Copenhagen gives you a glimpse into a better world, one where the whir of bicycle wheels replace honking horns and where the idea of living consciously is so collectively accepted it’s become conventional. It’s a city that gives you hope for the future metropolises of the world, with its cutting-edge eco architecture, endless cycle routes and green spaces galore. A place where people seem to put kindness first and stress last, creating that brilliant balance we as North Americans still search for … it’s no wonder the Danes are rumoured to be amongst the happiest in the world.
STAY
MANON LES SUITES
amazing eco hotel
ADDRESS: Gyldenløvesgade 19
WEB: guldsmedenhotels.com
SOCIAL: @guldsmedenhotels
amazing eco hotel
ADDRESS: Gyldenløvesgade 19
WEB: guldsmedenhotels.com
SOCIAL: @guldsmedenhotels
This small string of family-owned eco-friendly hotels share a dreamy aesthetic which creatively and playfully combines Balinese and Scandinavian design to create something luxurious yet down to earth, each detail thoughtfully and consciously put together for your comfort and enjoyment while simultaneously protecting the planet. At Manon Les Suits, the rooftop restaurant offers delicious vegan options along with a wide variety of organic beers and cocktails with outdoor and indoor seating bringing ‘hygge’ to a whole new level. Across from the restaurant is a spa partitioned away to create an intimate space with an outdoor shower, steam room and sauna for you to relax in and enjoy. The pool area, set in the centre of the hotel feels like a terrarium from another world, with a plethora of plants cascading down from the balconies which line each floor, swaddling you on a sanctuary of serenity which will make you forget the outside world. READ MORE
EAT
THE ORGANIC BOHO
vegan snackery
ADDRESS: Prinsessegade 23 + Gothersgade 5
WEB: theorganicboho.com
SOCIAL: @theorganicboho
vegan snackery
ADDRESS: Prinsessegade 23 + Gothersgade 5
WEB: theorganicboho.com
SOCIAL: @theorganicboho
With two locations within Copenhagen, this sweet shop offers delicious 100% organic vegan food and drinks dressed up with edible flowers, berries and nuts to create a tiny piece of art for your mouth. Though most of their to-go containers are compostable or recyclable, bring your own for the smoothies and juices as they’re still using plastic cups and straws.
SOULS CPH
laid-back all day dining
ADDRESS: 3 Melchiors Plads + Nørre Farimagsgade 63
WEB: soulscph.dk
SOCIAL: @soulscph
laid-back all day dining
ADDRESS: 3 Melchiors Plads + Nørre Farimagsgade 63
WEB: soulscph.dk
SOCIAL: @soulscph
A cozy space for all-day dining, Souls offers locally sourced organic food that will purposefully please the pallet by Denmark’s best vegan chef, Neel Engholm.
WEB: caphorn.dk
SOCIAL: @restaurantcaphorn
In the heart of Nyhavn is a port side spot serving organic beverages and meals with food prepared fresh based on seasonal offerings of fresh produce, vegetables, meat and fish. Keeping its original 16th-century charm with wooden floors, fireplaces, knick-knacks and diamond-paned windows, Cap Horn is a haven amongst the busyness of this ancient architecture.
porridge paradise
ADDRESS: Jægersborggade 50
WEB: groed.com
SOCIAL: @groedcph
While some movements towards sustainable eating might pull the culture out of the country making the whole world feel like an indistinguishable hipsters paradise of raw/vegan /plant-based food, Grød holds its ground by elevating a traditional Danish food to new levels with organic, ethically sourced, affordable meals built around the world of porridge.
Pizza Party
ADDRESS: Istedgade 27 // Frederiksborggade 20
WEB: neighbourhood.dk
SOCIAL: @nbhkbh
Brunch, pizza and DELICIOUS cocktails all made with organic ingredients by warm and friendly staff on long tables which make it feel like a cozy picnic rather than a regular old munch down. They source their produce locally from high-quality farms, breweries, coffee-roasters and wine producers allowing them to change the menu as the seasons change. They offer vegan, vegetarian and omnivore options making it an easy place to eat and meet.
SHOP
FAIR NOMAD SOCIETY
consciously curated collections
ADDRESS: Kongensgade 74
WEB: my-fair-shop.com
SOCIAL: @fairnomadsociety
A conscious collective of creative Copenhageners combining handcrafted ethically made designs from Nomad Living, upcycled homeware pieces by Naked Society, and sustainable lifestyle and fashion products from My Fair Shop to create a conscious concept store full of treasures and heart.
consciously curated collections
ADDRESS: Kongensgade 74
WEB: my-fair-shop.com
SOCIAL: @fairnomadsociety
A conscious collective of creative Copenhageners combining handcrafted ethically made designs from Nomad Living, upcycled homeware pieces by Naked Society, and sustainable lifestyle and fashion products from My Fair Shop to create a conscious concept store full of treasures and heart.
sustainable & secondhand heaven
ADDRESS: Jægersborggade 35
WEB: jaegersborggade.com
SOCIAL: @jaegersborggade
On a cozy street closed off from traffic are 70ish independent shops, eateries and studios offering just about every ethical and sustainable item you could imagine. Plus in the summer months, a flea market called Loppemarked fed by locals pops up on the weekends in which you’ll undoubtedly find treasures worth keeping from the closets of real-life stylish Danes. Our favourite bricks and mortar shops to stop off in were: My Favourite Things for Ethical Fashion and Green Beauty, Gågrøn for everything you need to live a Zero Waste Lifestyle and Noaburo for handmade Vintage Japanese Kimonos and re-worked clothes.
PRAG
vintage delights
ADDRESS: Nørrebrogade 45 + Vesterbrogade 98A
WEB: pragcopenhagen.com
SOCIAL: @pragcopenhagen
vintage delights
ADDRESS: Nørrebrogade 45 + Vesterbrogade 98A
WEB: pragcopenhagen.com
SOCIAL: @pragcopenhagen
With two Copenhagen locations in both Nørrebro and Vesterbrø, Prag offers a creatively curated selection of second-hand and vintage clothing for men and women; featuring everything from everyday clothing and shoes to custom-made jewellery and extravagant dress-up attire.
DO
lost world found
ADDRESS: Øster Farimagsgade 2
WEBSITE: botanik.snm.ku.dk
SOCIAL: @uni_copenhagen
As part of the Natural History Museum of Denmark, the Botanical Gardens offer Denmark’s largest scientific collection of plants, including species that are either threatened or extinct in nature. With some greenhouses dating all the way back to 1847 creating a dreamy environment which engulfs you into the luscious world of the wild right in the city centre.
a glimpse into the past
ADDRESS: Nyhavn 1-71
WEBSITE: nyhavn.com
SOCIAL: @nyhavn
With its beautiful multi-coloured buildings dating back to the 16th century, Nyhavn is an atmospheric place to take a stroll so you might imagine what life was like when Hans Christians Anderson strolled these streets.
home and away
ADDRESS: Prinsessegade
WEBSITE: christiania.org
The fabled Utopia and Freetown within Copenhagen itself may greet you with a sense of something slightly sinister depending on what time you arrive there, but behind the ‘town centre’ beyond the street vendors is an idyllic residential area that lines both banks of the lake which will shift you to a serene state. You’ll leave wishing there were more places like this, rural living with immediate access to city life, the best of both worlds as it acts as both home and away.
PHOTOS: Shane Woodward
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