DK Denmark: how to get around

Long-distance bus-service between Jutland and Copenhagen used to be a matter of preference rather than cost, but a number of low cost bus lines have begun crossing the country at much lower prices, albeit also at a much more limited schedule.

• Abildskou is the established long distance operator with up to 9 departures each day to various cities in Jutland. Most departures uses a fast ferry connection across the Kattegat sea. Prices range from 150 kr for a limited number of discounted tickets, to 300 kr for a regular ticket.
• Rød Billet Tickets range between 99-180 kr, but departures are limited to 1-4 per day. Crosses the Great Belt bridge.

The primary Danish train company is DSB. Many feeder lines for the principal train line in eastern Jutland are now operated by British company Arriva, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn. Some small rail lines are operated by other regional companies. DSB also operates the S-Tog commuter rail system around the Greater Copenhagen area. Interrail passes are valid on all DSB and Arriva trains. Danish trains are very comfortable and very modern, but journeys on them can get very expensive. To ensure on-time departure, the doors of the trains are closed up to 1 minute prior to departure. Tickets can be purchased at station ticket offices, DSB 7-Elevens, from vending machines in the stations and via DSB's app or website. Most regional and long distance trains have 230 V power outlets. Free Wi-Fi is available on all IC/ICL trains, and on some Regional trains.

All passengers must have tickets or passes purchased prior to boarding the train; fare inspectors check tickets, and tickets are not sold on board. Not having a valid ticket or pass subjects a passenger to a penalty fare (kontrolafgift) and/or being asked to leave the train. DSB accepts penalty fare payments on-line via bank transfers; violators must also pay for any bank fees.

If you are not travelling on a rail pass, try looking for an Orange or Orange Fri ticket. These are a limited number of heavily discounted tickets that are available on most departures but valid only on the train service specified. If you purchased Orange Fri ticket but wish to travel at a different time other than what is specified, you need to cancel the original ticket then purchase a new one (a higher fare may apply). They can only be purchased on DSB's website or in the DSB app, and popular departures tend to sell out well in advance. Senior citizen tickets (65-billet) and youth tickets (Ungdomsbillet) offer 25% discount (not always available for short journeys) on all departures.

The express trains marked as ICL (InterCity-Lyntog, or simply Lyntog – meaning 'lightning train') are the fastest, but also the most popular, so seat reservations are highly advisable. Ordinary InterCity trains are generally less crowded, and the time difference is often negligible on trips of an hour or less.

First-class service is available on many InterCity and regional trains. Although the seats are at first glance similar to second/standard class, first-class seats on InterCity trains come in a 1-2 configuration. First-class passengers also get access to DSB Lounges when departing on an InterCity service from Copenhagen, Aarhus, or Aalborg (subject to opening hours).

Although the rail network had been neglected for decades with both the overall network density and electrification below the standards of Denmark's northern and – especially – southern neighbours, there has been a lot of investment since about the 1990s. Among other things the connection to Germany is planned for upgrade and expansion with a new tunnel across the Fehmarn Belt to open around 2030.

There's generally no sale of food or beverages onboard Danish trains except on intercity trains to/from Germany, as well as complimentary light refreshments for first class passengers on intercity trains. It's advisable to buy something to eat and drink before longer journeys.

The only way get to most of the smaller islands is by ferry. There are 55 domestic ferry routes in the country. The most important ferry company is Molslinjen.

Ferries are the best way to get to Bornholm, a Danish island in the Baltic Sea, although it also can be reached by plane. Combined train and ferry tickets can be purchased on DSB's website. Through tickets are available between Copenhagen and Rønne (booking is mandatory). There is also a bus that serves this route: Gråhund Bus 886 from Copenhagen to Ystad, where it links with the ferry to Bornholm.

• Taxi 4x27, ☏ +45 27 27 27 27. Works in Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense. Svendborg, Frederikshavn, Kolding and Sønderborg.
• Dantaxi +45 48 48 48 48

As of 2023, ride-share services like Uber are not legal in Denmark. Most larger taxi companies have apps that can be used to request cabs Uber-style, and some also offer up-front fixed fares. Officially registered taxis can be recognized by the numbers 98 and 99 as the first two digits in the vehicle registration plate.

Driving in Denmark between cities is very easy, with well-maintained roads everywhere. Danes generally drive by the rules, but may not be very helpful to other drivers in ceding right of way, etc. and stick very rigid to keep to their rights. There are no toll-roads except the two big bridges: Storebæltsbroen between Zealand and Funen (215 kr one way), and Øresundsbron between Copenhagen and Malmö (235 kr one way).

Touring Denmark by car can be a wonderful experience and highly recommended. Margueritruten, the Marguerite Route, is a 4200-km-long connected route of small scenic roads passing around a thousand major and minor Danish attractions. It is marked by brown signs with the white Marguerite Daisy flower and is also marked on most road maps.

Unless otherwise posted, speed limits are 130 km/h (80 mph) on the motorways, 80 km/h (50 mph) outside build-up areas and 50 km/h (30 mph) in build-up areas. Vehicles with caravans or trailers as well as trucks are limited to 80 km/h on motorways, 70 km/h on roads outside build-up areas and 50 km/h in build-up areas, even though other speed limits may be indicated. Speeding occurs frequently, especially on motorways, though dedicated efforts by the Danish police on speeding, has made more people aware of speed limits. Trucks in Denmark generally do about 90 km/h on motorways and trucks overtaking each other on long stretches of motorway (colloquially known as elephant races) occurs frequently.

Fines ranges between 500 kr and 10,000 kr and a driving ban in Denmark.

Wearing seat belts in cars and vans is compulsory (if fitted), and children under 135 cm and or under 3 years of age, must use approved safety seating devices adapted to their height and weight.

Headlights must be switched on when driving at all times (and dipped during sun hours), regardless of weather conditions or whether it is a night or day, so switch them on.

Drivers and passengers of motorcycles and mopeds must all wear full face helmets.

Though required under law, little use is made of indicators on roundabouts, so generally if the car is not indicating it is leaving the roundabout, give way as it is invariable going round. When changing between lanes on motorways, use of turn signals prior to and during the lane change is mandatory.

On open roads, especially those with an accompanying cycle path, expect drivers turning right to come to an almost dead stop to check that they are not cutting in front of a cyclist, even if there is no way even an Olympic cyclist could appear from nowhere on an entirely cycle free horizon.

Right turn on red is not permitted.

Denmark allow drivers to have 0.05 percent alcohol in the bloodstream while driving (for most people this is equivalent to having consumed one drink or less), and Danish police is very aware of possible drunken drivers. Fine is calculated as (percent of alcohol in blood) × 10 × (your monthly salary before tax).

Watch out for the bicycles in the cities, especially when turning across bicycle lanes, the bicycles always have right of way. Special care should be taken at Roundabouts! Cyclists in general seem suicidal to drivers from other countries, as they will not look, or slow down if turning onto the road in front of you. After sunset, lights on bikes seem to be voluntary - especially in the bigger cities - even though it is in fact compulsory.

You must always carry your driving license, vehicle registration document, and certificate of motor insurance in the car. It is compulsory to have a warning triangle in the car, and to use it if you experience breakdowns on highways or on regular roads where you are not able to move your car out of the way.

The road signs in Europe differ substantially from those in the Americas. The warning signs are triangular but have symbols that should be understandable. These are some European signs that could need explanation for foreign visitors.

As of 1 October 2023 low emission zones have been introduced in Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Odense, Aarhus and Aalborg. Diesel-powered vehicles must have a particulate filter or be at least Euro 5 in order to be used legally in the low emission zones. Foreign registered vehicles must register with documentation for the vehicle being fitted with a diesel particulate filter or the Euro standard in order for it to be used legally in the low emission zones. Passenger cars with first registration date after 1 September 2016 meet the low emission zones requirements and do not need to be registered (later cutoff-dates apply for larger vehicles). There is an administrative fee of kr 1,500 of not registering the vehicle when applicable. More about the low emission zones.

Ease of driving inside cities is a different story. Congestion in and around the major cities, especially during rush hours, can be a trial for some people. If you are in your own car, it is wise to park it in a convenient central place and walk or use public transport, bike or taxi to get around the big cities. Most parking areas requires the use of parking discs/parking clock faces (in Danish parkeringsskiver or "P-skiver" in short) which must be placed in the passenger side of the front window, with the clock facing out of the window and the hour hand set to the time you park (there is no minute hand). The rules state that the hour hand should be set to the next "full" quarter of an hour. If you for instance arrive at 13:16 at a parking space with 30 minutes parking you should set the parking disc to 13:30, and you will only be due back at your car at 14:00.

Some places require a parking ticket from a nearby parking ticket vending machine to be placed in the car, in the lower passenger side of the dash-board, readable from outside the car. Some more modern parking ticket systems allow the purchase of parking tickets using text-messages from cell-phones, though this can be a very expensive affair from foreign numbers. The majority of the parking ticket vending machines accepts international credit and debit cards, however this is still a large quantity that only accepts Danish national credit cards or coins. In some areas, especially in the Copenhagen area, have vending machines with different parking coverage. In this case the coverage is indicated with a map on left or right side of the machine. Be sure to check that the machine actually covers the area you have parked.

Renting a car is a convenient, efficient and though relatively expensive way to explore Denmark, especially if you intend to visit more remote areas, where train and bus services may be less frequent. Prices starts about 400 kr/day at the big car rental chains, but with limited mileage, typically 100 km per lease and an additional 25 km/day. It is not uncommon for the car rental chains to require the drivers to be at the age of 21 or higher and require that payment be done with an international credit card.

If you are not a resident of Denmark you can rent a tax-free car at major companies from approx 230 kr per day with free mileage. If you order online, make sure that you are not booking as a resident of Denmark.

Be aware that Denmark is no exception to the widespread scam of adding hidden charges to your car rental bill, and not including services like auto assistance. Also, unlike other goods and services, quoted car rental rates may not include the 25% VAT or sales tax for purchases by private people. Carefully read the rental agreement before you accept your car.

If you need auto assistance, you should generally inquire with your insurance company, as they will usually have made arrangements with a local company. If they have not, try one of the following companies, but expect to pay €100-300 for a simple service like towing to nearest shop.

• Falck, ☏ +45 70 10 20 30.
• Dansk Autohjælp, ☏ +45 70 10 80 90.

Danish campgrounds (like most others in Western Europe) usually offer a full range of amenities. You always have your own electricity hookup, and water and sanitary dump stations are common. Every campground has restrooms and showers as well as kitchens, washing-machines and a spin dryer.

Most sites dedicated to recreational vehicles are found at harbours and marinas (an effect of complicated Danish regulations). But there are a lot of marinas in Denmark. Some are close to historical city centres, some are bustling with activity in the summer and have lots of bars, cafes, live music, markets, etc. Some are very remote and isolated and you will only meet other campers and maybe a sailor or fisher. The sites are located on boatyards used to store boats in the winter and RVs are treated as visiting boats. You pay using the same payment terminal at harbour master office as the sailors. You get access to the same services, usually toilets, showers, laundry, internet, water, electricity. Usually you can dump waste from chemical toilets and often, but not always grey water. At some marinas you get access to the premises of the local sailing club including kitchens, BBQs, etc. In the winter there are only a few pitches, if any, available, and the drinking water is most likely turned off to avoid frost damages.

Some cities has created free RV sites, usually outside developed areas. Some have access to toilets, but usually no other services.

RVs are allowed to park, also overnight, wherever car parking is allowed as long as they fit in parking spaces and do there is no camping activity such as tenting, bbq-ing, etc.

Sanitary dump stations with public access are mostly found at motorway service areas.

Biking in Denmark is, in general, safe and easy. Drivers are used to bikes everywhere, and all major cities have dedicated, curbed bike lanes along the main streets. Denmark is quite flat, but can be windy, cold or wet on a bike. Bikes are generally allowed on trains (separate ticket sometimes needed).

Biking on the expressways (Danish: motorvej) is prohibited, and this also includes the Great Belt Bridge and the Øresund Bridge. Trains can be used between Nyborg and Korsør and between Copenhagen and Malmö, if you need to cross the bridges.

Official marked routes across the country can be found on Waymarked Trails.

It is quite easy to hitchhike in Denmark. People who pick up hitchhikers usually speak English.

Destination boards are recommended. For safety reasons, it is illegal to hitchhike on the expressways; use the on ramps and service areas. When crossing by ferry, try to get into a car that already paid for the ticket.

If you hitchhike from the southern part of Denmark (direction from Hamburg or Kiel, Germany), and continue in direction to Copenhagen, make sure the driver does not stop in Kolding. If they do, ask them to stop at the last gas station before Kolding. On the Kolding expressway crossing there is no place to hitchhike and it is one of the worst places in Europe for hitchhikers.

Check out the Tips for hitchhiking article here on Wikivoyage if you are new to hitchhiking.

Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian operate domestic routes, both of them either from or to Copenhagen Airport. There are no domestic routes between regional airports, but some islands are served by the Roskilde airport. Since most of the country's airports were built as military airfields during the Second World War, they are often inconveniently located far from town centres, which, as a general rule, makes train travel nearly as fast from town centre to town centre for destinations less than 3 hours by train from Copenhagen. For destinations further afield, trains will often get you where you want to go a lot cheaper. Competition is heavy and it is sometimes possible to find plane tickets cheaper than the train if you book well ahead of your planned departure or can travel at off-peak hours. This is especially true for the Copenhagen–Aalborg v.v. route which has the most competition.

Airports with domestic traffic are: Copenhagen, Billund, Aarhus, Aalborg, Karup, Sønderborg and Bornholm.

Some of the more remote islands, if there is any such thing in a country as small as Denmark, also sees regular taxi flights from Roskilde airport to their small airfields, on-board small propeller aircraft. The most trafficked route are between Roskilde and the islands of Læsø and Anholt, where there are daily flights bookable on-line or by phone. These flights tend to be fairly expensive though, with the price hovering around 1,000 kr for a one-way ticket.