Kronborg Castle in Elsinore, north of Copenhagen, is one of northern Europe's finest Renaissance castles. It is located at the entrance to Øresund and was built in 1574-1585.
Kronborg Castle is probably the most famous Danish castle, known worldwide from Shakespeare's Hamlet.
Hamlet's spirit is still roaming the hallways of Kronborg, and every summer you can experience Hamlet Scene perform Hamlet on an open-air stage in the courtyard.
Frederik 2's Kronborg is at once an elegant castle and a monumental military fortress surrounded by considerable fortifications with bastions and ravelins. It has not been inhabited by the royal family since the late 1600's.
The castle houses collections of Renaissance and Baroque interiors, and among the main attractions is the 62-meter ballroom, the very well-preserved chapel and the mythological statue of Holger Danske below the castle.
Queen Caroline Mathilde under house arrest
In 1772 Kronborg Castle played a minor role in the fatal drama between the insane King Christian 7, his wife Queen Caroline Mathilde and her secret lover Johan Friedrich Struensee.
After the arrest of Struensee in Copenhagen 17 January 1772, Caroline Mathilde was taken to Kronborg Castle, where she was under house arrest for a period of time. Her fate was long uncertain.
She was accused of infidelity, and although her defender Peter Uldall did what he could, she was convicted, divorced from the king and banished to the town of Celle in northern Germany. She never saw her children again and died a few years later of an epidemic.
A trip to Kronborg is the perfect start to a day in Elsinore. With Copenhagen Card you can also visit the Maritime Museum, the Øresound Aquarium and much much.
From 1785-1923 Kronborg Castle was inhabited by the Danish military. The castle was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2000.
Closed Dec 24, 25 and 31
Munkeruphus
Munkeruphus is a former country house in a landscape ground, close to the Øresund coast, between Dronningmølle and Gilleleje. A rare example of American Art and Crafts influence in Danish architecture, the building now serves as an exhibition space, a café and a small gift- and bookshop run by the Munkeruphus Trust.
In 1958 it was acquired by artist and designer Gunnar Aagaard Andersen and his wife. Aagaard had previously lived in France from 1946 to 1951 where he had co-founded Groupe Espace, a collaborative between artists and architects who worked with spatial art, and he made it the centre of an active artistic environment with many visiting colleagues visiting from abroad.
In 1986 the house was purchased by the Capital Region Authority and subsequently listed by the Danish Heritage Agency. For a few years it was left empty but in the autumn of 1988 it was ceded to a foundation with the aim of transforming it into an exhibition space for changing exhibitions. It was renovated with support from private benefactors and opened the doors to its first exhibition in 1989.
The garden at Munkeruphus is 5 acres with winding paths, great old trees, open lawns and beautiful views through a gully and down slopes to the beach. The view from the beach reveals the hills of Kullen in Sweden, the lighthouse at Nakkehoved, and Hornbæk.
Munkeruphus itself is an architectural gem. Built in colonial style with wooden cladding and a high shingled roof. The proportions and colours are combined with consideration for both detail and the building as a whole.
There is also a small shop, a charming café with views of the sea, and a large garden with sculptures and outside dining. Events, guided tours, and workshops are held during the summer months.
Come and discover a unique gallery with a fascinating history and a stunning location!
Find Munkeruphus on Instagram and Facebook.
Related Attractions
M/S Maritime Museum in Elsinore is one of the most talked about museums in recent years. It has been named ‘A cutting-edge cultural venue’ by New York Times and ‘One of the eight greatest new museums’ by BBC. A sensory experience awaits with stunning architecture and modern, interactive exhibitions.
From a distance it is almost invisible, but below sealevel - in the middle of the newly renovated Culture Harbour and next door to Kronborg Castle - lies the Danish Maritime Museum, M/S Maritime Museum of Denmark. If you follow the sloping bridges into the old dry dock, you will experience one of the most spectacular new buildings in Denmark of the recent years.M/S Maritime Museum of Denmark tells the story of Denmark as one of the world's leading maritime nations in an evocative and dramatic way. The setting is innovative and created by the award-winning design studio BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group.
Eight different themes
You can experience the story of Denmark as one of the world's leading maritime nations through eight different themes. You can look forward to the museum's rich maritime collection on display in an evocative and dramatic staging with major film projections and soundscapes.
At the museum, you can get lost in films, objects and texts for hours – or you can walk through the exhibitions in 20 minutes and still get a glimpse of shipping's past and present, its structures and elements. Many people see maritime history as a niche, but we try to open up history and tell stories of love, death, courage, science and drama
Experience seafaring up close in the 400 m2 maritime play universe ‘THE DREAM SHIP’ which encourage play, adventure and stories amongst children, parents and grandparents. ‘THE DREAM SHIP’ is supported by the Nordea Foundation and the Lauritzen Foundation. You can, among other things, come face to face with a torpedo, get an old sailor tattoo and see the world's largest model of a container ship.
Furthermore, the M/S Café offers lunch, hot and cold beverages and a selection of cakes. The museum shop M/S Cargo sells a wide variety of books, clothes, applied arts and toys related to the maritime world.
Special Exhibition: Pristine Seas
Opens on the 29th of february, 2024
The goal of National Geographic’s Pristine Seas project is to help protect the ocean’s vital and wildest places.
Pristine Seas is working with Indigenous peoples and local communities, governments, nonprofit partners, and businesses to help establish 40 new marine reserves and protect at least 30 percent of the ocean by 2030.
The home of Karen Blixen - located directly by the Øresund Sound in Rungstedlund, an enchanting park and bird sanctuary north of Copenhagen.
An author’s childhood home
Karen Blixen was born in 1885 and died in 1962, but her memory lives on in her works and also this unique museum, opened in 1991 to honour her life and memory. You’ll find it on the site of her home growing up in Denmark, still virtually almost intact with the furniture from her childhood, as well as objects brought back from Kenya.
Experience the atmosphere of the rooms in which her well-known and beloved tales came into existence. You can also enjoy the many beautiful fresh flowers throughout the house, just as they were when Karen lived there.
Birdsong and wild flowers
The stunning garden grounds, with its 15-hectare bird reserve, attracts researchers and nature lovers from home and abroad. It is free to access and was established in 1958 by the author herself.
Here, too, walked the poet Johannes Ewald who has a hill named after him, and the park’s benches are named after others who once strolled its grounds for inspiration. You can even meet Karen Blixen herself. At the foot of Ewald’s Hill, you will find her grave beneath a large beech tree. The park is always open to visitors, who are invited to take a little walk and enjoy its beautiful natural setting. Nesting boxes are set up in the grove, and the space has become a breeding ground for many birds.
Cultural hub
The Karen Blixen Museum has a rich program of events and is a meeting place for those interested in culture and literature. All year round, writers, artists, researchers and politicians are invited to talk about some of the current topics in Danish culture, which has always been a thread to Karen Blixen's timeless writing.
When you’re there, you should also visit Madam Carlsen Café and Bistro, serving French-inspired dishes as well as a selection of wine, coffee, tea and cake. All meals are carefully prepared with fresh local produce from the estate.
Special exhibitions (blixen.dk):
Portraits of Seduction, 6.10.23-28.4.24
Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II’s artistry has brought Karen Blixen’s tale “Ehrengard” to life as scenography for a new film adaptation. The Queen’s costume sketches, selected costumes and forty-one decoupages are now on exhibition, accompanied by excerpts from “Ehrengard”, published in 1963 shortly after Karen Blixen’s death.
Step into the Danish Golden Age Bakkehuset was an essential meeting place in the Danish Golden Age, hosted by Kamma and Knud Lyne Rahbek and frequently visited by Hans Christian Andersen, Oehlenschläger, H.C. Ørsted and other poets, scientists and opinion formers of the romantic period.
Today, Bakkehuset is buzzing with art and culture. The historic house and its surrounding gardens provide an authentic insight into the way of life in the early 19th century, its atmosphere and style. A visit to Bakkehuset is a visceral experience of one of the most central periods in Danish cultural history; the period that would become known as the Golden Age.
Hans Christian Andersen visited Bakkehuset as a young man and here he found inspiration and support to become a writer. His famous tales work as inspiration for creative activities in the cozy family area, Eventyrakademiet (the Fairytale Academy)
Experience the newly renovated romantic garden around Bakkehuset. You can enjoy coffee and historical food in the orangery, beautifully situated in the middle of the blossoming garden.
The café is set in the historical garden and serves traditional open sandwiches.
Openings hours vary please check the website before going.
The museum Skibsklarerergaarden describes the first grand time of prosperity, Sundtoldtiden/The time of the Sound Toll. The house is the best-preserved merchant’s house and shipbroker house. It dates back to the 16th century, but the condition it is in now, dates back to 1780 and the following decades, and has remained unchanged.
The ground floor with shop and shipper’s room, as well as the noble Skibsklarerergaarden on the top floor has had a thorough restoration. A visit to the house is like stepping back 150 years in time. On ground floor, there is a shop and ship’s chandlery, established in 1809, and pretty much unchanged since 1820´ties. Next to the shop is the shippers’ living room where seamen could enjoy a light meal and a dram. In the “contoire” is the big writing desk for four, and you will here see a clearer office from the mid 1800’ties.
On the 1st floor is the shipbrokers private apartment, reestablished, and showing a wealthy home in Elsinore between 1790 and 1850. On the top floor, you will see a room from the period of the shipper’s lodging house. The seamen could stay the night if needed due to business or weather change.
Statues in heathery hills and concrete architecture
Men and women in bronze are looking over the heathery hills in the park. And in the impressive octagonal room in the museum, where the ceiling is 11 metres above you, you find more men and women, now in white plaster. It is a very special experience walking around in Rudolph Tegner’s Museum and the Statue Park – a calm yet intense experience where beautiful nature and bombastic concrete architecture are combined.
Find the easiest way to the Rudolph Tegners Museum
Use the route-planner in the Copenhagen Card app the find the easiest reoute.
A walk in Russia
The natural resort where you find Rudolph Tegner’s statues is called Russia. The rather special name relates to the remoteness of the place. However, from Russia and Rudolph Tegner’s Museum to the nearest town, i.e. Dronningmølle in North Sealand, is only 2 kilometres.
In the park, you find 14 Rudolph Tegner statues while walking around the heathery hills outside the museum. See the art in Rudolph Tegner’s Statue Park.
Almost like a church
The museum room was designed by Rudolph Tegner himself with the purpose of housing all his artworks. It was built in 1937-38, and when walking through the large port, you almost feel like being in a church room. The solid walls, the high ceiling and the absence of large windows make all sounds resonate between the statues.
The permanent collection counts 355 of Rudolph Tegner’s artworks. Most of them are originals in plaster; others are in bronze and marble.
Climbing trees and activities for children
Children are welcome at the museum. In Statue Park, there are climbing trees. You can also go treasure hunting or orienteering during your visit – both require that you have information about the artworks. If you want to be creative, you can visit the drawing workshop to try to draw various artworks. Activities for children all over North Sealand.
Søren’s Café
When you have walked the hills and experienced the octagonal museum room, you can visit the café where you can get lunch or a cup of coffee. The café at Rudolph Tegner’s Museum is open in the summer half. They serve coffee, tea, cake, sandwiches, ice cream, etc. Here you find the opening hours of Café Søren at Rudolph Tegner’s Museum.
One of Denmark’s great sculptors
Rudolph Tegner was educated at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in 1893. His art was very controversial at that time. His work is intense, dramatic and huge and comes under the art form called vitalism. And they formed a great contrast to other Danish sculptors such as Bertel Thorvaldsen.
For a great part of his artistic life, Rudolph Tegner lived in France and 1916; he bought the area outside Dronningmølle, where he constructed his museum. Here, he is buried together with his wife, Elna.
Combine your trip to Tegner's museum with a nice day-trip to the beach town Hornbæk