Copenhagen's Paid Attractions, Ranked
The canal boat is the one paid attraction almost everyone in Copenhagen ends up doing, and it is also the cheapest per minute. Everything else in this city’s paid-attraction tier competes for the same afternoon, so it helps to know which tickets actually repay themselves.
Canal boats, two ways
Stromma runs the classic circular canal cruise from Nyhavn or Ved Stranden, a one-hour loop past Nyhavn’s townhouses, Operaen, Amalienborg, the Little Mermaid, and the low bridges of Christianshavn. Tickets run about 119 DKK adult, departures every 15-30 minutes daily, no advance booking required at the kiosk. Book a Copenhagen canal cruise on GetYourGuide or buy on arrival. For something smaller, Hey Captain runs 12-passenger electric boats from Ofelia Plads into back-canals the big barges cannot reach, drinks included, from about 350 DKK per person for an hour; book ahead at heycaptain.dk , since weekend departures sell out days in advance.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
Dantes Plads 7. Roman, Greek, Etruscan and Egyptian sculpture sits alongside one of the world’s larger collections of Degas bronzes, plus Rodin, Gauguin and Danish Golden Age painting, all wrapped around a glass-domed Winter Garden full of palm trees. Tickets are 140 DKK adult, and admission is free on the last Wednesday of every month. Open Tuesday to Sunday, Thursdays until 21:00, closed Mondays. Details at glyptoteket.com , or check skip-the-line Glyptotek tickets on Viator .
National Museum of Denmark
Ny Vestergade 10, in Indre By, not Christianshavn. Free admission ended in July 2016; expect 135 DKK online or 150 DKK at the door, under-18 free. The Bronze Age Trundholm Sun Chariot, the Egtved Girl burial and Viking-era silver hoards are the artifacts worth the detour; the Skuldelev Viking ships themselves live in Roskilde, not here. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00-17:00. Site: natmus.dk .
Cisternerne
An underground art space built into Copenhagen’s former 1850s drinking-water reservoir at Søndermarken, opposite Frederiksberg Palace, kept at a constant 8-10°C with natural stalactites and total darkness under the installations. Tickets are 125 DKK adult, 75 DKK students. Bring a layer regardless of the season. Open Tuesday to Sunday, Thursdays until 20:00. Site: cisternerne.dk .
Designmuseum Danmark
Bredgade 68, inside the 18th-century Royal Frederiks Hospital, covers Denmark’s furniture and industrial design canon: Arne Jacobsen, Hans Wegner, Finn Juhl, Poul Henningsen. Admission is 140 DKK, free for students and under-26. Open Tuesday to Sunday, Thursdays until 20:00.
Christiania, on foot
Bådmandsstræde 43 in Christianshavn. Pusher Street was excavated and permanently closed by residents and police in April 2024; what remains is a quiet neighborhood of self-built houses along the lake, art workshops and music venues. Weekend guided walks depart at 15:00 near the main entrance for about 60 DKK. No photographing residents, no running, no vehicles.
The verdict
Two tickets repay themselves without argument: the Glyptotek for the Winter Garden alone, and Cisternerne for an experience nothing else in the city offers. Pair either with the Stromma canal cruise and you have earned the day. For the free landmarks alongside these paid ones, see the Copenhagen sightseeing guide , or plan around them with the 4-day Copenhagen itinerary .
Before you go
The 10% online discount at the National Museum (135 DKK vs 150 DKK) applies at every state museum with a website booking option, so buy ahead where you can.