Renowned for being a family-friendly place to live and a delightful city to bring up kids, Copenhagen is a good bet for a family holiday, too. The country that brought us Lego has a quieter pace of life than many other countries, and has a playful personality, whether that’s in its safe cycle lanes, kerbside mini trampolines or via trail of giant wooden trolls – really.
Family-friendly hotels are relatively easy to find in the city, but bear in mind that smaller historic hotels don’t traditionally have the largest rooms – depending on your family set up, you might be better off booking an apartment or two connecting rooms – and bathrooms typically only feature showers. There’s plenty of choice for those with babies and young children and you’ll be welcome everywhere. There’s not really a bad location in the city if you’re visiting with kids; bear in mind that when bike rental is mentioned, it usually only means adult bikes. If you want to rent kids bikes or a cargo bike, which is a very fun way to get around, ask if it can be arranged.
Here are the best places to stay in Copenhagen for families.
The best family-friends hotels in Copenhagen
1. Nimb Hotel
This iconic five-star hotel opens on to Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen’s historic theme park, where peacocks strut about like they own the place. Staying here will make you feel like you do, too. Nimb guests can ride roller coasters without having to queue before and after hours, in just one of the many VIP perks available. Its exquisite 38 rooms and suites are the height of luxury, decorated with antiques and sumptuous fabrics, Danish design lighting and four poster beds, and its service level is exceptional throughout. If money is no object, look no further.
The pampering experience for parents is superb – a rooftop pool plus a divine subterranean spa and the best concierge team in town on hand for your every whim. It’s pretty special for kids, too: there’s a child-ready mini bar, a gift for kids on arrival, kid-friendly body care products and even bedtime stories on demand. Book babysitting so you can enjoy a night out without the kids, or arrange a personal shopping trip around the city for your teens. The attention to detail is extraordinary and you won’t want to leave.
Address: Bernstorffsgade 5, Copenhagen
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2. 25Hours Hotel Indre By
High energy is the vibe at 25Hours Hotel Indre By, which has bags of colour and character and isn’t your typical family hotel. It’s designed for hip, attitude-rich visitors who want to stay somewhere with personality – and it’s got that in spades: if you happen to have kids with you, well, why not just come along for the ride? In a 19th century building steps from the Round Tower in the heart of old Copenhagen, it’s especially good for those with teens, with shopping right outside and a vinyl room they can listen to music in. The hotel has multiple restaurants and offers bike rental. Book a single room for your teen and a double for yourselves, and give them space. For those with babies or toddlers, the hotel’s large, extra large and gigantic rooms have space for a cot and myriad design tchotchkes, colour and patterns to keep them stimulated. Toddlers can wear themselves up running up the Round Tower’s wide and flat paved path.
Address: Pilestræde 65, Indre By
3. Kanalhuset
For stylish families who want to feel like a local during their stay, Kanalhuset fits the bill. It’s fine for those with babies (though it may be loud at night, given its bar and communal dining room), and best for those with older kids or teens as there’s not a lot of room for noisy toddlers to run around. A historic house dating to 1754 in glorious Christianshavn overlooking a canal, it has 12 boutique bedrooms in the well-lit basement, some sleeping up to five, and 14 larger apartments on the upper floors with a kitchenette, living room and dining area. Decor throughout has a boutique, reclaimed-retro vibe: pieces come from flea markets, private collections and auctions and include graphic print wall hangings and velvet-upholstered sofas. After a day out, relax in the lounge and drink hot chocolate. It’s decidedly low-tech, with no lift and few mod cons.
Address: Overgaden Oven Vandet 62a, Christianshavn
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4. Scandic Kødbyen
A rule of thumb for Scandinavia: if you’re looking for a budget stay, think Scandic. The same goes if you’re looking for a good-value family stay. The hotel chain is all over the region – there are 13 Scandics in Copenhagen itself – and offers reliable hotels that welcome families. While its Kødbyen branch is styled for nightlife lovers and situated next to the Meatpacking District, a hub of bars and restaurants, it’s pretty good for families as well, a stroll from the excellent Skydebanehaven playground, John’s Hot Dog Deli, and DGI swimming pool and sports centre. The stylish master suites sleep up to four with a loft bedroom for kids; those age 12 and under stay for free (as with all Scandic hotels), and there’s a discount if you book a separate room next door for your teen. Best for the kids, breakfast always includes pancakes.
Address: 3 Skelbækgade, Vesterbro
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5. Rye115 Hotel
This family-run boutique hotel will make you feel at home, with just 20 rooms and decor sourced from the best vintage furniture stores in the Nordics. It’s an intimate affair and is set up well for families, with beautiful colour-themed double, triple and family rooms with stucco ceilings and tastefully-striped wallpaper. One thing to note: the hotel has shared bathrooms, and toilets, rather than en suites. It’s in a quiet location, a couple of streets from the green playgrounds and expansive park at Fælledparken, as well as the Copenhagen Lakes and Trianglen Metro Station, which can take you everywhere in the city. It’s a well-loved hotel, by its guests and owners alike, and you can expect to eat organic bread for breakfast and pick up tips on the best places to go from the hosts.
Address: Ryesgade 115, Østerbro
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6. Villa Copenhagen
One of the city’s chicest big hotels, Villa Copenhagen’s rooms are inspired by grand Copenhagen residences and are located in the city’s old post office. It’s an impressive building, with a huge bright lobby and elegant, thoughtfully decorated rooms in grey and neutral tones. Eco-luxury is the watchword, and the hotel has a strong commitment to sustainability. It’s not your typical brightly coloured, energetic kid-friendly hotel, and perhaps that’s no bad thing. The calming and historic vibe sets the scene for a relaxing family stay; family rooms sleep one adult and one child; for larger families, book an extra room. There’s a small rooftop swimming pool and a brasserie, bakery and courtyard bar for hungry tummies, and the city’s best family attractions, from Tivoli Gardens to boat trips and the National Museum, are all an easy walk away.
Address: 39 Tietgensgade, Vesterbro
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7. STAY Bryggen
For a family stay, it can be useful to have a bit more space; Copenhagen’s hotels aren’t renowned for offering much in the way of cat-swinging options. STAY Bryggen is one of four designer apart-hotels in the city that works for families with one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom options to suit the configuration of most families. Their design apartments in Islands Brygge are close to the green space of Amager Fælled as well as the harbour swimming pools, and offer easy access by bike or metro to the heart of the old town too. Expect to find minimalist chic and design furniture from the likes of Hay and Vitra (so maybe it’s not the right place for an energetic toddler) as well as a fully-equipped kitchen with KitchenAid and Siemens appliances. There’s a three-night minimum stay, and it’s great for those travelling with older kids, babies or grandparents.
Address: Knud Kristensens Gade 6, Islands Brygge
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8. Copenhagen Strand
There are a lot of design-led hotels in Copenhagen with tasteful colours and mid-century furniture. What is hard to find is a hotel with trampolines right outside the door for kids to bounce out their energy on to go with your Danish-style stay. Copenhagen Strand is right on the harbourside path beside a set of public trampolines (ideal for those with toddler energy) and a stroll from the boat tour dock at Nyhavn. Their elegant small, standard and superior family rooms, styled with a Nordic nautical navy, blue and white colour scheme, are set up as two connected rooms, and can sleep up to four. It’s a fairly grown-up hotel inside – no play area and a kind of muted atmosphere – but it’s well located for exploring the city and quiet at night.
Address: Havnegade 37, Copenhagen
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9. Tivoli Hotel
Tivoli Hotel isn’t in Tivoli Gardens, or even all that close to it, but it is one of the city’s most family-focused hotels. It’s large and modern – with 679 rooms – and its biggest draw for families is its pool, something of a rarity in Copenhagen. Ask for a family room, set up for three to five guests with extra beds and pull out sofas, or a connecting room. It’s also got a playroom with family films on the weekends, an outdoor playground and a rooftop garden, plus kid-pleasing meals like burgers and pasta on its brasserie menu. Depending on the time of year, the team puts on special events for families, with bouncy castles and ping pong in the winter, and a large summer playland playspace in the summer.
Address: Arni Magnussonsgade 2, Vesterbro
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10. Hotel 9 små hjem
For those looking for a stay in a quiet family-orientated neighbourhood that will make you feel like a local, Hotel 9 små hjem (the name means ‘small home’) is a bit of a find. The apart-hotel in chi-chi Østerbro has a range of simple minimalist-designed apartments from studios for one to two guests through to four-room apartments for up to six. It’s walking distance from the excellent playgrounds at Fælledparken, and you can join local parents wheeling their pushchairs and prams around the Copenhagen Lakes on a morning walk.
Address: 38 Classensgade, Østerbro
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11. Wake Up Copenhagen
For families on a budget, Wake Up Copenhagen’s Bernstorffsgade hotel is a reliable option. It is a towering concrete building with 585 rooms set over 11 floors, located between the harbour and central station, right down the street from the family fun palace of Tivoli Gardens and the many food options available at Tivoli Food Hall (especially good for picky eaters). Rooms are simple, white and clean, with graphic design-style curtains giving a little pop of colour, and while they are not so large that you’d want to lounge around in them all day, at these prices and with this location, it doesn’t matter so much. As well as double rooms, triple and family rooms (sleeping four), are available; you can also rent bikes and there is a basic 24-hour cafe in the lobby.
Address: Bernstorffsgade, Copenhagen
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12. Danhostel CPH City
This youth hostel is on one of the city’s busiest roads, but it’s also steps from the harbour and at a pocket-friendly price. It’s a big hostel – 192 rooms – and works well if you’re travelling as a family, offering triples, four bed rooms, small apartments and family rooms. All rooms have a private bathroom and cots are also available to rent; the hostel also has a kitchen and laundry room. Its best kept secret is the four private apartments on the 17th floor, all blonde wood and minimalist style, which look out over the harbour and provide an excellent base for a family in the city, on a budget or not. Walk over the bridge to find the city’s best harbour swimming pool, complete with two kids pools, in the summer.
Address: H. C. Andersens Blvd 50, Copenhagen
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FAQs
What is the best area to stay in Copenhagen?
There are several neighbourhoods to choose from to fit the vibe of any traveller. One of the coolest neighbourhoods is the meat-packing district Vesterbro, which is popular among younger visitors and home to live music venues, vintage stores and trendy drinking holes. Over in Refshaleoen, the former industrial area and shipyard, the neighbourhood has been transformed into a vibrant patchwork of markets, bars and artist’s studios. The area of Nørrebro provides a buzzing street culture, Østerbro is an elegant part of town full of greenery and Frederiksberg, full of royal history, is sophisticated and upmarket.
What is the currency in Copenhagen?
Copenhagen uses the Danish krone.
Where to shop in Copenhagen
Strøget is one of the city’s most notable streets, with the department store Illum plus contemporary furniture and design store HAY, alongside some other recognisable high street shops. Check out the fashionable Pilestræde, as well as Blågårdsgade, Jægersborggade and Elmegade, for boutique and vintage shopping.
What is Copenhagen most famous for?
One of Copenhagen’s best-known landmarks is the Little Mermaid Statue on the banks of the Langelinie promenade, based on the 1827 fairy tale of the same name by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, who lived most of his life in the city. Tivoli Gardens, one of the world’s oldest amusement parks, is also a major attraction, as well as Freetown Christiania, a hippie settlement founded in 1971 and occupied by counter-culture residents.
Where to eat and drink in Copenhagen
Copenhagen has an impressive coffee bar and bakery reputation. Some of the best include The Coffee Collective, Andersen & Maillard, Juno, Hart, Lille and Meyers Bageri.
Smørrebrød (an open-faced sandwich), Danish hot dogs and natural wine are popular in the city.
If you can’t decide on dinner, the famous Reffen street food market, the largest of its kind in the Nordics, offers a wide range of choices to tuck into while overlooking the waterfront.
