Bike trip and camping in Denmark in summer (cities and regions)

Hello, This is still just a plan: My wife and I are considering a bike trip in Denmark. The timeframe would be July 2020, for a solid three weeks. We’d prefer to do a loop to avoid seeing the same landscapes and cities. We also camp. We have our own well-equipped bikes and a single-wheel "Bob" trailer. We’ll likely start and finish in Copenhagen, covering 40 to 60 km per day while leaving time to explore the cities and regions. Through word of mouth, we know Denmark is another cycling country, so we won’t have any trouble finding bike paths. However, when it comes to documents, we’re a bit lost. Since we don’t know the country at all, we’re not sure what’s most interesting to see and travel through. We have the double-sided *Dänemark* map at 1:150,000 from Freytag & Berndt. It shows bike routes and campgrounds (which is great!), but it’s not very practical for biking. Our experience in the Netherlands with "road" maps that quickly fell apart in the rain showed us the limits of those documents... Are there more practical resources? Like a bike guide similar to what we have in France or for European bike routes? Is there a system for identifying bike route numbers like in Holland? And of course, we’d love any practical tips—cost of living, campground prices, hospitality (which I’m sure is excellent), weather quirks, coastal areas, wind (memories of the Netherlands!!!), and, of course, your personal favorites... Thanks in advance to all contributors; Pierre and Dominique from Lorient

Hi there,

If you're interested, I can send you (via private message) 6 GPS tracks covering a loop of about 800 km I did in 2012 in the southern part of the country, including several ferry crossings. This was my second bike trip in Denmark. Back in 2003, I had already done a full loop of the country, starting on the west coast. It’s truly a cycling paradise—the routes are perfectly signposted, and the wild camping areas... WOW! It’s honestly some of the best in Europe. If you search the forum, you’ll find plenty of info and useful links on the topic, but I’m happy to help with any other details if I can. Patrick

Hi Pierrecoq, I went to Denmark last year, and it's a really nice country for biking. There aren’t numbered markers like in Holland, but signposts are sometimes set up. There’s a smartphone app that helps locate cabins available for free to travelers for overnight stays. Search for "shelter." These cabins, usually unlocked, provide shelter with the option for bivouacking and campfires. At campgrounds, the welcome is perfect. A kitchen is available with a gas stove, oven, microwave, and table. The west wind can slow you down, but if you’re doing a loop, you’ll have it at some point. The beaches are great for swimming. The water is shallow and warms up quickly. I also used the same maps, but I hike with a GPS where I download my pre-planned route. You can find my routes on Openrunner by searching for "syluella" or "Denmark." You can buy vegetables and fruit from roadside stands run by locals—quality guaranteed. Here’s an excerpt from my road book for the part that might interest you:

DENMARK

Camping 5.5 Bellajoj Camping COPENHAGEN 5.5 Fredericksberg Park

7.5 Carlsberg (beer)

8 Cykelslangen (oVo bridge over the harbor)

14 City Hall

14 Tivoli Amusement Park

14.5 Astronomical Clock (near City Hall)

15.8 Marble Bridge

17.3 Nyhavn Port (iconic Denmark photo spot—old ships)

19 Rundetårn (Round Tower)

20 Rosenborg Slot (castle—park)

21 Amalienborg Slot (New Royal Square)—changing of the guard at noon

22.9 The Little Mermaid (Copenhagen’s emblem)

24 Monument

Leaving Copenhagen

29 oVo 01 REGION SJAELLAND

Follow the east coast north. Hørsholm

Helsingør 70 Kronborg Castle end oVo

82 Lake Gurre Sø—bivouac possible Fredensborg 91 Castle—park open to the public Hillerød 100 Frederiksborg Castle—free park

173 oVo 04 - 06 Roskilde 180 European Rock Festival in June—cathedral (built in brick)—Viking Ship Museum

201 oVo 9 Køge 230 Medieval town (half-timbered houses)

238 Vallø Castle—entry forbidden except for the park

262 Viewpoint—lighthouse Stevns Klint 265 Cliff

268 Military battery

272 Military battery REGION MØN, FALSTER, AND LOLLAND

2 332 Queen Alexandrine Bridge Island of Møn 334 oVo 08

363 Møns Klint (cliff)

364 Take the stairs down to the beach

389 Leave oVo 08 Island of Bogø 416

418 Take a ferry. Departures every hour between 9:15 AM and 6:15 PM Island of Falster 442

Stubbekøbing 442

NYKØBING F 459

475 Brewery—waterfront Island of Lolland 483

Maribo 491 End oVo 08

496 Monastery—Lakeside

500 End Denmark 01, elevation gain 1575 m Tårs 547 Ferry REGION FUNEN

oVo 08 Island of Langeland 563 Scenic route Tranekær 580 Brightly painted houses—bright red castle

589

Rudkøbing 592 Leave the island via a bridge Island of Tåsinge 598

Svendborg 611

613 Wooden sailboat in the harbor

Take a ferry (1h15 trip—9 to 11 departures per day. Crossing: 24 km) Island of Ærø

A beer is brewed on the island: Rise Bryggeri. Ærøboking 637 Explore the streets (old half-timbered houses—rearview mirrors on windows to see the street without moving) No. 37 Smedegade: small house

641 Leave oVo 08 for 12 km

Thanks so much for the info! I’ll look into this carefully, with a clear head and map in hand... I won’t hesitate to reach out if any other questions come up... but we’ve got plenty of time to figure things out before July! Best, Pierre

Hi Jacqpat,

I’m also heading to Denmark for 3 weeks and plan to cover about 1000 km. I’d love to hear about your 800 km route in the south of Denmark. Which part did you prefer—the South, the west coast, or the north?

Elisabeth

Hi, If you're interested, I can share (via private email) 6 GPS tracks for a roughly 800 km loop I did in 2012 in the south of the country, including several ferry crossings. It was my second biking trip in Denmark. Back in 2003, I’d already done a full loop of the country, starting on the west coast. It really is a biking paradise—routes are perfectly marked, and the wild camping spots... wow, it’s honestly some of the best in Europe! If you search the forum, you’ll find lots of tips and useful links on the topic, but I’m happy to help with any other details if I can. Patrick

Hi Pierre,

How are you planning to get to Denmark? By boat, car, or plane?

Thanks, have a great day

Hi Gene, While nothing is really decided yet (routes, dates, and the trip from Brittany to Denmark...), it's very likely we'll go there by plane: - The train seems quite complicated. - Driving is expensive (based on "Via Michelin" estimates), and on top of that, we'd need to find a place to leave the car for 3 weeks... - We have Nantes Airport, 150 km from home, which offers several regular flights per week from Nantes to Copenhagen (EasyJet has reasonable fares and interesting "sports equipment allowance" deals, including bikes for 49 € per bike per trip if you book in advance). We’ve done this before for Budapest-Nantes and Bucharest-Nantes when we did the EuroVelo 6. Just make sure to pack the bikes properly according to the airline’s requirements and don’t get caught out by the maximum weight limits! Best, Pierre

Hi there, Just a quick note to mention that the two times I’ve biked in Denmark, I drove there by car for practicality and flexibility (you know when you leave but not when you’ll be back—at least that’s how it is for me). Both times, I left my car in a public parking lot in a small village along my planned route. The first time, 19 days, and the second, 11 days, and nothing bad happened to my vehicle. In fact, the first person I asked if I could leave my car there during my bike tour looked at me like I was a bit odd, pointing to the parking lot behind me. That said, everyone’s experience is different, and as for the carbon footprint...

You can also manage with a campsite—we did that in Stockholm to visit the Åland archipelago and Finland. Patrick

Reply to Eligal.... My itinerary in southern Denmark roughly matched the one described in this guide published by Esterbauer: https://www.esterbauer.com/db_detail.php?buecher_code=OSTDAN The description is in German, but the maps are very precise. Personally, I preferred the west coast because it’s wilder, with long, almost deserted sandy beaches, perfect and well-located bivouac spots. There’s also an Esterbauer guide for that area: (https://www.esterbauer.com/db_detail.php?buecher_code=NORD4) However, if you follow the bike route strictly, it takes—or used to take—a lot of unpaved and gravel paths that aren’t very smooth. That said, things may have changed since 2003. Following the great tips from other cyclists who’d done the route the year before, I started from the south and headed north to have the wind at my back—worked like a charm! Patrick

Hi Patrick, I really take your points about the car option to heart. We still haven’t made our final choice yet. As always, there are pros and cons! 😉 When it comes to security for parking the car, we’re not worried—the Denmark is known for its "safety." That said, when we traveled to Holland, we had to park the car in a paid parking lot (at the campsite in Bruges, our starting point). What’s making us hesitate is the distance and the time + fatigue + accommodation: almost 2000 km from our place to Copenhagen. That’s less time we’d have to actually visit the country. As for the carbon footprint, of course we’re not indifferent to it, but to "console ourselves," we tell ourselves that if there are 200 passengers on the plane and they all decided to go there by car, that would mean at least 100 cars driving 1800 km… Not great either, right? ! Enough joking around… We’ll see… we’re still thinking it over. Best regards, Pierre

Hello, Just a quick message to clarify that both times I’ve driven in Denmark, I went by car for practicality and flexibility (you know when you leave but not when you’ll finish—well, that’s how it is for me anyway). Both times, I left my car in a public parking lot in a small village along my planned route. The first time, 19 days, and the second, 11 days, without anything bad happening to my vehicle. In fact, the first person I asked if I could leave my car during my bike tour looked at me like I was a bit crazy, pointing to the parking lot behind me. That said, everyone’s experience is different, and as for the carbon footprint……… You can also manage with a campsite—we did that in Stockholm to get to the Åland archipelago and Finland. Patrick

We have the double Denmark map at 1/150,000° by Freytag & Berndt; it shows bike routes and campgrounds (which is already great!), but it’s not very practical for biking. Our experience in the Netherlands with "road" maps that quickly fell apart in the rain showed the limits of these documents...

Plan the route on your computer to generate the GPX file and follow it with a smartphone/dedicated GPS, possibly placed in a plastic cover when it rains.

As a backup, there’s at least one "paper" map of Denmark made with durable material, the National Geographic one.

For campgrounds, Archie’s.

Hello, We’re planning a bike trip in Denmark in July. I’d be interested in your route. I’ve heard that the bike routes aren’t that great (there are bike paths, but they run alongside major roads). Did your route follow those kinds of roads, or did you stick to quiet back roads? We have gravel bikes, so trails don’t scare us off. Things may have changed since you were there. Thanks for your reply

Hi! Do you still have the GPS tracks from your biking trip in Denmark? I’d be interested in them. Thanks for your reply