Press Feature
August  2010

Summer in the City:

Sea View Hangouts in Copenhagen

Copenhageners know how to appreciate their city's seaside location. When the sun shines they make the most of the sea as a host of cafes, bars and swimming pools open for the summer.

Copenhagen owes its existence to the sea that surrounds it. It began life as a fishing village, grew as a coastal defence fortress and flourished on the sea trade and herring that passed by. These days Copenhageners don't need the water quite so much, but they enjoy it all the more, especially when the city's waterfront cafes, bars and bathing areas open for the season.

Summer in this city has never been so hot, with several groovy ‘beach' bars setting up beside the harbour and canals every summer. Here, as the sun sets, you can recline in a comfy deck chair with a long, cool drink at hand, breathe in the mouth watering aromas from the barbeque, gaze up at the palm trees, wriggle your toes in the sand and relax to live DJ grooves. And yes, you are still in Copenhagen! A beforehand check by phone is always a good idea, before you venture to these places, as weather conditions and a possible private party may close them down for an evening.

Located on Kvæsthusbroen Landing Stage in the inner harbour of Copenhagen is the Royal Playhouse designed by Lundgaard&Tranberg that opened in 2008. With the Playhouse Café, Restaurant Ofelia, a new round bar and a stunning promenade with panoramic view of the waterfront. You can enjoy the view from 11.00 in the morning over a cup of coffee or from May relax with a colorful cocktail at their open air lounge bar. At Kvæsthusmolen (Kvæsthus pier) next to the Royal Playhouse there is a new recreational and cultural area that throughout the summer and early fall of 2010 will present open air concerts, theater productions and opera among other cultural activities.

In 2007 the summer bar Docken opened with a capacity for 2.500 people in the former industrial harbour area at the end of Kalkbrænderihavnen bordering the Øresund Coast, passing the Oslo Ferry and the Paustian Furniture building. When the sun is out: sandwiches, drinks and lots of partying, concerts and other cultural activities.

Holmen
Behind the Opera House is a floating café, the Kontiki Bar, aboard the former ferry Ellen that serves lunch and dinner. Hop-on a waterbus and hop-off at activity centre Halvandet just across the harbour from Langelinie and the Little Mermaid. They opened in 2007 and host around 120 events a year. They have Kayak Polo, Water Gladiator, Bungee Run, Human Football and Sumo Wrestling, just the place for a fun get-together, teambuilding or just plain hanging out. A 400 square meter lounge terrace winds its way along the bar seating 120. The season begins in mid April and lasts until the end of September.

Harbour Baths

The opening of the first harbour bath Havnebadet Islands Brygge in 2002 in the Islands Brygge area, opposite Danhostel City by Langebro Bridge, caused great excitement. Thousands of tourists and Copenhageners flocked to the clean and spacious pool throughout the summer. In 2005 a second pool Havnebadet Fisketorvet, also centrally located, opened in Vesterbro, beside Fisketorvet Shopping Centre (so named, because this was once the site of the city's fish market). A new harbor bath at the Dutch inspired channel city Havnebadet Sluseholmen in district of Sydhavn (South Harbor) will open to the public in June 2011.

The harbour pools are part of a major revitalisation that has taken place along Copenhagen's harbour front in recent years. Cultural institutions, hotels, shopping centres and private residences are being developed by the waterside.

The harbour baths open in the beginning of June and the season continues until late August or the first days of September. Islands Brygge offers three different pools: a swimming pool, a children's pool and a diving pool - something for all ages. The baths are open daily from 11 am to 7 pm.

The water used in these two new baths is as clean as the bathing water on the Øresund's coast, which is why it has now been possible to make these baths in the city centre. It is more than 50 years since a similar bathing place in the harbour had to close because the quality of water in the harbour was deemed too poor. However, major investment in Copenhagen's sewage and drainage systems has greatly improved water quality to the extent where the water is as clean in the city centre as it is at the beaches outside of Copenhagen.

On Islands Brygge you'll also find Bryggens Spisehus, a local culture house, with local atmosphere and reasonable prices. It is located right on the harbour front, where you can sit and watch the sun go down over the city.

Also on Islands Brygge is Aristo Café and Restaurant with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the harbour and a minimalistic interior design.

Amager Strandpark (Amager beach)

In 2005 Copenhagen opened a new beach area on the island of Amager less than five kilometres from the City Hall Square and only five minutes on foot from Øresund, Amagerstrand and Femøren metro stations. One million cubic meters of sand we're brought to the old beach pushing the coastline further into the water creating new playground for Copenhageners and the cities guests.

A 4,6 kilometre long bathing beach divided into two parts. The beach on the mainland running along the road of Amager Strandvej and a two kilometre long island, which is connected to the mainland with three bridges. From the island there is a nice view of the Swedish coast, the touchstone and the Oresund Bridge. The Metro brings you very close to the beach.

Helgoland at Amager Beach Park:

The 95 year old Harbour Bath ‘Helgoland' was rebuilt and opened on June 2008. Free of charge it's open every day 10-18 from the first weekend in June until the last day of August. There is a winter bathing club ‘Det Kolde Gys' (the cold chock) that uses it the year out. It has a boardwalk that is a total of 3.207m2 with partitioned woman's, men's and mixed sections. Built of Azorbe wood from African trees that grow in the waters of tropical jungles, it should be able to last another 100 years. All wood comes from certified trees, meaning that for every tree that's cut down another one is planted. Walking further down the beach in the direction of the airport you can have a cocktail or smoothie at the Vista Del Mar cocktail bar at, buy homemade elderflower ice cream, play mini golf, try kite surfing, rent a kajak at Kajakhottellet and have a meal at Beduinoasen.

"The Sea Witch" at Amager Strandpark, an artificial, underwater landscape for divers consisting of stone reefs, large granite boulders and gravel, where aquatic plants eventually will fasten and give the right illusion for the sports divers. Right next to Christiania with the futuristic view of a power plant and oil refinery is Copenhagen Cablepark. A complete water-ski and wakeboarding cableway, built for tough riders as well as for anyone seeking fun on the water. Six corners and four obstacles in one and a quarter minutes!

Kastrup Sea Bath
Kastrup Sea bath (Kastrup Søbad) is situated between Amager Strandpark, mentioned above, and the Copenhagen Airport. It is open from the beginning of June to Mid September and admission is free. The sea bath has a wooden bridge leading ab. 100 meters to the open, round construction, which was designed by Architects from the White Group.

A beautiful new city beach opened June 2010 in the area of Østerbro near Svanemølle Station named Svanemøllen Strand (Svanemøllen Beach).

City Centre

Custom House lies directly on the waterfront, in what used to be a hydrofoil-boat-terminal, a restaurant palace with three restaurants and two bars. The building dates back to 1937 and is built in a distinct functionalistic 'jazz-modern' style. A gastronomic lifestyle temple by Sir Terence Conran , similar to those he opened in London in the 1990's. Consisting of: Ebiso - Japanese grill and sushi bar, Bacino - Italian fine restaurant and Bar & Grill, a modern brasserie with Scandinavian inspiration. From April tables are moved outdoors and meals can be enjoyed in the open air.

Restaurant Viva is located aboard a ship moored opposite the Black Diamond and open all year-round. Viva majors on shellfish and a tapas-style menu has something to tempt everyone. Opposite Restaurant Viva you will find the floating café My Kayak where you can eat lunch before paddling out in a kayak. In the summer of 2009 Denmark opened its first floating hotel with twelve rooms CPH Living, that is moored close to Restaurant Viva.

Klods Hans and Ole Lukøje, the Canaltour Boats, are used for a floating candle light meal on Fridays. Canaltours also offers Live Jazz and Architecture tours.

Another company arranging lunch and dinner cruises owns Saqa Queen, a sailing restaurant, where guests can enjoy a meal while sailing through the Copenhagen Harbour.

Flakfortet, Middelgrunden and Trekroner Fortresses

You will need to have your sea legs about you if you fancy a meal at Restaurant Flakfortet and on the other artificial island: Middelgrunden. You sail with a Spar Shipping a ferry from Nyhavn or Langelinie. Indoors are rooms with vaulted ceilings, candlelight and fine paintings, outdoors a pavilion. Grill buffets and traditional lunch menus. Trekroner is reachable with the barge-like Canal Tour boats that have a hop-on-hop-off service all summer long (May-Sept)

How to get around

And if you are wondering how you are going to get to see all these fantastic venues, don't worry. You are never short of a ride on Copenhagen's waterways with two sightseeing boat companies operating annually from mid March until the end of December (board at Nyhavn or Gammel Strand), as well as the yellow hop-on, hop-off Havnebus (harbour bus) service, a hop-on, hop-off Vandbus (water bus) and an imminent harbour taxi service, all competing for your fare. Failing that, you could always rent a boat from Christianshavn's Bådudlejning (boat rental) and row your way round the waterways of Copenhagen.

For further information you are welcome to contact:

Wonderful Copenhagen®, Tel: (+45) 33 25 74 00

International Press Officer, Henrik Thierlein, hth@woco.dk

International Press Assistant, Anna Lia Bright, alb@woco.dk

For the latest update and photos please visit

www.visitcopenhagen.com/press
www.visitcopenhagen.com/photos

Holmen and Amager

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