The much-anticipated international climate conference COP15 landed in the Danish capital on Monday, and as the delegates talk it out, the city is throbbing with hundreds of eco-happenings. Whatever the conference’s outcome, it has been an inspiration to many businesses, and all across the city ecology is being put into practice. From restaurants and hotels to parks and museums, organic and CO2 neutral products are on the menu. Here are ten essentials no green tourist should miss:
- Cycle. Despite its size, Copenhagen has an incredible 300km of cycle lanes.
- Spend a leisurely afternoon strolling around the autonomous community of Christiania; ecology has been put into practice here ever since its beginnings in 1971.
- Visit hands-on science museum Experimentarium, and learn about energy consumption and production in its permanent exhibition.
- Check out ‘Det Økologiske Inspirationshus’ or the organic inspiration house, a playful, imaginative project tucked away behind children’s theater Riddersalen in Frederiksberg.
- Have fun. Tivoli Pleasure Gardens’ contribution includes a number of initiatives, including reducing its power usage with LED lights and running the gardens’ bus on grape seed oil.
- Surprise yourself with a visit to Copenhagen’s harbor. Since a massive facelift a decade ago, the water here is now clean enough to swim in.
- Eat Organic. Copenhageners buy more organic food produce than residents in any other city in the world. While organic produce is widely available, Egefeld in Frederiksberg is the city’s sole 100% organic supermarket.
- Eat out at an environmentally-friendly restaurant. Nyhavn’s Cap Horn prides itself on organic produce, while BioMio in Kødbyen has gone further: everything in the restaurant is organic, right down to the toilet paper – and they have a certificate to prove it.
- In a hurry? Fast food doesn’t have to be all about styrofoam and chemicals. You can enjoy an organic hot dog (even the mustard is organic) from organic hot dog seller Den Økologiske Pølsemand opposite the Round Tower, or a lunchbox of locally-produced delicacies from Meyers Deli.
- Stay at one of the city’s numerous green hotels. Eco-friendly hotels in Denmark come with a ‘green key’ certificate: these include all the hotels in the Arp-Hansen hotel group as well as Hotel Alexandra and Hotel Copenhagen. In addition, the Brochner group of hotels and the newly-opened Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers have been passed as CO2 neutral, and the city’s three ‘Guldsmeden’ hotels use only organic food and toiletries.
Any other thoughts? Leave your climate-friendly Copenhagen tips in the comments.
[Photos: JackSteruk309 & BioMio]