Copenhagen/Northern suburbs



The Northern suburbs is a green suburban district north of Copenhagen. The ghetto of the wealthy, the Whiskey belt; the nicknames are many, and the Northern suburbs is indeed home to most of the city's well-off population, but to casual visitors the difference may be subtle, due to the high income equality of Denmark and heavy taxation of the highest earners (up to 66% as of 2019). The district does however have more than its fair share of royal mansions, meticulously kept parks and golf courses.

Understand
Originally heavily forested, a heritage still visible today with its many parks, lakes and forest, the area became a favourite excursion destination for city dwellers during the early days of Denmark's industrialisation, where trams and trains would be full of people going to the entertainment areas north of the city on Sundays and other holidays - most of the places have since closed down, but the small but charming Dyrehavsbakken amusement park, the oldest still functioning in the world, and the nearby horse racing tracks and surrounding forest continues to draw hordes of city folk on public holidays and weekends, as will a trip on the hundred year old tour Baadfarten ferries sailing on the lakes and canals near Lyngby, will give you a taste of days gone by - these canals and lakes are actually remains of an elaborate defence for the city, where the canals would draw water of the lakes to flood the low-lying areas to thwart would-be invaders.

The industrialisation had another lasting impact on the district, as the earliest factories in the country shot up around the Mølleå River using water power to power the mills producing paper, weapons and textiles. But since steam power was introduced only a short time after these factories were built, development turned to back the city, and the area has been superbly preserved and is still surrounded by green forests, and amazingly most of old mills and factories still stand as they did when they were closed down in 19th century.

In the 1970s the old villages were joined together by huge patches of suburbia, the old village houses turning into residences for the wealthiest, and the suburbia occupied by the upper middle class, and bar a couple of minor exceptions, the area have become notoriously well off. The most interesting areas are without doubt the old Lyngby and along the Øresund coast, whereas the rest is mainly residential with little interest to travellers.

Get in
The area north of Copenhagen is served by 4 S-train lines, the western area which offer little in the way of attractions are served by lines H/C (towards Frederiksund) and A (Farum). The area to the east where the attractions are centred are served by lines E/B (Holte & Lyngby) and line C (Klampenborg) which runs parallel the coast. For access to the Dyrehaven forest and the amusement park it is also possible, and faster, to take regional kystbanen line (the coastal railway), as it has fewer stops - but be careful as some trains skip Klampenborg station.

All the S-train lines runs every 10 minutes throughout the day and every 20 minutes in the evening. the kystbanen runs every 6–14 minutes for most of the day, in the weekends and after 20:00, the service is cut back to every 20 minutes. It takes approximately 15 minutes to get to Hellerup and 20 minutes to get to Klampenborg and Lyngby, the 3 main attraction areas.

By car
There are two highways leading north of city Helsingørmotorvejen (route 19) starts on Østerbro, and runs north roughly halfway between the E/B (Holte) and C (Klampenborg) S-Train lines, just west of the Dyrehaven park to Lyngby and onwards to Helsingør. Hillerødmotorvejen (route 16) starts on the outer part of Nørrebro and runs north approximately halfway between the A (Farum) and H/C (Ballerup) S-Train lines to Farum, and onwards to Hillerød. Motorring 3 is an orbital highway around Copenhagen, and connects to the two highways. Strandvejen runs all the way along the Øresund coast to Charlottenlund, Klampenborg and further north.

Get around


The center of Lyngby is walkable. For a physically fit visitor it is also possible to walk to Frilandsmuseet by following the main street. Alternatively to walk to Sophienholm or Dyrehavsbakken. Though these are several kilometers away, you may walk in the green surroundings of the Dyrehaven forest, but it would much for feasible as an enjoyable bike trip. Unlike the central part of the city, it makes sense to have your own wheels in the northern suburbs, as some of the attractions, restaurants and hotels are a bit out of the way of bus transportation, which while perfectly feasible, has relatively infrequent departures in the district.


 * Taxi. Taxis are usually lined up at the train stations of Klampenborg and Lyngby, until late in the evening.
 * Taxa 4x35, +45 35 35 35 35, is one of the local taxi companies in the area.

By train
The main mode of transport for locals is the S-trains, and while they are useful getting to and from the city center, they are not that useful to tourists as a way to get around, as they mainly cater to commuters going downtown.

Nærumbanen is a modern light rail line between Lyngby & Nærum, but it wasn't always so. It was built to serve the booming industries along the Mølleå river, at the turn of the 20th century. Besides being the best mode of transport to reach Frilandsmuseet's eastern entrance, Brede Works (at Brede station) and the other mills along the river, it is quite scenic as it runs along the river in a forested area. It is colloquially known as Grisen or "the pig" in English, from the loud squeaky horn the old trains used to use frequently when crossing paths and roads.

By bus
In the Copenhagen suburbs, public transportation is built around the railway network. Almost every bus line begins at a Station, and will usually also end at one. Owing to Copenhagen's finger-based structure, transportation is centred on lines going to and from the inner city, and jumping between the fingers can be an unusually cumbersome. Below is a section of the most useful buslines in the area.


 * 169 & 179 runs the same ring route, but in opposite directions. And will get you between Lyngby & Charlottenlund stations, but it is rather slow and it may be quicker to take the S-trains to Hellerup and change to the C line to go back north.
 * 191 Is the only option to get to the canoe rental places, and sights in Nybro and Frederiksdal. It runs twice an hour most of the day between Lyngby and Sorgenfri station.
 * 388 is the best option for transportation between the two main attraction areas of Lyngby and Klampenborg, it stops at both stations, and runs along the border of Dyrehaven, but remember to check the schedule as it is fairly infrequent with only 2 departures per hour.
 * 400S Is the best option between Lyngby, Farum and Ballerup. There is no direct connection to Farum, so you'll have to switch to the S-train in at Bagsværd station, and take the train onwards to Farum, or stay on the bus to go to Ballerup.

By boat
Baadfarten has been sailing passengers on the Mølleå canal, and on Furesø, Bagsværd and Lyngby lakes, in their famous and charming white boats, for more than 100 years. Besides being an excellent way to see the sights in Frederiksdal and Nybro, it is a popular excursion in itself. It is the oldest of the 6 ferries sailing; Princes Alexandrine and Prince Christian were built in between 1896-1896, and thus dating back to the beginning. It used to be driven by steam but has been modified several times and now uses a diesel engine.

The usual starting point is from the pier in Lyngby, not to far from the station and departs about every 40 minutes between 10:00-17:00 during summer (early June - mid August), from May to the end of September there is also services on weekends on the stretch between Frederiksdal and Sorgenfrivej. There are 3 regular routes.


 * Lyngby - Nybro - Bagsværd
 * Lyngby - Nybro - Frederiksdal
 * Frederiksdal - Furesøbad (Farum)

On Sundays there are also an additional service connecting Frederiksdal, Birkerød and Holte on the Furesø lake. Tickets are between 35-40 kr, and a full day ticket can be bought for 110 kr. The routes are plotted on the map.

See
The sights in this district is mainly suitable for warm summer days, and for visitors with a historical interest, but if those two prerequisites are met a visit here can be incredibly rewarding. Bring your bike on the train though, or bring your patience as the main attractions are located far apart, and public transportation links in the area leaves a bit to be desired. And in the not unlikely event of poor weather, there is still a world-class art museum to browse through without getting wet.









See also Lyngby Tourist Information, Lyngby Torv 5, 45 88 66 16.

Do




Mølleå River
The small river Mølleåen (literally Mill river) runs through the center of Lyngby near the church. It is possible to follow the river on foot or bike from Lyngby all the way to the sea (Øresund) through park and forest. But an even better option is to rent a Canoe or Kayak from one of places below and sail down the estuary from Frederiksdal or Nybro near Lyngby to the sea in Øresund.



Beaches
While the fancy new beaches in the inner harbour of downtown Copenhagen, are definitely more unique and conveniently located - The beaches along the Øresund coast dotted north along the Strandvejen road, following the coast, are where Copenhagerners used to make their escape from hot summer days in the city. And still on warm summer days you see hordes of cyclists making their way north, with towels sticking out their bags, as the inner city "beaches" doesn't quite offer the great green surroundings the northern beaches does.



Events & festivals

 * Midsummer night by Lyngby lake Midsummer night, is known in Denmark as Sankt Hans aften (St. John's Eve) and takes place on June 23 every year. It is celebrated with large bonfires to ward away evil spirits, which has been tradition since the Viking age. A more modern addition is to put a straw witch on the bonfire, and send her back to Bloksbjerg (a mountain in Germany). The bonfire at Folkets Park (by Viggo Stuckenbergs Vej) facing Lyngby Lake, is one of the most popular in the area, with many spectators, speeches and musical performances.
 * Midsummer night by Lyngby lake Midsummer night, is known in Denmark as Sankt Hans aften (St. John's Eve) and takes place on June 23 every year. It is celebrated with large bonfires to ward away evil spirits, which has been tradition since the Viking age. A more modern addition is to put a straw witch on the bonfire, and send her back to Bloksbjerg (a mountain in Germany). The bonfire at Folkets Park (by Viggo Stuckenbergs Vej) facing Lyngby Lake, is one of the most popular in the area, with many spectators, speeches and musical performances.
 * Midsummer night by Lyngby lake Midsummer night, is known in Denmark as Sankt Hans aften (St. John's Eve) and takes place on June 23 every year. It is celebrated with large bonfires to ward away evil spirits, which has been tradition since the Viking age. A more modern addition is to put a straw witch on the bonfire, and send her back to Bloksbjerg (a mountain in Germany). The bonfire at Folkets Park (by Viggo Stuckenbergs Vej) facing Lyngby Lake, is one of the most popular in the area, with many spectators, speeches and musical performances.



Sports

 * Lots of golf courses locally:
 * Watch football ie soccer at
 * The other football team here is
 * Watch football ie soccer at
 * The other football team here is
 * The other football team here is

Shops




Eat
Northern Copenhagen offers some stellar options for dining. While the listings below can be a bit cumbersome to get to, they have been selected because they offer a unique atmosphere special to the district, many back from the day when the area was covered by forest and dotted by small villages. Check their websites and you will discover that most of these restaurants are old inns, housed in white chalked buildings, thatched roofs, and green surroundings. It is certainly not cheap - even though basic dishes on many of the listings below often hovers around 150 kr, expect the final bill to be much higher. Even then, the quality food, and unique environments, should make the extra cost and transportation time worthwhile.

Ice cream
The suburbs north of Copenhagen have many great ice cream stores. The most well-known is probably Lydolph's Isbar on Strandvejen (Beach Road) which has big ice creams and long queues in the summertime. There are also many Paradis outlets in this district.


 * This is probably the most well-known ice cream store in this district. It is located near Øresund and often attract long queues in the summertime. They are known for their large ice creams including the Lydolpher which is the largest of them. On the first day in the season they give away free soft ice.


 * Paradis is a chain of ice cream stores in Denmark. Unlike the most ice cream stores the ice cream is made naturally and sometimes has some special flavours. The ice cream can be bought in either a cone or a tub, but also in large boxes. The store also offers milkshakes made of ice cream.

Drink
If you headed north of downtown to drink in this district, you would be heading in the opposite direction of everyone else who crowd the late trains, to head for the nightlife in the center - or to put it a bit more bluntly, do not! If you are based in the Northern suburbs there are night buses once an hour on weekends to take bring you home safely from the watering holes of the inner districts. However, usually, in weekends and on Thursdays, many events and parties are held various places on the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) campus.

Another option in the summer is to head in the direction of Dyrehavsbakken (see listing in the do section), or stay there for eating if you're in the area. There are quite a lot of options; Ølgod is a Tyrolean style bierhalle, a bit tacky, but a potential for a lot of fun if you do not take yourself to seriously. Bakkens Hvile is a veritable institution in Danish culture, where the Bakken girls have been entertaining the crowd with singing, flirting and dancing in Danish cabaret style for as long as anyone can remember. Any of the other options are easy to find on weekends, when the crowd can get a bit rowdy, but usually in an innocent and hugely entertaining way.