Side Trips from Copenhagen

Side Trips from Copenhagen

Charlottenlund

Just north of Copenhagen is the leafy, affluent coastal suburb of Charlottenlund, with a small, appealing beach that gets predictably crowded on sunny weekends. A little farther north is Charlottenlund Slot (Charlottenlund Palace), a graceful mansion that has housed various Danish royals since the 17th century. Today, it houses only offices and is not open to the public. The surrounding peaceful palace gardens, however, are open to all, and Copenhageners enjoy coming up here for weekend ambles and picnics.

A favorite with families is the nearby Danmarks Akvarium,a sizable, well-designed aquarium near the palace with all the usual aquatic suspects, from gliding sharks to brightly colored tropical fish to snapping crocodiles. Kavalergården 1, Charlottenlund. 39/62-32-83. www.akvarium.dk. DKr 75. Nov.-Jan., daily 10-4; Feb.-Apr., daily 10-5; May-Aug., daily 10-6; Sept. and Oct., daily 10-5

While in Charlottenlund, don't miss the remarkable Ordrupgaard,one of the largest museum collections of French impressionism in Europe outside France. Most of the great 19th-century French artists are represented, including Manet, Monet, Matisse, Cézanne, Renoir, Degas, Gauguin, Alfred Sisley, Delacroix, and Pissarro. Particularly noteworthy is Delacroix's 1838 painting of George Sand. The original painting depicted Sand listening to her lover Chopin play the piano. For unknown reasons, the painting was divided, and the half portraying Chopin now hangs in the Louvre. The Ordrupgaard also has a superb collection of Danish Golden Age painters, from Christen Kbke to Vilhelm Hammershj, who has been called "the Danish Edward Hopper" because of the deft use of light and space in his haunting, solitary paintings. Perhaps best of all is that much of the magnificent collection is displayed, refreshingly, in a non-museum-like setting. The paintings hang on the walls of what was once the home of museum founder and art collector Wilhelm Hansen. The lovely interior of this graceful manor house dating from 1918 has been left just as it was when Hansen and his wife Henny lived here. The white-and-gold ceiling has intricate flower moldings, and the gleaming dark-wood tables are set with Royal Copenhagen Flora Danica porcelain. Interspersed among the paintings are windows that provide glimpses of the surrounding lush, park-size grounds of beech trees, sloping lawns, a rose garden, and an orchard. Vilvordevej 110, Charlottenlund. 39/64-11-83. www.ordrupgaard.dk. DKr 65. Tues., Thurs., and Fri. 1-5; Wed. 10-8; weekends 11-5

Before or after your visit to the Ordrupgaard museum, wind down next door at the soothing Ordrupgaard Café (Vilvordevej 110, Charlottenlund. 39/63-00-33. www.cafeordrupgaard.dk), housed in the former stable of the manor house-turned-museum. Large picture windows overlook the wooded grounds, and museum posters of French and Danish artists line the café's whitewashed walls. Sink into one of the rustic cane chairs and enjoy the daily changing menu of light Danish-French dishes, such as the smoked salmon drizzled with lime sauce or a fluffy ham quiche served with fresh greens. For an afternoon snack, try a pastry along with a pot of coffee that you can refill as often as you wish. On Sunday from noon to 2 it serves a hearty brunch of eggs, bacon, smoked ham, and rye bread. The café is open Tuesday-Sunday, noon-5. Credit cards are not accepted.

Dragør

On the island of Amager, less than a half hour from Copenhagen, the quaint fishing town of Dragr (pronounced drah-wer) feels far away in distance and time. The town is set apart from the rest of the area around Copenhagen because it was settled by Dutch farmers in the 16th century. King Christian II ordered the community to provide fresh produce and flowers for the royal court. Today neat rows of terra-cotta-roof houses trimmed with wandering ivy, roses, and the occasional waddling goose characterize the still meticulously maintained community. If there's one color that characterizes Dragr, it's the lovely pale yellow (called Dragr gul, or Dragr yellow) of its houses. According to local legend, the former town hall's chimney was built with a twist so that meetings couldn't be overheard.

As you're wandering around Dragr, notice that many of the older houses have an angled mirror contraption attached to their street-level windows. This gade spejl (street mirror), unique to Scandinavia, was—and perhaps still is—used by the occupants of the house to "spy" on the street activity. Usually positioned at seat-level, this is where the curious (often the older ladies of town) could pull up a chair and observe all the comings and goings of the neighborhood from the warmth and privacy of their own homes. You can see these street mirrors all across Denmark's small towns and sometimes in the older neighborhoods of the bigger cities.

The Dragr Museum,in one of the oldest houses in town, sits near the water on Dragr's colorful little harbor. The collection includes furniture from old skipper houses, costumes, drawings, and model ships. The museum shop has a good range of books on Dragr's history. Havnepl., Dragr. 32/53-41-06. www.dragoermuseum.dk. DKr 20. May-Sept., Tues.-Sun. noon-4

A ticket to the Dragr Museum also affords entrance to the Mlsted Museum,which displays paintings by the famous local artist Christian Mlsted, whose colorful canvases capture the maritime ambience of Dragr and its rich natural surroundings. Dr. Dichs Pl. 1, Dragr. 32/53-41-06. www.dragoermuseum.dk. DKr 20. May-Aug., weekends noon-4

You can swing by the Amagermuseet in the nearby village of Store Magleby, 2 km (1 mi) west of Dragr. The museum is housed in two thatch-roof, whitewashed vintage farmhouses, which were once the home of the Dutch farmers and their families who settled here in the 16th century. The farmhouses are done up in period interiors, with original furnishings and displays of traditional Dutch costumes. Round out your visit with an outdoor stroll past grazing dairy cows and through well-tended vegetable gardens flourishing with the same vegetables that the settlers grew. Hovedg. 4 and 12, Dragr. 32/53-93-07. www.amagermuseet.dk. DKr 30. May-Sept., Tues.-Sun. noon-4; Oct.-Apr., Wed. and Sun. noon-4

Klampenborg, Bakken & Dyrehaven

As you follow the coast north of Copenhagen, you'll come upon the wealthy enclave of Klampenborg, whose residents are lucky enough to have the pleasant Bellevue Beach nearby. In summer this luck may seem double-edged, when scores of city-weary sun-seekers pile out at the Klampenborg S-train station and head for the sand. The Danes have a perfect word for this: they call Bellevue a fluepapir (flypaper) beach. Still and all, Bellevue is an appealing seaside spot to soak up some rays, especially considering that it's just a 20-minute train ride from Copenhagen.

Klampenborg is no stranger to crowds. Just a few kilometers inland, within the peaceful Dyrehaven, is Bakken,the world's oldest amusement park—and one of Denmark's most popular attractions. If Tivoli is champagne in a fluted glass, then Bakken is a pint of beer. Bakken's crowd is working-class Danes, and lunch is hot dogs and cotton candy. Of course Tivoli, with its trimmed hedges, dazzling firework displays, and evening concerts is still Copenhagen's reigning queen, but unpretentious Bakken makes no claims to the throne; instead, it is unabashedly about having a good time—being silly in the bumper cars, screaming at the top of your lungs on the rides, and eating food that's bad for you. There's something comfortable and nostalgic about Bakken's vaguely dilapidated state. Bakken has more than 100 rides, from quaint, rickety roller coasters (refreshingly free of that Disney gloss) to newer, faster rides to little-kid favorites such as Kaffekoppen, the Danish version of twirling teacups, where you sit in traditional Royal Copenhagen-style blue-and-white coffee cups. Bakken opens the last weekend in March, with a festive ride by motorcyclists across Copenhagen to Bakken. It closes in late August, because this is when the Dyrehaven park animals begin to mate, and during their raging hormonal stage the animals can be dangerous around children. Dyrehavevej 62, inside Dyrehaven, Klampenborg. (take S-train to Klampenborg Station). 39/63-73-00. www.bakken.dk. Free, DKr 239 for a day pass to all rides in peak season (June 27-Aug. 7). Late Mar.-late Aug., daily 2 PM-midnight

Bakken sits within the verdant, 2,500-acre Dyrehaven,where herds of wild deer roam freely. Once the favored hunting grounds of Danish royals, today Dyrehaven has become a cherished weekend oasis for Copenhageners. Hiking and biking trails traverse the park, and lush fields beckon to nature-seekers and families with picnic hampers. The deer are everywhere; in the less-trafficked regions of the park you may find yourself surrounded by an entire herd of deer delicately stepping through the fields. The park's centerpiece is the copper-top, 17th-century Eremitagen, formerly a royal hunting lodge. It is closed to the public. Today, the Royal Hunting Society gathers here for annual lunches and celebrations, most famously on the first Sunday in November, when the society hosts a popular (and televised) steeplechase event in the park. The wet and muddy finale takes place near the Eremitagen when the riders attempt to make it across a small lake. Dyrehaven is a haven for hikers and bikers, but you can also go in for the royal treatment and enjoy it from the high seat of a horse-drawn carriage. The carriages gather at the park entrance near the Klampenborg S-train station. The cost is around DKr 40 for 15 minutes, DKr 60 to Bakken, DKr 250 to the Eremitagen, and DKr 400 for an hour. Park entrance is near Klampenborg S-train station, Klampenborg. 39/63-39-00