.
Copenhagen’s newest 5-star hotel is the sugar-white D’Angleterre which opened last year after a total re-do. Worth a look even if you are not staying there! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Copenhagen’s Metro system is in the middle of a massive upgrade and expansion, adding two new lines and 17 new stations, so be prepared for detours around gritty, noisy construction sites on city streets and squares. When complete in 2018, the state-of-the-art system will carry 130 million passengers a year, greatly reducing vehicular traffic and making streets safer for the 40% of Copenhageners who commute by bicycle.
CHRIS’S VIDEOS: A beautiful morning in Copenhagen + A walk through Copenhagen’s newest hotel
Where should you stay in Copenhagen? Dine? Entertain or spend a free afternoon? Read my entire BBC post about Copenhagen here. But come back to TravelSkills to post your comments, observations, tips and advice!
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Jarratt says
September 6, 2014 at 10:59 amI loved Copenhagen, although the massive hole (I think opposite your hotel?) is a bit odd! I loved Nimb and the Segway tours are definitely worth it, even if you do get a few weird stares.
Chris McGinnis says
September 6, 2014 at 9:42 amThanks, Tom! Interesting insight! For readers who are not up to speed on what’s going on with Norwegian in the US, here’s a good article. Short story: current flights (from Scandinavia) not affected, but its future plans for expansion to low cost flights via Ireland are on hold. http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/US-rejects-Norwegian-Air-bid-for-US-Europe-flights-5730366.php
–Chris
Alex says
September 6, 2014 at 7:47 amI actually was thinking of booking a ticket through CPH on purpose just to spend a day lol. The scheduling didn’t work out too well but I will plan on visiting very soon! Great article!
Tom McNamara says
September 6, 2014 at 12:55 amYour mention of Norwegian got me thinking:
Rather than wasting their time trying to get approval to enter the US, they and other European discount airlines should be pressing hard to get access to Reykjavik. Icelandair already flies to more cities in the US than Copenhagen’s hometown airline, SAS does. It stands to reason that the shorter flying time and plane size for US to Iceland routes paired with more low cost option to the Continent could be the sort of galvanizing impact that would allay safety concerns of riding on a cramped plane for hours and hours while still encouraging competition among the major airlines in Europe.
In addition, the European Union usually has a standard that a market needs at least four viable firms to prevent anti-trust litgiation. In the US that number is only three. But yet in regards to the airline industry, Europe seems quite content to allow Star Alliance (United-Lufthansa), oneWorld (American-British Airways) and SkyTeam (Delta-Air France) absorb smaller state-owned carriers. Until the EU clarifies this rule, I expect Americans to have a tough time reaching places like Copenhagen, which is indeed a beautiful little city.
Chris McGinnis says
September 5, 2014 at 6:59 pmThanks for sharing your memories, Don! I’m ready to go back! -Chris
Don Murray says
September 5, 2014 at 6:55 pmIt has been a long time, but I still remember my wife and I went to Copenhagen (we were working for an airline and flew on a pass). Your comments are totally what I remember. Tivoli, the amusement park, was great although not as exciting as American amusement parks. But there were a lot of interesting parts of it. The restaurants are great and they served large portions where there served you half of it and then came back to give you the rest.
Shopping is really good (and I am not a shopper). We have some very nice glasses we got there. One set was for liqueurs and the second one was for larger glasses (beer or anything else and they had air bubbles at the bottom).
They have really nice museums and houses. We got a nice look across the water to Sweden and saw what was called the Hamlet Castle. I don’t know how historically accurate it is, but it was definitely a really nice view.
I do agree it is expensive. We stayed in a downtown hotel, a little more than a hostel, but not by a whole lot. It was clean and we enjoyed the stay. Public transportation is just as good as was described! We took a day trip around the city (like Gray Line) and was really short because Copenhagen is not a large city so you could determine where you wanted to go during the rest of your stay.
Chris McGinnis says
September 5, 2014 at 5:26 pmThanks, Hajime. It’s definitely in my top 5 cities worldwide right now. Hope you get there soon!– Chris
Hajime Sano says
September 5, 2014 at 5:08 pmGreat article Chris! I hope to make it to Copenhagen some day. I have many former colleagues who promised to show me around the city.