Christianshavn

Lonely Planet review

Christianshavn is Copenhagen's enchanting canal quarter on the eastern flank of Copenhagen. It was established by Christian IV in the early 17th century as a commercial centre and also a military buffer for the expanding city. It's cut with a network of canals, modelled after those in Holland, but is equally famous as the home of the 'free state' of Christiania.

Still surrounded by its old ramparts, Christianshavn today is an appealing mix of standard-issue public housing complexes and elegant period warehouses that have found second lives as upmarket housing and restored government offices. The neighbourhood attracts an interesting mix of boho-chic artists, yuppies, anarchist dropouts and a sizable Greenlandic community. It was the setting for parts of the novel and movie Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow . To get to Christianshavn, you can walk over the copper-toned Knippelsbro from the southeastern part of Slotsholmen or catch bus 2A, 19, 48 or 350S, or take the metro to the stop of the same name.