Mad princes, ancient flags and Michelin stars: 16 fascinating facts about Denmark

Kronborg is the home of Hamlet
Kronborg is the home of Hamlet Credit: © 2015 Peter Zelei/Peter Zelei Images

It is a fragment of of our world that is both familiar and a little mysterious - a segment of Scandinavia that lacks the wildness of its Nordic colleagues, and yet also doesn't; a happy country which has become indelibly associated with the hygge concept of cosy contentment, yet has also produced some of the darkest drama to come out of any TV set in its embrace of scandi noir.

It played a violent role in British history via the incursions and conquerings of the Vikings, yet is an in-demand destination for UK travellers thanks to its famously fine food, easy-going ambience and gorgerous coastline. Denmark (visitdenmark.co.uk), you are a bit of a conundrum, and we salute you for it.

Why now for such a salute? Well, this week - today and tomorrow (October 25-26), in fact - Prince Harry is in town.

The capital, to be exact. Not because he fancies a tour of a few locations which popped in The Killing, but for a proper royal visit.

"The two-day programme will focus on the young people of Copenhagen. His Royal Highness is looking forward to spending time with entrepreneurs, young community leaders, and meeting individuals who are using sports for social development," said a statement from Kensington Palace last month. A good enough reason to run through a few facts about our Danish cousins? Why yes...

Prince Harry is in Copenhagen
Prince Harry is in Copenhagen Credit: REUTERS/POOL

1. It is one of Europe's smaller countries

Denmark is not a huge place. It sits there on top of Germany, and just to the west of Sweden, as an enclave of just 17,179 square miles. That makes it only the 30th largest country in Europe - a little smaller than Slovakia and Estonia, just a little bigger than Switzerland and the Netherlands. You can drive from Padborg on the southern border to Skagen in the far north - a distance of 245 miles - in a mere four hours. Those 17,179 square miles also include the Faroe Islands archipelago. More on this below (see 13).

2. But also the second biggest

Of course, if you add Greenland into the equation, Denmark is very big indeed. The great frozen landmass which straddles the divide between Europe and North America is an "autonomous constituent country" within the Kingdom of Denmark. It is also the world's largest island (if we agree that Australia is basically a continent) - and the 836,330 square miles it stirs into the Danish pot make Denmark, by this measurement, Europe's second largest country, behind only Russia.

Greenland is, of course, a pretty intrepid place for travel, but far from inaccessible. Explore (01252 883 619; explore.co.uk), for example, sells "Spitsbergen, Greenland and Iceland" - a 15-day cruise on polar vessel Expedition which charts the east coast of this final European frontier. The next sailing is scheduled for September 2, 2018 - from £3,849 per person.

3. It has the world's oldest flag

The Dannebrog was adopted in 1370 - possibly even earlier. 

4. You get two seas for the price of one

Skagen, Denmark's northernmost town, is a popular place - a former fishing village which has long attracted painters thanks to its wide horizons and the rare quality of its light. It is not, though, the absolute tip of the Jutland peninsula, which shapes the upper reaches of the country. That position is taken by the village of Grenen. Stand here on a breezy afternoon (they all tend to be breezy) and you can watch two seas lock horns - the Skagerrak, which separates Denmark from Norway, and the Kattegat (which keeps apart Denmark and the west coast of Sweden). Bring your camera, hold onto your hat.

5. Britain went to war in Danish waters

The seas off Jutland have also witnessed dark times. It was in water some 60 miles west of the peninsula that, on May 31 and June 1 1916, the British and German navies fought the Battle of Jutland - the one true naval showdown of the First World War. The result was inconclusive, but the loss of life was sizeable. A century on, the Sea War Museum Jutland - located in Thyboron, the nearest town to the battle zone - examines the cut and thrust of the action. Outside, an elegant memorial - 25 curved blocks of stone, one for each ship sunk in the firestorm - occupies coastal sands and patches of seagrass. It is a lovely location for the loss of 8,645 young men to be remembered. More on this here. 

Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland was a key moment in the First World War

6. You can go skiing in the capital (soon)

Copenhagen is rarely undersold as an option for a weekend away. It has museums, restaurants and a colourful prettiness which almost defies its status as Denmark's key city (see the Nyhavn area, which looks like a small fishing dock far removed from an important European capital).

But one thing that this decidedly flat sea-level sentinel is missing is a ski slope. Although this minor oversight will be rectified in the next 10 months. Scheduled to open next summer, Copenhill (more details here via visitcopenhagen.com, and here via the Telegraph) is a power plant which will use urban waste to create electricity. In a classic example of clever Scandinavian thinking, its slanted roof will also have an artificial ski slope where Danes and visitors alike can speed downwards in some sort of carbon-neutral paradise. Clever people, the Danes.

7. Michelin stars are on the move

Copenhagen's culinary credentials need little explanation. Since 2003, the city has been home to Noma (noma.dk), a palace of cuisine which boasts two Michelin stars under the gaze of chef Rene Redzepi - and has been named "Best Restaurant in the World" four times (in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014).

So far so obvious - and yes, you need to make a reservation. What has been less publicised is that the restaurant is changing its address, moving away from its established location in central Christianshavn. It will reappear next year on the edge of the city's fabled/notorious (delete as appropriate) hippy commune Christiania, taking over a formely derelict graffiti-daubed space, and turning it into an urban farm and eatery. Will there be a greenhouse on the roof, where some of the vegetables used in the restaurant's dishes will be grown? But of course there will.

8. It was the world's happiest country

The World Happiness Report listed Denmark as the most contented country back in 2016. Perhaps it's the Michelin stars and salty air. But alas, its neighbour Norway stole the crown this year, with the Danes slipping to second. 

9. There are rollercoasters and demons

Copenhagen supplies kitsch and thrill-factor in equal measure via the Tivoli Gardens (tivoli.dk) - the much-loved theme park which sits almost at the heart of the matter. As it has done since 1843.

A simple case of mathematical substraction should reveal that 2018, therefore, is this giddy wonderland's 175th birthday. The anniversary year will be marked with the opening of the Tivoli Corner - a new attraction providing extra food and accommodation options. But the main point, perhaps, is that the park's many rollercoasters will still be at play - including the Daemonen ("The Demon"), a floorless coaster which zips through three loops at 48mph. Scream if you want to go faster, etc.

Tivoli Gardens
Tivoli Gardens Credit: This content is subject to copyright./Kaleidoskop/Picture Press

10. There is lots to like about lego (part one)

Theme parks are something of a Danish, erm, theme. The country is also home to the first Legoland (legoland.dk). It lies in Billund, a small town which lurks roughly midway up the Jutland peninsula (helpfully, you can fly there directly from the UK, via British Airways (ba.com) from Heathrow, Manchester and London City, and Ryanair (ryanair.com) from Stansted). The park has a variety of mini zones constructed from the ubiquitous plastic bricks - such as Pirate Land, Lego City and Knight's Kingdom - and pulls in some two million visitors a year (many of them children operating at unsustainable levels of excitement). In another case of round numbers and tickertape anniversaries, it turns 50 in 2018 (having opened in 1968). Expect razzmatazz aplenty.

11. There is lots to like about lego (part two)

Billund takes lego seriously. Very seriously - it is also home to the original Lego factory. As of September, this feast of hard-cornered items easily lost down the back of sofas has been complemented by the Lego House (legohouse.com). A celebration of this most Scandinavian of toys, it is designed to appeal to adults as well as their offspring - via art installations and cafes. Visitors can order their lunch by building it out of lego bricks (lego pieces of various colours and shapes equate to different dishes) and scanning it via a table-top device. Happily, the food which then arrives is very much edible, and not plastic. A remarkable brainwave or some sort of marketing overkill in a juvenile dystopia? Ask your five-year old for an answer to that.

The Lego House
The Lego House

12. Aarhus is a second capital - for two more months

Denmark's second city is one of the two European Capitals of Culture for 2017 (aarhus2017.dk), and has two further months in the spotlight before it is booted off the pantheon by Valletta (in Malta) and Leeuwarden (in the Netherlands). But even once the parade is over, Aarhus will remain an intriguing enclave. Its art museum ARoS (aros.dk) is superb, its rotating exhibitions and contemporary works crowned by "Your Rainbow Panorama" - a circular rooftop walkway in an array of colours, designed by the Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson. Broad views come as standard.

ARoS is a superb museum
ARoS is a superb museum Credit: Arcaid Images/David Borland

13. Aalborg has shared something with Sydney

Pitched towards the top of Jutland, Denmark's fourth biggest city does not - at first glance - seem to have much in common with Australia's largest metropolis. But look closely, and there is a link. Jørn Utzon, the Danish architect who designed Sydney Opera House, grew up in Aalborg - and is said to found inspiration for the unmistakable rearing-wave design of the Southern Hemisphere's most famous structure in the choppy waters of the Limfjord (on which this Danish city stands). You can gauge the comparison for yourself by visiting the Utzon Center (utzoncenter.dk) - which pays tribute to the great man's life and work.

14. Hamlet lives in Helsingør

The troubled prince who ruminates at the core of Shakespeare's greatest play (do stop whining Romeo, don't glare at us like that Juliet) may be fictional (though based on the tragic Amleth, a figure from medieval Scandinavan legend), but the setting for it is real. The key setting for the Bard's tale of murdered fathers, treacherous uncles and drowned girlfriends is Kronborg (kongeligeslotte.dk), the magnificent 15th century fortress which overlooks the Ă˜resund strait (and thus glowers at neighbour and onetime enemy Sweden, immediately and visibly to the east) at the top of Zealand island. The castle is so closely tied to the Hamlet story that it restages its twisting narrative every summer - via the banquet of soliloquies and alas-poor-Yoricks that is the Hamletscenen festival (hamletscenen.dk - August 1-24 2018). Stars to have donned tights in anger in this setting include John Gielgud, Jude Law and David Tennant.

David Tennant has played Hamlet at Kronborg
David Tennant has played Hamlet at Kronborg Credit: AP/Ellie Kurttz

15. The Faroes are a far-out fascination

Set roughly midway between Norway and Iceland - and marooned about 200 miles north of Scotland - the Faroe Islands (visitfaroeislands.com) are nonetheless distinctly Danish. There are 18 parts to this wind-lashed archipelago, laid out across 541 square miles of the North Sea, including Streymoy, the largest of the group - where you find the "capital" TĂ³rshavn.

This is a context for lengthy hikes with your waterproof jacket zipped up to your chin, with seabirds wheeling overhead - but although the Faroes are something of a European outpost, they are also wholly reachable for those who fancy a week in the semi-unknown. Regent Holidays (020 3131 7005; regent-holidays.co.uk) sells an eight-day "Birdwatching in the Faroe Islands" package which focuses on puffins, plovers, sparrows, ravens, crows and myriad other winged creatures. From £1,435 per person - including flights, rental car and accommodation with breakfast.

The Faroe Islands are a dramatic outpost
The Faroe Islands are a dramatic outpost Credit: Andrea Comi/Andrea Comi

16. The Little Mermaid is rather overrated

A Copenhagen symbol she may be - a tangible manifestation of one of Hans Christian Andersen's most endearing tales. But the statue of The Little Mermaid - generally seen as one of the essential sights of the capital - does not quite live up to reputation in reality. Perched on a rock by the Langelinie promenade, she is both smaller than some expect, and a longer walk from the centre (about two miles) than many anticipate. Prepare for a long queue of surprisingly weary people taking selfies, and a mild sense of anticlimax.

License this content