A timber house on the water and moored barges along the canal

Dietmar Rabich / CC BY-SA 4.0

Where to stay in Christianshavn & Holmen

Across the harbour from the old city, on ground the Dutch drained: canals with houseboats on them, Vor Frelsers with the spiral staircase up the outside of its spire, Christiania behind it, and then the old naval yards at Holmen and the industrial edge at Refshaleøen with the opera house, the street-food halls and several of the country's best restaurants on it. It is the most interesting half-hour of walking in Copenhagen and the least well served by the metro.

Price level · Upscale

Copenhagen

Area scorecard

Scored 0–10 by Where Stay Guide. No overall total: every traveller weights these differently.

Sightseeing: 8.0
Walkability: 8.0
Transport: 7.8
Food: 8.5
Nightlife: 7.0
Quietness: 7.0
Families: 7.5
Value: 5.5
Airport / station: 8.5
First trip: 8.0

Best for

A second visit
Couples
Travellers who want water rather than streets outside the window

Choose elsewhere if

You want to walk to everything
You are here in November
You will be relying on the metro at Refshaleøen, which does not reach it

Our picks in Christianshavn & Holmen

Best on the water

CPH Living

Our pick for Christianshavn because it is not on the land at all: a barge moored at Langebrogade, on the Christianshavn bank with the old city across the harbour from the deck.