Excursions
The following organized excursions for Wednesday 11 August are available, and can be booked on-line during registration, or on site on Sunday 8 August only.
| Tour | Duration | Price (DKK) |
Starting point | End point |
| City & Harbour Tour | 13:00-16:00 | 200 |
Panum Institute | Gammel Strand |
| Copenhagen Walking Tour | 13:45-16:45 | 95 |
Panum Institute | Kongens Nytorv |
| Copenhagen Gardens Tour | 13:15-16:45 | 285 |
Panum Institute | Tivoli Gardens |
| Copenhagen Bird-Spotting Tour | 13:00-16:30 | 245 |
Panum Institute | Tivoli Gardens |
| Ancient Roskilde & Viking Ship Museum | 12:45-16:45 | 415 |
Panum Institute | Tivoli Gardens |
| Castles of North Zealand | 12:30-18:00 | 505 |
Panum Institute | Tivoli Gardens |
City & Harbour Tour
City & Harbour Tour from 13:00 to 16:00, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Gammel Strand)
This tour is an ideal introduction to this lovely Scandinavian capital as it presents itself on land and from the water. Start with a sightseeing tour by bus through the city to see the landmarks and highlights, such as the famous Tivoli Gardens amusement park, the majestic City Hall, the charming Rosenborg Castle, the stately Christiansborg Palace – home to the Danish parliament – and the colorful and lively waterfront district of Nyhavn. Your knowledgeable local guide will share highlights with you from the city’s 1000 years of history and point out the local sights. Pay a visit to the Amalienborg Palace Square to see the winter residence of the Danish Royal Family. This spacious octagonal square is surrounded by four identical rococo palaces and is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful palace squares in Northern Europe.
Board a typical Copenhagen canal boat for a scenic and relaxing cruise through the bustling harbor of Copenhagen and the quaint canals of historic Christianshavn with its picturesque old Dutch-style buildings. Cruising through the city you will enjoy lovely seaside views of the city’s most famous historic landmarks and discover quite a few new ones, such as the new Royal Library, known as the Black Diamond, the impressive 2005 Opera House and the 2008 Royal Theater Playhouse.
At the end of the tour the bus drops you off at your starting point.
Duration: Approx. 3 hours (canal boat portion approx. 50 min)
Included: Transportation & authorized guide services, guided canal cruise.
Notes: Tour may operate in different order. Canal boats are covered. Please note that the Little Mermaid statue is on loan to the 2010 EXPO in Shanghai from April to November and will not be seen on this tour.
Copenhagen Walking Tour
Copenhagen Walking Tour from 13:45 to 16:45, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Kongens Nytorv)
Start your walking tour from the centre of Copenhagen, at the Hotel Imperial near Vesterport Station. A knowledgeable local guide will take you past the famous Tivoli Garden from 1843 and onto the City Hall Square with the massive City Hall building. Continue along Strøget – the longest pedestrian shopping area in Europe - lined with historic old buildings, renowned brand name stores and many street entertainers.
See the grand neoclassical Church of Our Lady Cathedral and next to it the main building of Copenhagen University, founded in 1479. Continue along the old narrow streets and across the charming Gråbrødretorv (Square of the Grey Friars) so named for a long-gone monastery. See the Round Tower – a 17th century tower built as a church bell tower but actually used for astronomical studies and today the oldest functioning observatory in Europe. On to Højbro Plads in the heart of Copenhagen where you will see the dramatic equestrian statue of the famous Danish archbishop Absalon, founder of the city. On the historic island of Slotsholmen you will see the massive neo-baroque palace of Christiansborg from 1928 - now the seat of the Danish Parliament – flanked by the Palace Chapel and the old Stock Exchange on either side.
Make your way onto the King’s New Square. Established in 1670 and inspired by Place Vendome in Paris, this elegant square is flanked by noblemen’s palaces, the Royal Theater from 1874 and the fashionable Hotel D’Angleterre – one of Northern Europe’s oldest 5 star hotels. End your tour in the lively Nyhavn area – the colorful canal district from the 1600s, lined with restaurants and cafés in the historic houses.
Duration: Approx. 3 hours
Included: Authorized guide services
Notes: Tour may operate in different order. Transportation is on foot and there are no inside visits. We recommend wearing flat comfortable footwear and appropriate outdoor clothing. Approx. amount of walking: 3 miles. Max per walking guide is 20 people.
Copenhagen Gardens Tour
Copenhagen Gardens Tour from 13:15 to 16:45, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Tivoli Gardens)
Those with an interest in flora and gardening will surely enjoy this half-day tour of two of Copenhagen’s most beautiful gardens.
Transfer by bus to the Botanical Garden of Copenhagen. The Garden is a living museum and houses the largest collection of living plants in Denmark with more than 25,000 living plants of 13,000 different species. The first Botanical Garden, Hortus Medicus, was established by royal charter in 1600. The present garden has a beautiful rosarium, a rock garden and a large, elegant greenhouse complex from 1874. It also offers a variety of very rare trees, bushes and plants to study. Your guide will give you a brief overview of the gardens and then you will enjoy free time to explore and enjoy on your own. The Gardens also feature a shop with books, seeds and other flora-related products.
Meeting back at the motor coach, it’s on to another beautiful garden: In 1856 the Veterinary & Agricultural Faculties of the University moved into new facilities outside the old city and a park was established on the grounds, primarily to provide plant material for studies in horticulture and botany, but also to serve as a public park and to beautify the campus. Although the city later grew to encapsulate the campus, the park remained undisturbed and is today an extraordinary green oasis for lovers of gardens and flora. Besides the flowers, bushes and trees, the park area features a lake, creeks, stone settings, a rosary, forest areas, meadows and lush green lawns. After a brief overview you will enjoy free time at the gardens. There are plenty of benches and a lovely greenhouse cafe where you can sit and enjoy the scenery or you can stroll around and explore the plants at your leisure.
At the end of the tour, return by bus to your starting location.
Duration: Approx. 3 ½ hours
Included: Transportation & authorized guide services.
Notes: Tour may operate in reverse order. Wear comfortable footwear and appropriate outdoor clothing for the weather of the day.
Copenhagen Bird-Spotting Tour
Copenhagen Bird-Spotting Tour from 13:30 to 16:30, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Tivoli Gardens)
Although metropolitan Copenhagen is a densely populated capital of more than a one million inhabitants, you only have to travel to Amager island, just south of the old city, to find large recreational areas and adjacent wetlands that provide a protected oasis for birdlife. To get the best sightings of the day, the exact destination for this tour will be determined by recent sightings logged in the local ornithology database. Boarding a motor coach you will leave Copenhagen behind and take a short drive to one of these locations:
To the North-West you will find the Amager Commons and the Grønjord Lake - a recreational area thick with crataegus and willow. Nightingales and other songbirds are common here and since 2004 the rare Penduline Tit has been observed here as well. The wetlands are also home to the Red-necked Grebe, the Greylag Goose, the Grasshopper Warbler, the Eurasian Reed Warbler, the Northern Lapwing and many others.
To the West and South lies Kalvebod Commons – a large, flat expanse of land reclaimed from the sea by a dam project. The area is characterized by plentiful willow and birch, lakes and wetlands and several bird spotting paths and towers. A number of seabirds are found here, such as the Great Cormorant, Tufted Duck, Arctic Tern and several varieties of Swans and diving ducks. The wetlands are home to a number of rare species such as the Spotted Crake, the Ruff, the Short-eared Owl, the Northern Harrier, the Barnacle Goose as well as many songbirds and birds of prey as well.
After 2 hours of walking the nature paths and spotting birds, return by bus to Copenhagen.
Duration: Approx. 3 hours
Included: Transportation and authorized guide services
Notes: Comfortable and appropriate footwear and clothing recommended. Tour operates in all weather conditions. The tour destination is based on the best chances of good sightings but sightings are not guaranteed.
Ancient Roskilde & Viking Ship Museum
Ancient Roskilde & Viking Ship Museum from 12:45 to 16:45, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Tivoli Gardens)
Denmark is the "Land of the Vikings" and no trip to Denmark would be complete without visiting the site of early Danish culture where the fierce Vikings lived.
Drive across the picturesque island of Zealand on the way to the ancient town of Roskilde, home of the spectacular Viking Ship Museum. On display are five Viking longboats - sunk over 1000 years ago to prevent enemy ships from entering the fjord and recovered in the sixties. The museum also features many other interesting Viking finds and exhibits, incl. a section with life-size ship mock-ups and Viking costumes, and outside the museum you will find the ‘Museum Island’ with an archeology workshop and a working Viking boatyard where master craftsmen make replicas of Viking-age wooden boats and longboats, using original materials and techniques. During summer season there are demonstrations of Viking craftsmanship, such as writing in Runes, painting Viking shields or striking a coin.
Also included in the tour is a visit to Roskilde Cathedral, which has been the traditional burial place of Danish Kings and Queens for more than 500 years and now houses 37 Royal Tombs. The Cathedral stands on a ridge in the very heart of Roskilde and is an extremely prominent feature in the town. There has been a church on this spot for more than a thousand years. In 1995, the Cathedral was added to UNESCO's list of the world's most precious cultural assets. It is one of the earliest examples of French-inspired, Gothic brick architecture and the whole site exhibits a beautifully, harmonious unity.
After your visit to the Cathedral, return to Copenhagen by bus.
Duration: Approx. 4 hours
Included: Transportation & authorized guide services, entrance fees to Cathedral and Viking Ship Museum.
Notes: Tour may operate in reverse order. The visit to the Cathedral will not be possible if religious services are in progress.
Castles of North Zealand
Castles of North Zealand from 12:30 to 18:00, Meet at Panum Institute (end at Tivoli Gardens)
Leave Copenhagen behind and drive north towards the town of Hilleroed to pay a visit to Frederiksborg Castle, considered by many to be the finest example of Danish renaissance architecture and the most magnificent castle in Denmark.
The castle was originally built by Christian IV in the early 17th century but after a fire in 1859 it was extensively rebuilt with the help of considerable funds from the Carlsberg Foundation and opened up as a museum of Danish national art and history. The museum has a considerable collection of historical paintings and portraits, as well as art and furniture associated with the various periods shown. The castle also houses a beautiful chapel with the oldest organ in the world still in use – the Compenius organ from 1610.
Continue on to the coastal town of Elsinore to visit Kronborg Castle (Hamlet’s Castle) situated on the Oresund, the narrow strip of water that separates Denmark and Sweden. The castle has for centuries been one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe and was added to UNESCO's World Heritage Sites list in 2000. Join your guide for a tour of this imposing castle and discover the long and fascinating history of the castle including the early years as a toll collecting fortress, the Swedish conquest of 1658, the military prison years and of course the famous literary legacy of the castle.
After your visit here, return to Copenhagen by way of the scenic Coastal Road along the Øresund.
Duration: Approx. 5 ½ hours
Included: Transportation & authorized guide services, entrance fees to Frederiksborg Castle and Kronborg Castle
Notes: Tour may operate in reverse order. Flash photography not permitted inside Frederiksborg Castle.