Copenhagen Hop-On Hop-Off Bus and Boat Combo Ticket 48 Hours

The Little Mermaid, Langelinie and Kastellet

The Little Mermaid statue sits on a rock at the water's edge of the Langelinie promenade, where she has looked out over the harbour since 1913, and she is the first thing most visitors want to see in Copenhagen. The bus stops right beside the promenade, and the walk back toward the centre passes the Gefion Fountain, a dramatic group of a goddess driving four oxen, and the star-shaped ramparts of Kastellet, a 17th-century citadel still used by the army, with a windmill, red barracks and a church inside its moat.

With the hop-on hop-off ticket you can get off here, stroll along the water, climb the grassy ramparts of Kastellet and catch a later bus. On canal-cruise days the boats pass the statue from the water as well, which is the best way to photograph her without the crowd on the rocks.

Amalienborg and the Marble Church

Amalienborg is the winter residence of the Danish royal family: four identical Rococo palaces around an octagonal square built in the 1750s, with the equestrian statue of the founding king in the centre and the royal guard pacing between the sentry boxes. The changing of the guard takes place every day at noon, when the new guard marches from the Rosenborg barracks through the city streets to the square. Facing the square across a short avenue stands the Marble Church, Frederik's Church, with the largest dome in Scandinavia, begun in 1749 and completed only in 1894.

The bus stop for both is on the route from Nyhavn to the Little Mermaid, so this is one of the easiest hop-offs of the day. Time your arrival for just before twelve, watch the guard, step inside the church under the dome, and continue to the harbour.

Kongens Nytorv and Nyhavn

Kongens Nytorv, the King's New Square, is the largest square in the old city, laid out in the 1670s and surrounded by the Royal Theatre, the Charlottenborg palace and the department stores. It is the hub of the bus routes and the metro, and a short walk from here leads into Nyhavn, the canal dug in the same decade to bring ships into the heart of town. Nyhavn's tall painted houses, old wooden sailing ships and cafés along the quay make it the most photographed spot in Copenhagen, and it is also one of the two departure points for the canal cruise included in your ticket.

Redeem your cruise at the ticket office, reserve a departure time, and use the hour on the water to see Christiansborg, the Opera House and the harbour from a new angle. The bus stop at Nyhavn makes this the natural centre of your two days.

Christiansborg, the Black Diamond and Christianshavn

The classic route crosses Slotsholmen, the island where Copenhagen was founded, past Christiansborg Palace, seat of the parliament with the tallest tower in the city, which you can climb free of charge, and the Black Diamond, the glass-and-granite extension of the Royal Library on the waterfront. Over the bridge lies Christianshavn, the canal district laid out in 1618 with Dutch-style waterways, houseboats and the spiral tower of the Church of Our Saviour, whose external staircase can be climbed for a panorama of the harbour.

The bus also stops at Christiania, the self-declared free town founded in 1971 on a former military base, now known for its hand-built houses, murals, gardens and craft workshops. A walk through its lanes takes about an hour; photography rules apply in some streets, and the guide commentary explains them before you get off.

Tivoli Gardens and the town hall square

Tivoli Gardens, opened in 1843, is one of the oldest amusement parks in the world and still the heart of Copenhagen in summer and at Christmas, with historic rides, lantern-lit gardens, concert halls and lakes just across from the central station. The bus stop lies between Tivoli and Rådhuspladsen, the town hall square, where the red-brick city hall with its 105-metre tower faces the start of Strøget, the long pedestrian shopping street that runs all the way to Kongens Nytorv.

Tivoli entry is not included in the ticket, but the stop makes it easy to end a day of sightseeing there in the evening. From the same stop the Glyptotek, the art museum with its palm-filled winter garden, and the National Museum are each a few minutes on foot.

Frederiksberg, the zoo and the western districts

The third route leaves the old city for Vesterbro and Frederiksberg, the leafy independent municipality inside Copenhagen. It passes the Meatpacking District, the former slaughterhouse quarter now full of restaurants, galleries and design studios, and continues to the zoo, one of the oldest in Europe, and to Frederiksberg Gardens, a romantic landscape park with canals, lakes and Frederiksberg Palace on its hill. The elephant house of the zoo can even be seen from the park.

This route is the one families most often choose for the second day, combining the zoo with a picnic in the gardens, and it shows a side of Copenhagen that most short visits miss. Check the route map in the bus for the last departures back to the centre.