Wellness in Denmark
Find out how to enjoy the good life, Danish style: from cycling to swimming, via saunas and the seaside.
I’m taking a dip in Copenhagen harbour. The water temperature is in the low teens, but, fresh out of the sauna, it’s giving me a buzz, rather than a chill. Above me, on the harbour side, people sit in their bathing suits and felt hats, steam rising off their shoulders.
There aren’t many capital cities where it’s clean enough to swim in the harbour, but you can do it without a moment’s thought in Copenhagen. A government initiative cleaned the area in the 2000s, and since then bathing has become a popular inner-city pastime – there are harbour baths and even floating hot tubs. Copenhagen regularly ranks as one of the world’s most liveable cities and Danes know all about living well year-round, even when the water is cold. This is a country where the long coastlines are lined with badehoteller: beachfront spa hotels and flat, pleasant cycling routes, and where you'll find the world’s largest harbour baths (in Aarhus). Sea swimming is popular – winter sea swimming increasingly so, and port towns host winter swimming clubs. Out of the water, winter wellness comes in the form of hygge – channelling cosiness – while the return of warmer weather means plenty of outdoor pursuits at your modest sommerhus – summer house.
It was the Danish wellness pioneer Jorgen Pieter Muller who first brought modern ideas of healthy living to England at the turn of the 20th century, with his system of outdoor calisthenics, stretching and rubbing the body with towels, “It has often surprised me that so many people are content to be weak and ill,” he wrote in his book, My System, “When in reality there is only a slight effort required on their part for them to grow sound and well and remain so.”
Wellness practices have evolved in the last century – but with Danish people, so much of it still boils down to satisfyingly simple practices: fresh air, sea views, good food, a hot sauna – and getting between them all by bike. Here’s our list of ways to enjoy wellness in Denmark.
I’m taking a dip in Copenhagen harbour. The water temperature is in the low teens, but, fresh out of the sauna, it’s giving me a buzz, rather than a chill. Above me, on the harbour side, people sit in their bathing suits and felt hats, steam rising off their shoulders.
There aren’t many capital cities where it’s clean enough to swim in the harbour, but you can do it without a moment’s thought in Copenhagen. A government initiative cleaned the area in the 2000s, and since then bathing has become a popular inner-city pastime – there are harbour baths and even floating hot tubs. Copenhagen regularly ranks as one of the world’s most liveable cities and Danes know all about living well year-round, even when the water is cold. This is a country where the long coastlines are lined with badehoteller: beachfront spa hotels and flat, pleasant cycling routes, and where you'll find the world’s largest harbour baths (in Aarhus). Sea swimming is popular – winter sea swimming increasingly so, and port towns host winter swimming clubs. Out of the water, winter wellness comes in the form of hygge – channelling cosiness – while the return of warmer weather means plenty of outdoor pursuits at your modest sommerhus – summer house.
It was the Danish wellness pioneer Jorgen Pieter Muller who first brought modern ideas of healthy living to England at the turn of the 20th century, with his system of outdoor calisthenics, stretching and rubbing the body with towels, “It has often surprised me that so many people are content to be weak and ill,” he wrote in his book, My System, “When in reality there is only a slight effort required on their part for them to grow sound and well and remain so.”
Wellness practices have evolved in the last century – but with Danish people, so much of it still boils down to satisfyingly simple practices: fresh air, sea views, good food, a hot sauna – and getting between them all by bike. Here’s our list of ways to enjoy wellness in Denmark.
To bade, or not to bade: in the land of Hamlet, that is the question.![]()
Get on a bike
In Denmark, wellness comes on two wheels. Cycling is ingrained into daily life here; it’s a primary form of transportation and ninety percent of Danes own a bike. Hire a bike on holiday and you’ll be amazed at how easily you adapt to getting from A to B in the saddle, and how good it feels to do so – it helps that the country has 16,000km of cycle paths, provisions for bringing bikes on trains and plenty of parking.
Feel capital in the capital
The floodgates have opened: Copenhagen’s harbourside proliferates with places to have a swim, including harbour baths – areas of the harbour cordoned off for swimming, the most famous of which is Islands Brygge. CopenHot is the country’s biggest outdoor spa, a series of saunas and hot tubs on the harbour front, and there are also inexpensive community saunas – usually members-only unless you can get an invite. In summer, hanging out by the water is very popular at the harbour baths and sea baths. The largest beach is Amager, 5km out from the city centre.
Escape to the country
Owning a sommerhus – a simple place in the country where you can spend your holidays – is a particularly Danish tradition. Many people opt for time out in the country here, perhaps heading to the Danish Riviera, or North Jutland, choosing to rent locally rather than going abroad in the warm summer months. You can channel a similar feeling on our holidays by opting for small, family-run hotels, or rent your own holiday home.
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Embrace friluftsliv
Denmark doesn’t always have the best weather, but its residents have one of the best outlooks: there’s no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothes, and a rainy day is no excuse not to get outdoors.
Danes are outdoorsy. The Nordic concept of friluftsliv, ‘living in the free air’ is embraced here – and you can take part, whether kayaking, foraging, or taking a bracing clifftop walk. Our cycling holidays make use of both the country’s network of dedicated cycle ways – which include four long distance EuroVelo routes. You can enjoy very clean air here, and if the weather turns – well, Danes manufacture great rain jackets, too.
Danes are outdoorsy. The Nordic concept of friluftsliv, ‘living in the free air’ is embraced here – and you can take part, whether kayaking, foraging, or taking a bracing clifftop walk. Our cycling holidays make use of both the country’s network of dedicated cycle ways – which include four long distance EuroVelo routes. You can enjoy very clean air here, and if the weather turns – well, Danes manufacture great rain jackets, too.
Stay in a badehotel
Traditional badehoteller sprung up along Denmark’s coast in the 19th century to cater to those seeking good sea air – and some use local mud, salt and minerals in their spa menus, too. Featuring modern updates like electric bike rental and padel courts, they show that traditional seaside holidays haven’t fallen out of style, even if the bathing suits have updated somewhat. Some are closed in the winter season, opening again when spring is in the air and the water starts warming up again. Our Denmark holidays seek out charming seaside hotels where activities like yoga on the rocks and visiting local smokehouses complement relaxation time to the sound of waves.
Sign up for some saunagus
Not all sauna traditionalists will agree, but one way to sauna in Denmark is to try saunagus: a sauna with a gusmester (sauna leader) who, with the skilful wielding of a towel, fans you with steam infused with aromatherapy oils. There might be coloured lights and music, too. Also look out for infrared saunas, fire saunas, herb saunas and other sweaty specialities – whether you’re staying in a city centre, or a countryside hotel.
Head to the beach
In Denmark, you’re never more than 52km from the coast and there are plenty of blue flag beaches around. When I was staying in Aalborg in Jutland, I joined Danish people for a day at the beach. I was surprised to see cars drove directly onto the sand – it’s allowed at certain spots. Going to the beach is a popular pastime. Thy, a district in northwest Jutland has surf so good that the area’s been dubbed ‘Cold Hawaii’. For a classic beach holiday, you’ll find the Danish Riviera in north Zealand, 160km of sandy stretches, just an hour from Copenhagen by train, dotted with classic badehoteller, plus bike, SUP and kayak rentals.
Enjoy long winter nights
Winter wellness is a key Danish concern, and they burn the most candles per capita in Europe in pursuit of hygge – cosiness. Whilst some attractions in Denmark are closed for part of the winter season to reopen in March, others come into their own: Christmas markets and ice rinks – plus saunas.
The nights draw in from early October in Denmark, and there are just seven hours of daylight in Denmark by midwinter – but that’s great if you’re heading to the islands of Mon and Nyord in the Zealand region; these were some of the first places in the world to get both an International Dark Sky Community and an International Dark Sky Park designation.
The nights draw in from early October in Denmark, and there are just seven hours of daylight in Denmark by midwinter – but that’s great if you’re heading to the islands of Mon and Nyord in the Zealand region; these were some of the first places in the world to get both an International Dark Sky Community and an International Dark Sky Park designation.
…Or opt for winter sea swimming
To bade, or not to bade: in the land of Hamlet, that is the question. The sight of a swim platform: a simple jetty with a ladder, built out from the rocks – is an invitation to jump in. The Baltic can be Baltic in winter however – with water temperatures averaging around 4°C in the coldest months. This hasn’t stopped the proliferation of winter swim clubs around the country, and a winter swimming festival, which takes place every year in January in Skagen, the northernmost town in Denmark. Look out for vinterbadepunkt – designated winter swimming spots that are often equipped with defibrillators.
Responsible Travel would like to thank the Visit Denmark tourist board for their sponsorship of this guide
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