Copenhagen Information

Copenhagen (or København) is one of the most vibrant and affordable cities in Scandinavia and one of Europe's most friendly cities. It's a place where pedestrians rule the streets over the cars and evidence of this can be found all over from the many pavement cafés and many of the roads and thoroughfares have been given over to pedestrians and bicycles. It also offers a range of entertainment which belies its relatively modest size: at night there are plenty of cosy bars and an intimate club and live music network that could hardly be bettered. While in summer there's a varied range of entertainment as the cities population takes to the streets. This is not to mention a range of cultural attractions, including major national museums, a selection of magical art galleries a healthy assortment of performing arts events and one of europe's most interesting film scenes.

For all its twentieth-century success, however, the new millennium finds Copenhagen facing an important set of changes and challenges. On the one hand, the magnificent new Øresund Bridge, opened in 2000 to link the city with Malmö and southern Sweden, has given Copenhagen the infrastructure to become the western Baltic's leading urban centre, and there are many who would like to see the city develop into a suitably internationalist and forward-looking metropolis. On the other hand, there are some Copenhageners who regard the bridge, at best, as an irrelevance or, at worst, as a symbol of all those foreign influences that threaten to undermine traditional Danish values. Above all, these influences are typified by Copenhagen's burgeoning immigrant community, and simmering racial tensions – and the resulting rise of right-wing politicians – pose increasing challenges to the city's tolerant image. At the same time, Denmark's landmark decision in a referendum of October 2000 to opt out of the single European currency also suggests a national desire to remain isolated from the continental mainstream, with the possible result that Copenhagen will be relegated to a position of provincial irrelevance. For all that, it's worth remembering that the city's occasional smugness and resistance to change is the result of its citizens' pride in their capital and determination to protect its unique character, and as a visitor you'll be made to feel welcome wherever you go, especially since absolutely everybody speaks English.