From Hornbæk to Liseleje: Where to eat, sleep, and enjoy nature in North Zealand

The North Coast is both a short train ride and a whole world away from Copenhagen. Here you can slow down, eat delicious food, take a morning dip at the beach, and get a breath of fresh air on walks through plantations and along the coast.

The route starts in Hornbæk and takes you through fishing villages and seaside towns to Liseleje. The trip can easily be adapted to where you wish to stay overnight, and whether you prefer to hop on the local trains between the coastal towns or cycle along the North Coast route. Along the way, you will naturally find a range of beautiful Landfolk holiday homes that can form the setting for your trip.

Start your trip with thatched cottage charm in Hornbæk

Get your holiday home vacation off to a great start in Daniela and Michael's thatched cottage, located just a stone's throw from the beach and Hornbæk town. The holiday home has a terrace on three sides, offering plenty of opportunities for sunbathing and spending warm summer evenings around the grill.

When you're not enjoying the bright surroundings of the holiday home or playing a game of tennis on the newly built tennis court, you can go for a picnic in Hornbæk Plantation, where burial mounds and 150-year-old trees tower over the landscape. The plantation contains many excursion destinations and is particularly beautiful on summer evenings when the scent of honeysuckle flowers spreads.

If you're in need of a good cup of coffee, Albi’s Kaffebar is a local favorite with its quirky style and homely atmosphere. Enjoy a cup of coffee in the villa garden, where no two chairs are alike, and all furniture is for sale. In the evening, you can stop by Hotel Hornbækhus, which invites you to communal dining in a Swedish cottage setting with varied crockery and geraniums in the windows.

Art in Russia's hills and Denmark's most beautiful beach

Not far from Hornbæk lies a landscape so desolate that it has been named Russia. Russia's heather hills and dunes transport you to the feeling of having landed somewhere far away from Denmark. Also visit Rudolph Tegner's Museum, which sits like a bunker dropped from the sky, surrounded by the artist's bronze sculptures.

On the outskirts of Russia's hills, you'll find Carina's holiday home with space for the whole family and views over the fields. In the winter months, you can glimpse Tegner's Museum between the trees, and in the summer months, you can open the doors and let nature flow in through the patio doors. Say hello to the cows that visit the holiday home in the morning, and hop on your bikes for the short ride to one of Denmark's most beautiful beaches, Dronningmølle Strand.

If you haven't had enough art yet, the exhibition venue Munkeruphus is a short trip from Carina's holiday home. Experience contemporary art in the beautiful listed wooden villa, and stroll among statues and exotic trees in the sculpture park.

Follow Carina and her family's holiday home life and get great tips for the local area.

Eat fish at the harbor and go to the top of the lighthouse in Gilleleje

Continue along the coast on foot or by bike to Nakkehoved Lighthouse, which still casts its light over the Kattegat and guides ships safely into harbor. The lighthouse's small museum tells 450 years of lighthouse history with old sea charts, foghorns, and lighthouse lamps, and the narrow stairs lead you to the top of the lighthouse. Here, a magnificent view opens up over the Kattegat and Kullen in Sweden.

The lighthouse path leads you further into Gilleleje's fishing harbor, where the cutters chug in, and the smell of fish and rope bites at your nose. Here you can enjoy the hustle and bustle of the harbor, attend fish auctions in the shipyard halls, and eat fish at the harbor restaurants. If you're more in the mood for a cup of coffee, you can settle down under the rice paper lamps and apple trees in Café Flora's garden.

Looking for a place to sleep in Gilleleje? Rasmus' holiday home Gottebo captures the special style and charm of the 50s and 60s with Danish design classics. Let peace descend in the idyllic garden with tall oak trees, beech trees, and rhododendron bushes. Near the holiday home, you can follow in the footsteps of the philosopher Kierkegaard to Gilbjerg Hoved or laze the day away on Gilleleje Veststrand. Also, take a shower in the outdoor shower and a trip to the newly built sauna.

Enjoy delicious specialty goods and the North Coast's most beautiful view

Further along the coast, you'll pass Rågeleje's striped beach houses before reaching Ronnie's holiday home. Elevated high above the water at Vejby Strand, the holiday home offers the North Coast's most beautiful view, a wood-burning stove for autumn days, and soft sofas where you can watch the sunsets over the water.

Ronnie and his family often take long walks at the nearby natural gem Heatherhill, where hills and valleys bear witness to the mighty forces of the Ice Age. From the steep cliffs, you can spot kitesurfers in the surf, and if you need a refreshment, Il Terrazzo by the parking lot offers Italian stone oven pizzas and gelato.

The area around Ronnie's holiday home is a true treasure trove of farm shops and country stores. Stock up for dinner at Kødsnedkeren in Vejby, Den Friske Fisk on Holløselund Strandvej, and Grønt fra Kolsbæk, which overflows with freshly picked vegetables and herbs. Don't miss a visit to the sustainable Rabarbergaarden, which is known and loved by locals for its farm-to-table vision and rural idyll. Here you can get food created with ingredients from the farm and fill your bags with local specialty goods from the green grocer.

Stay in bright Tisvildehus and take a trip to Tisvilde Hegn

Our route along the North Coast naturally also takes you past Tisvilde Hegn – Denmark's fifth-largest forest and oldest dune plantation. The Hegn is a popular destination for both mountain bikers and mushroom hunters, and it's perfect for quiet mornings of berry picking or walks. Don't miss the magical Troll Forest, nestled behind the dunes with its gnarled pine trees, sandy soil, and scent of resin. If you need a dip, the water awaits you behind the dunes.

End the day with a drink and a delicious meal on Helenekilde Badehotel's terrace with a view over the water. And if you want to stay overnight in Tisvildeleje, you won't find finer settings than Tine's Tisvildehus, which offers bright and atmospheric Nordic decor. Enjoy summer evenings on the open terrace and lose yourself in the holiday home's fine details.

Mushroom hunting and Zealand's largest heath in Asserbo

End your holiday home trip in Benjamin's architectural gem in the middle of Asserbo Plantation. The simple, stylish holiday home brings you into the forest's front garden and invites tranquility and togetherness. Here are rich architectural details to fall in love with and a special symbiosis between the surrounding forest and the holiday home's wooden surfaces.

Follow Benjamin's example and go mushroom hunting in Asserbo Plantation, or hop on your bike and ride to the beach. You can also easily cycle to the holiday town of Liseleje, which awaits you five kilometers away with its idyllic half-timbered houses, cafes, and long sandy beach.

If you continue through Asserbo Plantation, you'll reach Melby Overdrev, Zealand's largest heath. The area was a military firing range for over 100 years and has therefore been allowed to remain untouched. Walk through the purple heather carpet and the diversity of wild flowers and rare butterfly species. On the way home to the holiday home, you can swing by the red farmhouse Tinggården, which offers homemade baked goods in the country store and gourmet meals in the farm parlors.

Explore our special holiday home gems in North Zealand.