Villa Copenhagen - This Danish Grand Hotel Brings Contemporary Cool To a Grand Historic Building

Villa Copenhagen, set in a 1912 landmark near Tivoli Gardens, blends Gothic grandeur with Scandi-modern style. This 390-room hotel features a rooftop pool and chic interiors.

Historic red-brick facade of Villa Copenhagen — Villa Copenhagen

By Jennifer Barger

Why it works

Hotel Snapshot

You can hear the happy shrieks of roller-coaster riders at Tivoli Gardens from the rooftop pool at Villa Copenhagen. That’s how close the 390-key hotel is to the center of the Danish capital. Carved out of a grand 1912 building that once held the central post office, the Villa’s castle-like Gothic exterior shelters Scandi-modern interiors updated for 21st--century comfort.

Design & Character

Renovated and reimagined in 2020 by Scandinavian hotel impresario Petter Stordalen, the hotel centers around an outsized, sociable lobby with a faceted glass roof that filters in sunlight. London’s Universal Design Studio outfitted the public and private spaces with warmly modern Scandinavian furnishings, fixtures, and art. Environmental impact matters here, exemplified by a pool heated with waste energy and the Earth Suite, a chic two-room bolt hole with walls plastered in recycled crushed bricks and outfitted with its own bike for zipping around cycle-mad Copenhagen.

Villa Copenhagen rooftop pool beside the former central post office — Villa Copenhagen

The Room

Herringboned wood floors, high ceilings, and pale-colored upholstery (chalky rose, morning sky blue) bring Nordic cool to private spaces. On the top floor, some guest rooms and suites are tucked under the slanted roof, making them extra atmospheric. Subtle touches—luggage storage drawers under the beds, potted plants placed on the deep window sills—up the sense of hygge (a Danish term for coziness and comfort).

Bright Villa Copenhagen guest room with Scandinavian furnishings — Villa Copenhagen

Amenities

Copenhagen apothecary Skandinavisk produces the pine-scented lotions, shampoo, and other potions stocked in guestrooms. Rooms are outfitted with plush bathrobes, which you’ll need to dash up to the pool and its adjacent reservations-only sauna. Or unwind to free DJ sets in the lobby bar each Tuesday and Friday night.

Dark tiled bathroom with a freestanding tub at Villa Copenhagen — Villa Copenhagen

Food + Drink Situation

A Scandinavian breakfast buffet (think lots of smoked fish and fresh berries) is served in a lower-level space where mail was once sorted. By early evening, the Lobby Bar buzzes with locals and visitors sprawled on leather sofas. (You’re ordering the addictive French fries and whatever beer that’s on tap from local brewery WarPigs.) Villa Copenhagen is a short stroll from Kødbyen, a vintage meatpacking neighborhood that’s now home to beef-forward restaurant and butcher Fleisch and Kødbyens Fiskebar for oysters, inventive seafood dishes, and natural wines.

Breakfast spread with croissants and plated dishes at Villa Copenhagen — Villa Copenhagen

Location + Neighborhood Recs

Villa Copenhagen sits steps from the city’s central train and Tivoli Gardens, an amusement park open since 1843. It’s also on the border with Vesterbro, a hip zone of converted warehouses and butcher’s shops now known for nightlife, galleries, and restaurants. Stop by the Mikkeller Bar for made-on-site beers in a white-walled space decked with local art or explore Scandi home design at the DANSK Made for Rooms store.

Villa Copenhagen entrance on a city street near Copenhagen Central Station — Villa Copenhagen

Fast Facts

Location: Copenhagen, Denmark

The vibe: Grand history outside, quiet luxury inside

Food + drink: You can have drinks in the lobby bar, by the pool, or at T37, a boite serving cocktails and snacks in a space where postal workers once hung out.

Amenities: A rooftop pool, small sauna, and bikes for rent.

Our favorite part of the hotel: Catching the nightly fireworks shows over Tivoli Gardens while snuggling in your room or lounging on the pool deck.

What’s nearby? Tivoli Gardens, the central train station, and the Vesterbro neighborhood with its bars and restaurants are all a short walk away.

Any personal neighborhood recs? A few blocks from the hotel, the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek museum shows off Danish paintings and ancient Greek and Roman sculptures in a grandiose building with an indoor garden.

Rooms: 390 rooms and suites

Pricing: $240 and up

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