Copenhill: Copenhagen’s city hiking path

I love it when functional buildings are made fun, doubling the usage of the space. Copenhill is a great example of this. Cities naturally produce waste, unfortunately until there is a better method some of that waste has to be incinerated. But instead of having a big ugly waste-to-energy plant, they decided to incorporate it into a structure for tourists and locals to enjoy. The interior of Copenhill may be industrial, but the roof is a dry ski slope open. Allowing visitors to ski throughout the year. 

I haven’t ever skied in my life, and I didn’t particularly fancy my first experience being off the side of a building. There is a bar at the very top, which you can get to by either a lift or to replicate a hill even further, hike up to. 

I want to give a bit of understanding for my mood when I arrived at Copenhill, tired and annoyed. To give a bit of context, this was my journey. Copenhagen has fantastic public transport. But as always is the case with public transport, when it goes wrong, it goes really wrong. I came here from the round tower, and went to the nearest bus stop. 30 mins later, I found out there were no buses running from that stop. No note, and I couldn’t find anything online, I only found out when someone told me. I then had to walk a few stops down the line where I was assured the buses were running. Cue a further 30 minutes walk down the line to find another bus station (this time with a note) saying all bus services wede suspended. I could not find another bus that stopped near Copenhill.

At this point I had been trying to travel for an hour, I was too stubborn to admit I should probably just give up at this point. And opted for a taxi which was £30, and came to even more when I tried to tip but confused the exchange rate, came to nearer £55. No, I don’t know how I did it either. But I wasn’t starting in the best of moods.

Despite this, I thought I would climb it. It’s not exactly like a hill, Copenhill has a staircase that takes you all the way up, but it is exhausting especially after a long day travelling. But I felt I had to do Copenhill to the fullest, and since I won’t be skiing its the least I could do. Besides at the top was a bar, so the promise of an ice-cold pint awaiting as my reward spurred me on. It didn’t take too long to hike up, but it clearly isn’t the most popular route. I did find it exhausting (but in my defence I had been walking all day at this point). Eventually though the bar came into site, and I got a second wind and managed to spur myself up the last few steps.

As rooftop bars go, Copenhill won’t be winning any awards. I have to admit I was pretty disappointed with it when I arrived. It felt a bit cobbled together, like someone had found an area, decided they wanted to turn it into a bar, and then grabbed whatever they thought they would   do. Which was mostly some wooden benches and a metal bar. It wasn’t the most welcoming bar. The views weren’t worth the hike either, it’s all industrial which makes sense giving the buildings original purpose. Still I gave it a chance, I grabbed my beer and made my way to the bench, At this stage I honestly felt like I was just delaying having to pay for a taxi back to the hotel. 

I did finish the beer though, and it didn’t feel like there was any other reason to stay. So I made my way to the lift and flinched at the price of a taxi. I almost feel a bit embarrassed to admit I was excited for Copenhill, especially after it turned out to be a disappointment. Still that is part of travel, I can’t love everywhere I go, and not everywhere will be fantastic. If I said a trip to Copenhagen wouldn’t be complete without visiting here I’d be lying. But its better I go to tell you to avoid it rather than you wasting your own trip.

The nearest public transport is the Amager Bakke (Vindmøllevej) bus station.

If you want to simply climb to the top and admire the view, then walking up to the top is free. In the bar there are ice-creams and soft drinks as well as beer. I can guarantee you will need something by the time you arrive.

My next stop from here was Tivoli Parks, but you can also check out the Glyptotek Museum. For more travel guides or travel tips you can check out my Copenhagen home page here. I have also attached a link to Get Your Guide below below, showing the latest activities. This is an affiliate link, by booking through it I will receive a small commission which helps support the blog.

The peak of Copenhill is at 85m.

Copenhill is an waste-to-energy plant that whilst still active has been converted to include activities for tourists and locals too. Most people come here to dry-ski but others like to come and hike to the top.

The Ski park is 10,000m², and the slopes vary between 14% up to 45%.

Yes if you don’t have your own ski gear you can rent it at Copenhill.