🚲 transportationing: tips n tricks!

I’m sure by now you’ve heard of how great Copenhagen’s public transportation system is – and it’s true! As Copenhagen is a relatively small city, the farthest I’ve really had to travel throughout the city is ~30-40 minutes, while the average journey between spots takes me 20-25 minutes (for example, from my Kollegium to DIS). Still, there’s much to getting around Copenhagen that isn’t as obvious until you’ve, like me, spent a longer while adjusting to the metro system, and other forms of transportation.

Here’s some insights about transportation in Copenhagen that I think might be useful to share:

METRO

• Always have your ticket ready to show. The metro system here is very much built on a system of trust, where instead of scanning through station gates to board, you simply board without that initial check (at least for DIS students, whose tickets are always available on the DSB phone app).
  • This also means, that when inspectors occasionally and randomly come on board to check tickets, if you don’t have one to show on your phone, you’ll be fined a very hefty sum (~$130)!
  • ^Don’t take this lightly! I’ve heard a few horror stories (lost phones / out of battery phones resulting in fines!), the inspectors can be VERY serious about their job.
• Don’t worry too much about missing your train – during usual hours, the time until the next train that you can get on is only ~2-4 minutes!
• Still, the metro can be unpredictable. I’ve had a few tardy mornings due to the metro lines being unexpectedly closed / halted for a while (although this doesn’t happen too often).

BUSES

• The buses operate on that same ticket system I described above (at least for DIS students), so keep that in mind!
• From personal experience, the metro is always a more reliable option than the bus. Buses can often be delayed, or (especially at night) just never show up! If you have both the bus and metro as options, choose the metro!

BIKING

• I was lucky enough to have a friend lend me a bike for the semester free of charge, and I loved using it!
• To be honest, biking through the city for the first time is pretty scary – I’ve had my fair share of falls and near-crashes. But after a few journeys, you’ll get used to using hand signals, staying on the right side of the bike lane, stopping often at traffic lights, and being ready to move once the light changes from red -> orange (start moving) -> green.
• Lock your bike!
• You can’t use your phone while biking, so a phone holder is super helful!
• When it’s super windy in Copenhagen, biking is more like biking through water, uphill, dragged backwards by weights (not an exaggeration). So just take the metro.

S-TRAINS

• The S-trains run in the Greater Copenhagen area, taking you to the farther suburbs if needed.
• It’s also convenient: this is what I take to visit my cousins near Taastrup (~1 hour journey) and I’ve been able to bring and travel with my bike on board pretty easily!
• These trains have buttons on the doors! Press these to open 🙂

WALKING

• Yes, I’m really giving tips on how to walk through Copenhagen.
• Just be more alert when crossing the road – you know need to watch out now for two lines of traffic: bikes and cars (fun fact: the bikers are scarier!)
• No jaywalking! Danish people follow the crosswalk sign very faithfully (even at the dead of night, when there are no cars / bikes passing through)

Although I’ve had a few mishaps here and there with getting around Copenhagen, I have really come to appreciate the public transportation system here (especially when I’ve visited other cities, e.g. London – which is much bigger and harder to get around). I can pretty easily visit my friends living in another section of Copenhagen, or bike to campus in 15 minutes if necessary.

Still, it’s quite different to be traveling so much vs. on a college campus, where you might be able to just walk 5 minutes back and forth from class to dorm, and spend most of your day within a 2 kilometer radius. It can be quite a big change, but hopefully these tips will help you adjust (for those planning to come to Copenhagen).

Talk to you soon,

— Nat