Photo Blog: Charming Canals of Copenhagen

Copenhagen is an old harbor and maritime city and definitely one of the most beautiful and fun way to see it is from a boat sailing down its charming canals. Touristy as it may be… on a sunny day, we took a traditional canal boat tour that started near the colorful New Port or Nyhavn, along the Charming Canals of Copenhagen.

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

Nyhavn’s colorful, picturesque houses are some of the oldest parts of the city’s harbor dating back to 1673. This was the gateway from the sea to the old inner city and a hub for trading and shipping activities. These days the vibrant area is bustling with restaurants, cafes and street vendors overlooking the canal – there are even some love locks on the bridges!

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

Once we got our tickets, we boarded the gleaming wooden boat with blue seats.  We were warned that some of Copenhagen’s charming canals and bridges were definitely low and we have to be sitting down when we passed through them.

Boat ride through the Canals of Copenhagen

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

Right after we crossed the brightly colored houses and store fronts of Nyhavn we saw Copenhagen Street Food on Papirøen (Paper Island). It is the city’s first and only genuine street food market. In the small food trucks you can get delicious sustainable street food from all corners of the world – and enjoy it indoors in the halls or in the sun overlooking the city’s waterfront.

Papiroen (Paper Island) CPH

One of the most impressive modern buildings we saw as we sailed out into the harbor was the Copenhagen Opera House. The 14-story building of which five are underground and its main stage can seat up to 1,400 people.

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

Next, we saw the Little Mermaid (from a distance, so sharing a pic from Wikipedia) – Unveiled on 23 August 1913, The Little Mermaid was a gift from Danish brewer Carl Jacobsen to the City of Copenhagen. The sculpture is made of bronze and granite and was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale about a mermaid who gives up everything to be united with a young, handsome prince on land. Every morning and evening she swims to the surface from the bottom of the sea and, perched on her rock in the water, stares longingly towards the shore hoping to catch a glimpse of her beloved prince.

Little Mermaid - Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia


We passed by the Holmen area which served as Copenhagen’s naval base for more than 300 years. We saw the Queen’s big Yacht in the water- The Royal Yacht Dannebrog serves as the official and private residence for the Royal Couple and other members of the Royal Family when they are on official visits overseas or on summer cruises in home waters. We learned that it makes frequent trips to Greenland.

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

Next up we cruised along the canals Christianshavn – for much of the 20th century a working-class neighborhood, Christianshavn developed a bohemian reputation in the 1970s and it is now a fashionable, diverse and lively part of the city with its own distinctive personality, with residents tending to see themselves first as Christianshavners and then as Copenhageners.  The building and the canal brought back memories of Amsterdam.

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia


We saw the Church of Our Saviour (Danish: Vor Frelsers Kirke) which is a baroque church in Copenhagen, Denmark, most famous for its helix spire with an external winding staircase that can be climbed to the top, offering extensive views over central Copenhagen. The black and golden spire reaches a height of 90 meters and the external staircase turns four times anticlockwise around it.

We then passed the Old Stock Exchange, one of the oldest buildings in the city and has survived the ravages of fire, weather and time. Its interior is now largely used for banquet and conference facilities. The high spire consists of four dragons whose tails are intertwined to the top capped off with three crowns representing the close ties between Denmark, Norway and Sweden – the countries of Scandinavia! Did you know – all Scandinavia flags have the Scandinavian cross, also called the Nordic Cross or Crusader’s cross.

A few photos of the canals of Slotsholm Canal and the Holmen Canal, Scandinavian design apartments and the Standard – another fun place to eat with views of the canals before we made it back to Nyhavn.

Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Best Copenhagen tour!

After we made it back to Nyhann, we had to stop for some Smørrebrød – the Danish open sandwiches, which usually consists of a piece of buttered rye bread, a dense, dark brown bread. The topping among others can be cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish, cheese or spreads. Many huge wooden ships and small boats lined the canals with so many activities going on – musicians playing on the street, street vendors selling hotdogs, fresh juices – the area was so lively.  After walking around some more, we had some Waffles and Icecream too!

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Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia
Charming Canals of Copenhagen - Photo blog by Outside Suburbia

I hope you enjoyed the virtual tour along the Canals of Copenhagen! And if you get to visit Copenhagen, don’t discount the canal tour as a touristy thing to do, sometimes it’s fun to be a tourist!

You might also like:
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8 thoughts on “Photo Blog: Charming Canals of Copenhagen”

  1. You can certainly see your expertise in the work
    you write. The sector hopes for more passionate writers such as
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  2. Love that idea of seeing Copenhagen from the water, then having such a fine meal afterwards. Looks like the weather cooperated too.

  3. I imagine that canal tours must be the best way to explore such cities in a short time! I’m amazed at the amount of information you picked up 🙂 From Bohemian neighborhoods to markets – it all seems so exciting. I’m pretty sure your guide was a good one! Thanks for sharing this Priya – it’ll definitely be handy whenever we plan to go to Copenhagen.

    -Bharat

  4. Wow Copehagen looks so beautiful and I love all the colorful houses! And the Opera house looks so beautiful and modern! Its super cool that 5 floors are under water!

  5. I visited Copenhagen back in 2010 and found the city to be as charming as I’d hoped. It was only late April yet I was able to enjoy the canals and Nyhavn, perfect place to sink a jew bottles of beer and people watch.

  6. Thanks for the virtual canal tour! We toured Copenhagen on rented bikes, though I do wish we had gone the touristy route and taken a boat – as you said, sometimes it’s definitely fun to be a tourist! Love Copenhagens canals – Venice of the north!

  7. I would love to climb the Church of Our Savior, those external stairs are beautiful! Getting the view of a city is always one of my favorite things to do in a new place.

  8. Copenhagen looks like such a beautiful city. We are going to have to visit one of these days and when we do we will certainly take a canal tour by boat.

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