The Danish capital, although not a tourist attraction center like, for instance, Stockholm, is still quite a visited city, not least thanks to the competent PR of local attractions - the statue of the Little Mermaid, the Tivoli amusement park, and the self-proclaimed "republic" of Christiania. A visit to Copenhagen (København) is worth a couple of days stay. If you want to visit the surroundings, like the Kronborg (the very Hamlet's Elsinore), Fredensborg and Frederiksborg Castles, or the ancient Danish capital Roskilde, you can stay here for a week. At the same time, considering the high cost of staying in Copenhagen, it is important not to make a mistake with the choice of the hotel. Actually, this will be discussed later.
What Area is the Best to Stay in Copenhagen?
In Copenhagen, both hotels, and transportation are quite expensive, so if you want to save money, it is the best to stay in the area or near the place where you are planning to spend most of the time. This, by the way, will not only allow you to optimize your trip budget, but also to save a large amount of time. For example, if you are planning to visit the surroundings, the railway station area should be considered as a place for your stay, or if you want to take long strolls in the center and see all the city sights, and while doing that do the shopping, then the ideal place, perhaps, will be Stroget Street; if you prefer staying near the center, but at the same time in a more or less quiet place, then you can take a closer look at the area of the royal castle Rosenborg.
Central Railway Station Vicinity
The central railway station of Copenhagen (Københavns Hovedbanegård) is not so terrible, as some travelers say: it is quite large and noisy, but at the same time is surrounded by a ring of hotels, and the prices are slightly lower than in the center of Copenhagen. Considering that the local infrastructure is very well developed (for example, you can find supermarkets here), and across the street there is a city travel agency, you can view this location as a nice place to stay. In the said tourist bureau, you can get not only free consultation, but also a lot of booklets and maps, buy tickets or rent bicycles that will be useful for you to get to remote areas of the city. It is convenient to stay here with children: across the road from the station you can find the Tivoli amusement park, where you can walk every day. It is true, though, that here and there near the station there are remnants of red light districts, and on the first floors of some buildings nightclubs and strip clubs are still working, therefore, it can be quite noisy at night. You’ll be able to avoid such not very welcome vicinity by reading tourists reviews on booking sites - they (tourists) certainly won’t remain silent if there is something similar nearby. In my opinion, here you can pay your attention to such hotels as Radisson Blu Royal Hotel Copenhagen, Hotel Alexandra or Best Western Hotel Hebron.
Stroget
The liveliest places in Copenhagen are the City Hall Square (Rådhuspladsen) and the long pedestrian Stroget street, or Strøget, starting at the square. The whole city life is spinning around them: it is 5-10 minutes from here to the railway station, the Tivoli park and Glyptoteket are in walking distance, here you can also find intersections of various transport routes, which makes the area noisy and crowded. At night, the noise does not stop: now the city hall tower clock beats time, then police cars sirens wailing fly by, and window frames and glazing of as old as the 70s (you can still find it here) provide poor protection from noise. Therefore, I recommend staying at a hotel on Stroget, and the farther into the quarters, the better. It’s worth staying in the part of Stroget closer to the City Hall Square, if you want to be near the station. The farther along the street towards the harbor, the more prestigious and expensive, as the sights are closer, but you will have to take a 20-25 minute run on foot to the station. A large part of the city's attractions is concentrated here: including the very City Hall and the monument of Andersen, and the Round Tower, and the Christian Palace, say nothing of the Little Mermaid. Shopping is easy here: there is a store in almost every building on Stroget. In my opinion, Palace Hotel Copenhagen is a nice option in this area.
Nyhavn
Standing aside in the center of Copenhagen there is the harbor area of Nyhavn - nice and cozy, despite the fact that here, perhaps, the density of idle tourists per square meter is the highest in Denmark. The oldest and the sweetest city houses are located here, in Nyhavn, forming bright rows along the yachts piers. The first floors of all houses host cafes, bars, restaurants, and hotels (prices, by the way, are the highest in the Danish capital). The advantages of staying here are obvious: it is an ultimately authentic location, you seem to find yourself in Andersen's fairy tales (this great storyteller actually lived in a couple of local houses there), and the rooms overlooking the harbor can boast very picturesque views. It is convenient to stay here if your plans include an entertainment program - for example, a visit to the Royal or Opera theaters. Moreover, boat tours start right from Nyhavn through the canals of Copenhagen. From the geographical point of view, Nyhavn’s location is the most convenient: it will take you about 10 minutes on foot to get to the royal palace of Amalienborg, about 5-7 minutes - to Stroget, and about 20-25 minutes - to the railway station. The possible disadvantages of hotels, apart from high prices, include small rooms and tiny bathrooms (side effects of old buildings), often you may encounter neither air-conditioning in the rooms, nor an elevator in the hotel. The most interesting option here, perhaps, is 71 Nyhavn Hotel, and the most romantic place all round Copenhagen is hotel Donna Wood located on a ship.
The areas where I do not recommend staying include the infamous Christiania, a self-proclaimed hippie quarter, established in the 70s of the last century. Even in the daytime, walking here alone is not recommended, and staying here and returning after walks in the dark is the right way to get hit on the back of your head.
Kastrup Airport vicinity
Finally, if you depart early in the morning or arrive late at night and do not want to search for your hotel in the middle of the night, rambling through unfamiliar streets with luggage, you should consider accommodation near Kastrup Airport to be a viable option. By the way, it is quite possible to visit not only Denmark from here, but also a piece of Sweden. It takes about 20 minutes by train to get from the Copenhagen airport to the Swedish Malmö (and 12 minutes by metro to the center of Copenhagen). And if you ask for a room on a higher floor, you may as well get a view of the Öresund strait. Hotels near airports, especially chain ones, are usually equipped with sound insulation, so it is unlikely that the hum of aircraft will disturb you. Considering that the prices of hotels near the Copenhagen airport are much lower than in the city center, it may be worth staying in this area for the entire period of the trip, especially if you are not planning a long stay in Copenhagen. The most attractive option to me here is the Hilton Copenhagen Airport hotel.
Things to Consider When Choosing a Hotel in Copenhagen
A few words about the peculiarities of the Danish hotels, so that staying here would not be a shock for you: why on earth, such high prices and such poor service?! First, let's bear in mind that no one here will run after you and offer to help you with your luggage or clean your room twice a day. Most often there is only a shower in the bathroom (to save water), and you won’t find those sets of tiny little soaps, caps, nail files, and other small pleasures, like anywhere in Spain or in France. It is more likely that in the bathroom you will find only two wall-mounted bottles with all-purpose shower gel (also shampoo and soap). Of course, with this approach to saving, most often there will be neither a dressing gown, nor slippers in the room. The designs of various hotels are somewhat similar: as a rule, natural materials are used in decoration, there is nothing unnecessary in the room, everything is quite simple and functional, which can also result in some negative feedback from some travelers that can be reduced to the description "as if you are staying in an Ikea store". There is a recent tendency in Scandinavian hotels to sort garbage: here in the room you will either find a bucket divided into sections for each type of garbage, or even a couple of buckets. Please note that if you drink beer in the room, do not throw away the bottles, leave them near the bucket, as this is a kind of a tip for the maid, as glass containers in Denmark are expensive. But, as a rule, Danish hotels serve high-quality breakfasts, including traditional flakes and muesli with baked rolls, and hot porridge, and even a choice of fish and side dishes, so it is quite possible to hold out until late lunch.