Nyhavn Copenhagen
Hi from Copenhagen – my favourite city! I am visiting and loving every minute!
One of the first things you will notice when you come to Copenhagen is that there are bikes everywhere – people on bikes everywhere. Everyone
bikes!
Bikes everywhere
You see men in business suits, polished shoes, briefcase and all, snipping through the streets. You see women in high heels, skirts and shades, moms and dads on cargo bikes with little ones comfortably placed in the front. No matter the weather – come rain or shine – even in the coldest winter, people bike. All ages, dressed up, dressed down, all going somewhere, pedalling through the streets.
Happy cyclist
It all adds to the charm and vibrance of Copenhagen.
Yesterday I saw a very handsome gentleman biking trough the streets of Copenhagen. No hands on the handlebars and casually texting away on his cell as he rode.
Unfortunately I wasn’t fast enough on the camera to catch him.
This bike outside the Supreme Court – perhaps parked there by a lawyer or judge…..
An old guy
We Danes are crazy about biking – we don’t bike to stay fit, primarily. We bike because it is much more convenient, much easier to get from point A to B, and easier to park. Perhaps a basic reason is that parking a car in Copenhagen is a nightmare – it’s almost impossible to find parking and it’s terribly expensive.
April last year opened a super highway for cyclists –
To encourage long distance commuters to take the bike and thereby
- Reduce CO2 emission
- Promote Health
- And Happiness
The highway is 11 miles long and runs from the suburb into the centre of CPH. If you drive 12 miles pr hr during rush hour, you are guaranteed a green light.
The plan is to make 26 super bike highways like this – a total of 186 miles. Super effective bike highways – a haven for cyclistst!
Read and see more about the SUPER HIGHWAY for bikes in a great article from New York Times.
Bike lanes of course
Denmark aim at being carbon nutral by 2025 .
Many Danes simply give up their cars because biking is SO much easier, faster and safer – in the city!
On the bike lane there are airpumps every mile, footrests for bikers, handlebars to hold onto at traffic lights, even tilted wastepaper baskets to make it easier for cyclists to throw away garbage…… Ren Kœrlighed til København – Clean Love to Copenhagen.
1/3 of all trips in Copenhagen are made by bike.
Its faster and more convenient – on top of that, it makes you healthier and ……. happier – maybe this is one of the reasons why the Danes are considered the happiest people in the world?
Nyhavn
Copenhagenize – is a concept and a very cool organization that promotes safer, faster and better biking infrastructures in the cities. They travel the world to spread the message ” Copenhagenize is possible everywhere”
This month is National Bike Month check it out here
Anne Sture Tucker 
I agree with you! Where I live in Mechelen, Belgium, we tend to take the bike to everywhere! I like that concept a lot & I love to go one day to Denmark & especially Copenhagen! Great pics too! Enjoy your stay, my dear friend! xxx
Everywhere, my husband Peter & I go on holiday, we bike for 2 days! We love it & take a picnick with us too!
Hi Sophie friend – I hope you will go to Copenhagen one day – it’s such a great city!
Wow fabulous that you and Peter go biking on your trips and combine it with picnicks too – love that idea 🙂
I visited Copenhagen many years ago. I remember people were so fit and happy. Bike is good for our health and the environment.
Hi Amy, thank you! I really love the biking culture in Denmark and wish it was the same here. I think we will see more and more of it everywhere – it’s spreading.
You are right, biking is so good for both our health and the environment!
Thanks for the insight on this interesting city. I think it’s wonderful. America, or at least our city, has much more biking and hiking than ever before but because of gas prices and/or people who have DUI’s. Our city also has bike routes all over but not to the degree your pictures depict. I know that I walk many places rather than drive, so maybe it’s more of a mixture because of health, gas prices, etc.
Yes I think you are right – it will spread more and more – and I Love that idea 🙂
Lovely post!!!! I love the European bike culture. Even in Paris people were all biking! Now to share your post! Have a great time!
Ahh thank you friend!! Love Paris too – I was there two years ago. One of my favorite cities! I think the European bike culture will spread and we will see more and more bike friendly cities!
It is funny as Minnesota, as northern and cold as we are, has a huge bike culture and rivals Portland, Oregon in being voted biking city of the US. People love to bike here but since the city isn’t as compact as European ones, you don’t notice it as much. We have lots and lots of bike trails!
Wow! What gorgeous photos Anne!! I love that bike! What an amazing time 🙂
Thank you Brandi – I had such a great time! Now I am back and trying to recover from jet-lag 🙂
Great pictures and a wonderful blog on your homeland!
Thank you Henry! It was so great to be back 🙂
What a treat your photos are, Anne!
Thank you friend! Easy to take great photos in Copenhagen 🙂
XXX
I wish biking were more standard here. People bike for sport, but hardly for transportation.
Yes in Copenhagen people bike because it’s so much easier than being stuck in traffic and not being able to find parking – when you finally find parking it’s crazy expensive. So taking the bike in Copenhagen is a no-brainer.
I think it will spread – you see many places in North America going in that direction. Vancouver is turning into a bike friendly city and it’s wonderful!
XXX
I love that city too. Been there way back in 2001 and was totally charmed by the city’s vibrant atmosphere. The whole of Denmark is lovely and certainly a must-see place. 😉
Thank you Malou! So happy you enjoyed DK and had a chance to travel around – it really is a special place 🙂 Did you go in the summer?
XXX
We went camping in Denmark around end-June and it was just a wonderful period. We went to see Odense, Hillerod and Copenhagen. I love that palace in Hillerod (Frederiksborgslot) so I watched the movie “The Prince and Me 1” so many times because of that. 😉
Sounds fabulous Malou:-) The best time of year to go to DK – summertime!
Frederiksborg slot is one of my favorite places, it’s so beautiful up there!!
Great movie too – I just watched it.
I love this post Anne! I do wish we rode our bikes more here in America. We have cities that are more bike friendly but just not nearly enough. I’ve never been to Denmark, I do hope to visit one day soon. My Aunt has always said she’d love to live there. 🙂 Enjoy your visit!
Great post…wish we could do that here, but California is still the land of cars…
Copenhagen looks lovely ! I’ve always fancied a trip over to explore the gorgeous coastline and beaches too.. I think it seems a very healthy lifestyle there to be sure 🙂
Love that bike on the orange wall !
Thank you for stopping by! I really hope you visit DK one day – summertime is the perfect time to visit and explore the gorgeous coastline and beautiful beaches 🙂
…will put it on the ever growing list 😉