Nyhavn

Nyhavn is the image of Copenhagen on every postcard and every poster, and seeing it in person is still a thrill. The name means new harbour: the canal was dug in the 1670s under King Christian V to bring ships from the sound into the heart of the city, near the great square of Kongens Nytorv, and for centuries it was a busy, rough port of sailors, merchants, taverns and lodging houses. Today the north side of the canal, the sunny side, is lined with tall, narrow townhouses painted in deep yellow, red, blue and ochre, most of them dating from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, with cafes and restaurants spilling out onto the cobbled quay. Old wooden sailing ships and smaller boats are moored along the canal, giving it the look of a living harbour museum, and the canal tours leave from here, gliding out under the bridges. Hans Christian Andersen loved Nyhavn and lived at three addresses on the canal, numbers 20, 67 and 18, and some of his earliest fairy tales, including The Tinderbox and The Princess and the Pea, belong to his years here; plaques mark the houses. The quieter south side has more elegant houses and fewer tourists, and at the harbour end, the pedestrian and cycle bridge across the inner harbour connects Nyhavn to Christianshavn and the Opera House area. Walking Nyhavn is free, at any time of day. The restaurants on the sunny side are mostly aimed at visitors, with prices to match, and quality varies, so many locals do what students have always done here: buy a drink from a kiosk and sit on the edge of the quay with their legs over the water. In December, a Christmas market with stalls of glogg and aebleskiver, wooden huts and twinkling lights fills the quay. Nyhavn is busiest in the afternoons of summer; come early in the morning for the classic photograph without the crowds.

The story of Nyhavn is the story of Copenhagen as a port. In the eighteenth century, the canal was lined with merchants' houses and warehouses, ships unloaded goods from around the world, and the street was famous for its taverns, sailors and tattoo parlours, a reputation that lasted well into the twentieth century. As shipping moved out to the larger harbours, Nyhavn declined, and in the 1970s it was revived as a pedestrian street of restaurants and a harbour for historic ships. Charlottenborg Palace, home of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and a contemporary art space, stands at the inner end of the canal on Kongens Nytorv, and the Royal Danish Theatre faces the square.

How to enjoy it: walk the full length of both sides, from Kongens Nytorv to the harbour, and look at the details of the houses, the old ships and Andersen's plaques. Sit with a coffee in the morning sun or a beer in the afternoon, but choose restaurants carefully; for smorrebrod and Danish food, look for places with short menus and local customers, and consider walking a few streets back for better value. Take a canal tour from the quay to see Nyhavn from the water, and cross the bridge at the end for views back towards the colourful houses and over to the Opera House.

Nyhavn is the hub for a classic day in central Copenhagen. Amalienborg Palace and the changing of the guard are a ten-minute walk north, the Little Mermaid and Kastellet a little further, Christianshavn and Christiania across the bridge, and Stroget, the long pedestrian shopping street, begins at Kongens Nytorv. In December, combine the Nyhavn Christmas market with a canal tour and a visit to Tivoli for the most festive day of the year.