48 hours outside Copenhagen: Enjoy a weekend in North Zealand

Escape the hustle and bustle of city life and spend a weekend getaway in North Zealand's summerland. Here you'll find a pocket of freedom along the north coast's seaside towns and fishing villages, scenic landscapes, and charming eateries.

Cottage life is a small break where you can completely slow down, enjoy time with each other, get sand between your toes, and breathe a little deeper. And what better place for a few days' cottage holiday than North Zealand, which is no further than a train ride from Copenhagen and offers a true holiday paradise of beautiful beaches, wonderful nature, and small fishing villages?

We've put together a guide to the places you should experience, eat, and enjoy nature during your weekend in North Zealand. Along the north coast, you'll naturally also find a string of Landfolk cottages that can provide a very special setting for your weekend trip. You can easily get there by train from Copenhagen, and if you hop on the local train lines, you can quickly get around between the old seaside towns.

Visit the Greenland explorer's house

Between his Greenland expeditions, the world-famous polar explorer Knud Rasmussen resided on the outermost edge of Halsnæs. In the soft grassy hills of the rampart area, you can visit the Greenland explorer's house, which today houses a memorial room and a small museum. Enjoy the most beautiful view over the Kattegat and a special piece of cultural history, complete with the researcher's study and typewriter.

Hundested is easily reached by train from Copenhagen in about an hour and a half or by local train from the coastal towns, where you can bring your bikes on the train. If you get hungry on your trip to Hundested, you can enjoy a tasty meal at the harbor at Spisehuset Knud, named after the polar explorer.

Cycle along the fishing villages

If you've brought your bikes on your cottage trip, you can follow the 20-kilometer marked cycle route 47 along the water from Hundested to Tisvildeleje. The first stop is idyllic Kikhavn with hollyhocks and half-timbered houses. If you continue, you'll reach the cute seaside town of Liseleje, where you can settle down for a cup of coffee. You can also skip the coffee and just enjoy the open landscape with sea buckthorn, rose hips, and marram grass.

Have lunch in the courtyard

A little further inland near Asserbo lies the red farmhouse Tinggården, which offers delicacies in the country store and gourmet meals in the courtyard rooms. If you've gotten hungry on your bike ride, you can eat a sourdough pizza under the walnut tree in the garden, and over the weekend, you can also take home the week's home-cooked meal for dinner at the cottage – a flavorful dish ready to heat with homemade bread and something sweet for coffee. Don't miss out on the country store's homemade baked goods and specialty items from the region.

Explore the untouched nature on the heath and in the forest

Tisvilde Hegn is Denmark's oldest dune plantation and is characterized by its magnificent nature – perfect for walking and mountain biking, berry picking, or mushroom hunting. But the forest also contains many special excursion destinations. Visit, among other things, the Troll Forest, where insects and wind have shaped the pine trees into fairytale formations. If you need a dip, Tisvilde's sandy beach awaits you behind the dunes.

If you go a little further towards Liseleje, you'll reach Zealand's largest heath, Melby Overdrev. The heath was used as a firing range for the military for over 100 years, and nature has been allowed to grow untouched. Take a walk through the heath's purple heather carpet, where almost 200 wild plants grow, and rare butterfly species and insects reside.

You can reach Tisvilde Hegn by local train from Hillerød to the final station in Tisvildeleje, from where it's a 10-minute walk to the forest. By car, it only takes about an hour from Copenhagen, and on the map here you can see where to park.

Get lost in Rabarbergaarden's summer universe

Rabarbergaarden exudes rural idyll. Here, the roof is thatched, and the food is home-grown and homemade with an eye for small details. Enjoy a delicious meal with fresh ingredients from the fields and indulge in the self-sufficient summer universe. After the meal, children and the young at heart can cuddle with kittens and romp around in the kitchen garden, and you can find specialty items from the region in the green grocer. The sustainable farm is located in Vejby and can be reached by local train between Hillerød and Tisvildeleje.

Sea bathing in the coastal towns

Among plantations, dunes, and historic seaside towns, some of the country's best beaches are located on the north coast, also known as the Danish Riviera. The beaches at Liseleje, Tisvildeleje, and Dronningmølle are some of the best to laze away the days, while the stretch between Asserbo and Tisvildeleje offers untouched dunes to settle in. At Smidstrup Strand, you can light bonfires on summer evenings, while the candy-striped bathing houses at Rågeleje Strand create a special atmosphere for a refreshing morning swim.

Spot kitesurfers at Heatherhill

A couple of kilometers from Rågeleje lies the natural gem Heatherhill. Here you can get in touch with nature's mighty forces in the hills and valleys of the ice age landscape and hike through the heath's juniper and heather. Enjoy the spectacular view from the cliffs over the Kattegat and watch the kitesurfers float over the beach on windy days. If you need a refreshment on your walk, Il Terrazzo by the parking lot offers stone oven pizzas and Italian gelato. Heatherhill is only 60 kilometers from Rådhuspladsen and can be reached by car or S-train and local trains.

Settle down at the fishing harbor

Life at Gilleleje's fishing harbor is something very special. Think fishing cutters chugging in, fish auctions in the shipyard halls, and plenty of fresh sea air on your face and the smell of rope in your nose. Settle down in the middle of the harbor and enjoy a good lunch at one of Gilleleje's delicious fish restaurants. You can, among other things, get classic Danish smørrebrød at Brasseriet, or eat sushi and fish fillets on the terrace at the fishmonger Adamsens Fisk. At the harbor, you can of course also get freshly peeled shrimp, homemade seafood salads, or fresh fish to take home to your cottage.

See bombastic art in Russia's hills

In the middle of nowhere in an area so desolate it has been named Russia, lies Rudolph Tegner's Museum and Sculpture Park. The museum is a bunker-like building with an almost futuristic feel, housing about 250 of the sculptor's plaster and clay figures of mythical characters and muscular bodies. In the heath landscape, soft heather carpets meet Tegner's bombastic bronze figures. This creates great contrasts and transports one to places far from Denmark and Dronningmølle. Also visit Traktørstedet Sørens Café, which offers coffee and ice cream during the summer months. Tegner's Museum is about an hour's drive from Copenhagen, and there are good train connections from the local coastal towns.

Communal dining in a Swedish cottage setting

If you're in need of a delicious dinner after your museum visit, you can, for example, visit the charming Hotel Hornbækhus in Hornbæk. The old seaside hotel is a sister to Folkehuset Absalon in Vesterbro, and here you'll find the same informal atmosphere and communal dining in the evening. At the same time, the seaside hotel is decorated in true Swedish cottage style with red boards, quirky interior, geraniums in the windows, and mismatched dinnerware. Check out the week's menu and remember to reserve a table well in advance. It takes about an hour and a half from Copenhagen to Hornbæk by train via Helsingør.