Copenhagen: The city of bicycles and green roofs
I visited Copenhagen as a part of my design foraging mission to find plants to represent different cities for my new City bracelet collection. I was focused on collecting designs from wild, self-planted plants on busy city streets. Overall, Copenhagen won me over with its green roofs, use of bicycles as a main way of transportation, promise of a greener future and an overall respect for nature.
These are some of the places I enjoyed most while visiting, and if you ever find yourself in this beautiful green city, give them a go, I’m sure you’ll love them too.
Must haves:
- a raincoat (to keep yourself dry)
- waterproof backpack (to keep your things dry)
- a bicycle (to visit them all)
Bane Gaarden
Stop by for a lunch, listen to a concert on a Friday night, visit a fermentation workshop, browse a farmers market full of fresh produce or just stop by to feel like you’ve stepped out of the busy city into an oasis of sustainability and relax for a while. BaneGaarden is set in nine old wooden barns that are being brought back to life through ongoing restoration, made possible by four green entrepreneurs whose mission is to make a change through sharing the knowledge of a sustainable lifestyle.
Glyptoteket
If you love green spaces you have to stop by Glyptoteket art museum. Founded by the brewer Carl Jacobsen in 1888, the museum is separated into two departments and it combines antiquity and modernity, nature and culture. Possibly the most stunning part of it is the greenhouse garden, where you can stop by Café Picnic and enjoy your coffee surrounded by luscious greenery.
Botanical Garden
Particularly known for its historical glasshouses dating from 1874, this botanical garden contains more than 13,000 species, including 600 native Danish plants. If you’re visiting during summer months, you have to stop by The Butterfly House and experience the life of butterflies in this almost fairytale-like setting.
Copenhot
Do you want to experience spa like never before? In Copenhot, set in Copenhagen’s harbor you can relax in hot tubes under the open sky, cruise the canals in a spa boat or relax in a sauna with a view. There’s no need to worry about the weather too, the sea water filled tubs are guaranteed to warm you up and the view of harbor skyline is beautiful no matter what.
COPENHAGEN GREEN FACTS:
- 36% of commuters and 55% of Copenhageners cycle to work or school/college
- 90% of building waste is reused
- 96% of residents live within 15 minutes’ walk of a recreational area
- Copenhagen intends to be carbon-neutral by 2025. In terms of Energy Performance, an estimated 75% of the CO2 reductions will come from initiatives in relation to the city’s energy system mainly involving an increase in the share of renewable energy in the City’s district heating.
- Copenhagen’s harbor is clean enough for swimming. Copenhagen’s harbor has been thoroughly cleaned and the inner harbor is clean enough for people to swim.
- Since 2010, the guidelines for green roofs prescribe, that new buildings with flat roofs (less than 30-degree slope) must have green roofs.