Tivoli Gardens

About Tivoli Gardens

Tivoli Gardens opened in 1843, which makes it one of the oldest amusement parks still running anywhere in the world. It sits right in the middle of Copenhagen, next to the main train station on Vesterbrogade, so you can walk in from most of the city center in a few minutes. It's part amusement park, part landscaped garden, with flower beds, small lakes, and tree-lined paths threaded between the rides and the food stalls. The mix is the whole point: you can ride a roller coaster and then sit by the water listening to a free concert twenty minutes later.

The rides range from gentle carousels for small children to fast modern coasters, but the one most people come for is the Rutschebanen, a wooden coaster built in 1914 that still has a brakeman riding along to control the speed. Individual rides usually need ride tickets or a wristband on top of park admission, so it's worth deciding in advance whether you're there mainly to walk the gardens or to spend the day on rides. There's plenty to eat, from quick bites to sit-down restaurants, and free live music and theater run through the day at various spots around the grounds.

Tivoli Gardens isn't open all year in the same form. It runs a regular summer season and then reopens for its two big seasonal events, Halloween in autumn and Christmas in winter, when the whole park is decorated to match. Because opening dates shift from year to year, it's worth checking the current season and hours before you plan a visit. General admission gets you into the park and the gardens; the rides are the part that costs extra.