Christianshavn, Denmark
With its jumble of fishing boats lining the canals and bold-painted houses towering over the waterfront, Christianshavn, Copenhagen’s most colorful district, has long been a favorite postcard image of the Danish capital, and the historic neighborhood makes a charming addition to a city tour. Spread over a man-made island laced with canalways, the scenic district dates back to the early 17th century, when it was the city’s merchant center, but it was the area’s reinvention as a bohemian outpost in the 1970s that put it on the map for tourists.
Today, Christianshavn remains one of Copenhagen’s most distinctive neighborhoods, with the historic houses and lively waterfront cafés forming a scenic backdrop to a walking tour, but cycling, kayaking and cruising around the canals are also popular pastimes. The brightly colored 18th-century houses along the waterfront Amagergade are among the most picturesque, but other striking landmarks include the 17th-century Baroque-style Vor Frelsers Church, famous for the unique spiral steps that curl around its spire; Henning Larsen’s modern Opera House; and historic ships of Skibene på Holmen.
At the east side of the island, Christiania, Copenhagen’s free state is undoubtedly Christianshavn’s most notorious attraction, a self-governed commune where hippies and freethinkers congregate to trade marijuana, tuck into vegan and vegetarian cuisine, and stroll among the colorfully graffitied streets. Other worthwhile attractions include the Danish Architecture Centre, Royal Danish Naval Museum, Nordatlantens Brygge cultural house, contemporary art gallery Overgaden and quirky Lille Mølle museum, housed in the base of an old windmill.
- Contributed by Zoe Smith
Christianshavn, Copenhagen’s Most Colorful District from Denmark Things to Do
