Copenhagen, verdict by verdict

Copenhagen is the easiest of the Scandinavian capitals: flat, compact and built for bicycles, with Nyhavn's painted waterfront, Tivoli Gardens' evening lights, the harbour baths, the Round Tower's gentle spiral ramp, and a serious food scene inside a small centre. Most of what you came for sits within a twenty-minute ride or a few metro stops, and the canal tour maps the whole city in an easy seated hour.

The caveat is the bill: it is expensive even by Nordic standards, and restaurant and bar prices are the real shock, so tight budgets feel it at every meal. November to February is dark and grey, headline museums close Mondays and catch short trips out, timed Rosenborg slots sell out in season, Tivoli's pay-per-ride math climbs fast, and the big canal boats pack over 150 passengers in summer. Travelers wanting medieval grandeur will find more of it an hour away at Kronborg.

Two to three days covers the centre, Christiania and the harbour, with Louisiana's glass-walled sculpture park or Helsingor's castle as the extra day. The airport metro reaches Kongens Nytorv in about fifteen minutes. May to September brings long bright evenings and harbour swimming, December brings the Tivoli version of Christmas. Sleep Indre By and rent the bike.