We signed up for a canal cruise as a way to get an overview of the city.
Cruising in Copenhagen
The tour begins in Nyhavn, but quickly moves out of the short canal and into the larger harbor.
Copenhagen’s waterfront is a mixture of historic buildings (warehouses, boat sheds, palaces, and fortifications), functional industrial structures, and breathtakingly modern architecture (public facilities like the opera house and the Royal Playhouse, but also residential structures like the Torpedo Hall Apartments).
(I want to live here.)
We turn where the houseboats are docked, gliding into a canal that runs through lively Christianshavn.
It’s a cheerful place, filled with people and boats and friendly-looking buildings.
We disembark here to wander the neighborhood a bit, but mostly to visit Vor Frelsers Kirke (Our Savior’s Church) before catching a later boat and continuing our journey.
After our tour of the church, we return to finish our tour of the canals.
As we leave the canal, we are greeted by the sight of Copenhagen’s dramatic library “the black diamond.”
From there the canal into Gammal Strand flows under a series of bridges before we disembark near Christiansborg Palace.
And now it’s time to head towards our hotel to check in.
It’s been a good first day here.
Next post: Vor Frelsers Kirke (Our Savior’s Church)