Hi all-

Planning a 6-night trip to Copenhagen this summer, first-time visit. I would appreciate any recommendations for good, moderately-priced, conveniently-located hotels. I realize that CPH is expensive, but I don't feel I need to stay in one of the grandest places... Ideally, a small, boutique or family-run place would be best. Thank you. "Alles Gut!"

Last year we got the Marriott Copenhagen on Priceline for $120. The same room if booked directly with them was over $300!! It has very nice, big, modern rooms and location was good.

A lot of people will make recommendations and you'll hear about how bad the Marriott is...I've stayed there three times and it is within walking distance of the railway station and Tivoli; it is air conditioned; and if you can get a priceline deal on it i would consider.

BTW, have you read the hotel reviews for Copenhagen on trip Advisor/ if not, I definitely would.

If, by boutique or family-run place, you are thinking of the sort of places you might find in Italy or France or Spain, I suspect you may be disappointed. I struggle to think of any hotels that fit that bill. Sure, there are some high-design places and some that may even be boutique, but not down-home and affordable.

Lodging in Copenhagen is expensive simply because it is an extremely expensive city, and it would be tough operate the kind of affordable pension or B&B you see in other places. Even some place like the Cab Inn, which has claustrophobic rooms, or some of the older, 2-star hotels in Vesterbro, can run you over $100 per night.

Personally, I would consider the Priceline route and see if I could get the Marriott. Biddingfortravel is showing winning bids in the $100 range. Despite a very slightly out of the way location, I think that is a great deal for a hotel of that quality (I think it among the top 3 hotels in Copenhagen). Of course, there is no guarantee that you will get it for that price, but the other hotels that have come up (the former Sofitel) and the Plaza are also decent hotels and in good locations. You take a risk that something new would come up, but I think it worth taking.

Otherwise, some decent hotels that are in a good location would include Hotel 27, Skt Petri, The Admiral Hotel, and The Square. The SAS Royal is an old standard, but is usually expensive. Don't be sucked into the SAS Scandinavian, which is out of the way in Amager.

For something cheaper, I would suggest looking somewhere like Expedia and then looking at TripAdvisor to get a sense of whether the place is nice.

If you have questions about a specific hotel's location, post here and I'm sure some of us here can try to help.

Not quite family run, but a local collection of hotels of different character is run by the Arp Hansen Group. Check out their hotels, most of them have very central locations, and some of them I like a lot for their quality and their value for money:
http://www.arp-hansen.com/

It has been several years, but we found The Square just right -- centrally located, reasonably priced for Copenhagen, excellent breakfast buffet, sleek design.

Among the Arp Hansen hotels, watch out for the Island Hotel, which is out on its own at least 10 minutes walk further than the Marriott along an uninteresting stretch of office buildings and major thoroughfare. The Gentofte Hotel is, obviously, in Gentofte, which is a relatively uninteresting suburb.

Among the others - I have heard decent things about the Imperial, less decent things about the Phoenix, and largely good things about the Square. The others I have heard very little about one way or the other, but they are, indeed, in good locations. 71 Nyhavn, though, might be awfully noisy, which could be a good or bad thing, depending upon what you are looking for.

Thank you, everyone. So far, it is between The Square and the SAS Royal. If there are no other recommendations, then which of these two would be the better bet for a first-time visit, especially location-wise?

I have stayed at both the Royal and the Marriott. The Royal has a great location, right across the street from Tivoli and not far from Stroget. The rooms are generally VERY small and spartan by American standards. If you have a lot of luggage you can ask the hotel to store it for you because it will not fit in the average size room.

A 100usd room at the Marriott that would definitely be my choice. Large American size rooms/bathrooms, very nice public areas and it is on a canal with views of the water. It is not that far to walk to the places you want to be.

Location-wise, both the Square and SAS Royal are in a good location. They are only a few blocks apart. If pressed, I would give the edge to The Square, but only slightly. The SAS Royal is of note for design fans, being the brainchild of Arne Jacobsen.

Personally, I would book the Marriott before either hotel, assuming that the cost differential is not too great. It is only maybe a 10-minute walk less central than the other two and has much nicer rooms that are a good size with very nice bathrooms. It is very nice, even by Marriott standards.

If location is the primary concern, I will say that, in many ways I prefer the other end of the Stroget, around Kongens Nytorv and Nyhavn. The Radhuspladsen end is definitely lower-rent. The Admiral would be an excellent choice on that end of town. I would also consider the Front, but would do my research. Also, three of the hotels (71 Nyhavn, the Opera and the Strand) mentioned as being part of the Arp Hansen group are on that side - if they get good reviews, they might be a good option. Also on that side is the Skt Petri, which is a great hotel and a testament to modern Danish design.

I have stayed at both, the SAS Royal and the Marriott. I preferred the rooms in the Marriott much more, plus the price through Priceline was a bargain.