Two canal tour companies ply the waters of Copenhagen, but don't get in each others' way, literally, because they take different routes in the shallow canals that ring the city. For our tour on an unusually warm and sunny day in October, we settled on Canal Tours Copenhagen (www.stromma.com). For a mere 99 DKK (about $15) you are treated to a 60 minute tour starting from either Nyhavn (literally, "new canal") or The Strand. We started from Nyhavn, pictured above.
Each boat has a captain and a hostess. The hostess earns her salary by keeping us in our seats. Really, we have to stay in our seats because the boat passes under bridges so low if you stood up you'd be decapitated. Not a good way to leave this earth. Our hostess had to speak sharply to rowdies in the back of the boat several times to PLEASE sit down. The captain earns his salary by navigating under these bridges. In the picture above, we are about to pass under the narrowest and lowest of these bridges. So narrow, it's been lined with rubber.
But if you stay in your seat and keep your arms in, you will be treated to fabulous water level views of the city. My favorite was Christianhavn (Christian's canal) named after one of the King Christians (can't recall which one). People in this district live in housebouts lining the canal. Many were lounging out on their decks, and four young men, Carlsberg beer at hand, sat on the canal edge, and jovially waved at us, while a couple glided past on paddle boards. This perhaps expresses best the Danish ethos of "hygge" which, to translate, means a quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being, regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture. (Note: To help you remember that term, there is a shop by that exact name on the Strøget where you can get a sweatshirt, t-shirt or bag emblazoned with the term.)
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