julies

We're a different type of traveller than many of you. We have so many places we want to see that often we just let the plane ticket price dictate where we will visit. We had thought about a cycling trip in Germany this summer and were ready to book roundtrip tickets to Frankfurt, but then I just found a deal where tickets are about $150 per person less flying into FRA and out of Copenhagen. So, airfare would be $300 less for the 2 of us.

The idea sounds intriguing because there are interesting bike trip possibilities we've found in the northern half of Germany, and we didn't have our hearts set on any particular bike trip. But, if we fly out of Copenhagen, we'd, of course, want to spend some time exploring Denmark, or at least spend 3 days or so in Copenhagen. And, we'd probably like to spend some time in the Danish countryside between Germany and Denmark.

We've been to Germany a number of times, so I'm familiar with the price structure there. I've heard that Denmark is really, really, really pricey. And, I have to be practical because the dollar is really, really, really low right now. We're budget to moderate travelers. Is Denmark a stupid idea? Should we just stick to Germany? We'd like to see Denmark some time, but we can always wait until another time too.

Thanks for any thoughts you have.

L84SKY

julies,
I haven't been to Denmark but I might be a "different type of traveller", also. I like to save money whenever I can. So I'm going to throw in my thought for what it's worth.
You never know what may happen with dollar vs euro. What if this is as good as it's going to be for while?
You have already indicated that you know how to find a good bargin and now you've already got $300 more than you might have had.
When will you be going to Denmark? Will it be warm enough to cycling?
If Denmark is always really pricey then why would prices drop in the future?

crefloors

I was in Copenhagen about a year and a half ago. I thought the hotel was pretty competative with other countries but food is pricy. However, there are little cafes and sandwhich shops with good food at reasonable prices. There are also some middle eastern stands that sell shwarmas...I THINK thats right..pita with chicken or ox or beef and vegs...really good and filling and not too expensive. The department stores all have wonderful lunch rooms with sandwiches and soups, pastries etc., very good and again pretty reasonable. If you need to go to an upscale restaurant for your meals, you WILL pay a very high price.

Groceries are pretty expensive also, but it's cheaper to buy some snacks or luch fixings that to go to a restaurant. There is always a way to make things work.

traveller1959

In general, Denmark is 20 to 30% more expensive than Germany. Especially expensive is alcohol in any form. Restaurants are pricey and offer rather poor quality. Hotels are also pricey and often offer poor service.

But Copenhagen is one of Europe's most beautiful and most vibrant cities. Denmark is perfect for cycling. There are fascinating museums both in Copenhagen and in the countryside (e.g. Roskilde).

My tip: Live economically, with food bought in supermarkets ("Netto" markets are inexpensive) and snacks from streetstands. Bring some alcohol from Germany (you can buy at the TravelValue/Duty Free store and get them sealed for security) or stay sober.

Nikki

On the other hand, alcohol is so expensive in Sweden that the ferries from Helsingor, Denmark to Helsingborg, Sweden are filled with cars packed with booze bought in Denmark. The main street of Helsingor is lined with liquor stores for bargain hunting Swedes.

ira

Hi J,

>flying into FRA and out of Copenhagen. ... airfare would be $300 less for the 2 of us.<

Lucky you.

You now have $300 that you can afford to spend in Copenhagen. If you were going to spend $300/day for 3 days in Germany, and if Denmark is 30% higher than Germany, you are even.

Denmark is terrific bicycling country.

Enjoy your visit.

julies

You are all making Denmark sound pretty good to me. We typically do a lot of snacks rather than fancy restaurants and we always hit a grocery store to get our own food, so that won't be anything new to us. Guess I'll just have to tell my husband that he'd better enjoy the beer and wine in Germany because he won't be seeing a lot of it in Denmark. Is the alcohol more pricey just in restaurants or even in the stores? We do like to sit around and relax with a glass of wine or two on vacations. Now, maybe I'll see if I can find a cheap apartment for 3 or 4 days in the Copenhagen area. We really prefer those to hotels because they are more relaxing and we can also save on food.

traveller1959

Alcohol is more expensive even in stores. Of course, you can afford a bottle of beer. But with wine, it is a different story. Especially in restaurants, you pay tremendous amounts for a bottle of mediocre French wine.

It is right, there are countries, were the situation is worse, like Sweden (or Iceland). It is just to plan ahead.

Erin464

I did not find Denmark to be overly expensive - even the alcohol! I have travelled all over Western Europe and while I can see that Denmark is more expensive than places like Greece and Portugal, countries such as Sweden and the UK are FAR more expensive. You can find a lot of good deals in Copenhagen as long as you don't have your heart set on gourmet meals. For instance, there are a lot of pizza and donair/shawarma restaurants all over the place - more of a fast food feel but still some of the best pizza I've ever had. For alcohol, you can buy beer at 7-11 by the bottle and its not too bad price-wise. If you want to go to a bar, there are quite a few in and around Stroget (longest pedestrian shopping street in Europe) that have cheap nights, such as LA Bar, Moose Bar, Australia Bar, and Heidi's Beer Bar. Granted those are all for the most part more geared towards the younger student crowd, but I'm sure there are others as well.

I absolutely LOVED Copenhagen (I did a semester abroad there) and road my bike everywhere I went. It is absolutely a cyclist friendly city, and I just wanted to put my vote in for it! (Reasonably priced accomodation in a very central location and with free breakfast can be found at the Cab Inn City). Enjoy your stay!

julies

Thanks much. Now, thanks to Erin, I am starting to also wonder if we should plan some cycling time in Denmark. We really just like the general slow pace and ambience a bicycle allows.

Erin--

Could we choose cheaper lodging, like an apartment, that is a little removed from the center of the city and still be happy? Or, would we want to be closer in. We're middle-aged and not into night life.

Erin464

Julies - it depends on how far out of the city you are talking about. Copenhagen proper is actually not THAT big and the transit system is really great so it was never a problem to get around. However, if you start talking about some of the outlying communities, your commute starts to get longer. Unfortunately I do not know of any reasonably priced hotels or apartments other than the Cab Inn City. I myself stayed in an apartment in Osterbro while I was there - its about a 30 min bike ride or 10 min train ride to the very centre of the city (which I would consider to be the palace, Stroget, Tivoli, water front). I would say if you start to go beyond the neighberhoods of Norrebro, Osterbro, Vesterbro, and Fredericksberg, you start to look at a distance that is not very conducive to biking (but like I mentioned earlier, if you are willing to take the metro and S-tog, which are the two main train lines in the city, you will be fine). Neighberhoods such as Osterbro and Norrebro are not considered city centre but are still fairly close in - however, I would advise Osterbro over Norrebro. It all depends on what you would like to see while you are in the city though.

As for cycling around Denmark, the good thing is that Denmark is FLAT so hills won't be a problem. Another good thing right in Copenhagen is that there are specially dedicated bike lanes on every street. The bad thing about cycling around Denmark is that because of the flatness, it is rather prairie like and not the most interesting scenery in Europe.

Hope that helps a bit!

enzian

Rick Steves has several recommendations for budget accomodations in Copenhagen; youmight check his Scandinavia book for those. He likes a bed and breakfast run by Rudy and Annette, which you can read about on his web page. There may be an apartment or two as well. And "Chicken's pension", run by Morten Frederiksen:

http://www.chickens.dk/index.htm

Doubles are around 500 Kroner.

Denmark is wonderful for cycling. I even enjoy cycling in Copenhagen. There are good wide bike lanes almost everywhere, and they are respected by the motorists. We have used the free bikes offered by the city to get around (you leave a deposit which is returned when you return the bike). Or you could rent one if you wanted a better bike.

The island of Aero is supposed to be great for cycling, although I haven't been there. We enjoyed walking up around Skagen, in the far north.

Virgogirl

Absolutely plan on cycling in Copenhagen! If you enjoy cycling, you can even rent one for next to nothing. There are bike lanes everywhere, and they are dead serious about it. Read: You'll be dead if walk in those bike lanes when the torrents of bicycles come barreling through. As far as a cheap meal, I agree Denmark makes a pretty good pizza! Around the corner from our hotel was an Italian take-out pizza place. We brought our hot, fresh- baked pizza and a bottle or two of beer to the beautiful covered patio at the hotel and had a nice casual dinner on budget nights. Every other night, we ate in a restaurant. It worked for us!

wintersp

For sure, go to Copenhagen! It is a charming place. I visited my son there several times so don't know the hotel scene. However, he and his friends always found reasonable places to eat. Please - be sure to go to Dragor. You take a regular public bus from downtown, near Tivoli, and go straight to the village. I believe you can also go by train now. It is past the airport and is a port village. Very upscale, thatched roof houses. In the summer you can buy smoked fish (salmon etc.). A great way to spend an afternoon.