Is the S-train Included in the Copenhagen Card?
Yes. The Copenhagen Card covers the S-train across all zones 1 to 99, plus the Metro, the airport line and the regional trains out to the castle museums. Here is the full transport picture.
By Anders Nielsen, Copenhagen Museums Specialist & Cultural Guide
The red S-tog trains are the backbone of getting around greater Copenhagen, running from the centre out to the suburbs and the castle towns. Visitors holding a Copenhagen Card often stand on the platform unsure whether their pass actually works on them, or whether the S-train is somehow separate from the buses and Metro. It is not separate, and knowing that unlocks a good chunk of the card's value.
Is the S-train included in the Copenhagen Card?
Yes. The Copenhagen Card includes unlimited travel on the S-train across the entire Capital Region, zones 1 to 99, alongside the Metro, city and regional buses, harbour buses and regional trains. There is no separate ticket and no zone surcharge. The same pass moves you everywhere the region's public transport reaches.
So you can tap through any S-train gate on the card without a second thought, the same way you would board a bus or the Metro. The transport coverage is one of the card's quietly strong features, because it reaches far beyond the tourist core and out to the towns where some of the best museums sit. Let me lay out exactly what travels free, then which museums it opens up.
What other public transport does the card cover?
All of it, within zones 1 to 99. The Copenhagen Card covers the S-train, the driverless Metro, city and regional buses, the harbour buses that run up and down the waterfront, and the regional trains that head out of the city. One card, every mode, no add-ons, for as long as the card is valid.
The card treats the whole regional network as one system, which is how the local transport actually works. You are not buying a train pass or a bus pass separately; you are buying access to every mode inside the zones. That means you can ride the Metro to dinner, hop a harbour bus along the water for the view, and take the S-train back to your hotel, all on the same tap.
| Transport mode | Included with the Copenhagen Card? |
|---|---|
| S-train (S-tog), all zones 1 to 99 | Yes |
| Metro lines | Yes |
| Airport Metro to and from Copenhagen Airport | Yes |
| City and regional buses | Yes |
| Harbour buses along the waterfront | Yes |
| Regional trains to the castle towns | Yes, within zones 1 to 99 |
The harbour buses are the pleasant surprise here. They run as normal public transport, so the card covers them, but they double as a cheap sightseeing cruise past the Opera House and the new library. Riding one along the water is one of the best free things a card-holder can do, and it costs nothing beyond the pass you already carry, no separate boat ticket required. You can confirm the full transport coverage on the card's free public transport page.
Does the card cover the airport Metro?
Yes, and it can start the moment you land. The Metro line linking Copenhagen Airport to the city centre is inside the card's zones, so the ride into town is included. Activate your card at the airport and the very first trip, into the centre, is already paid for.
This is one of the most practical uses of the pass. The airport sits at the end of a Metro line that runs straight to the middle of the city, and because that route falls within the covered zones, a card-holder rides it free both on arrival and on the way back to catch a flight. For a family, the saving on airport transfers alone is meaningful.
Timing the activation matters a little. The card counts down from the first use, so if you land late and only want the airport ride that night, it can be smarter to start the card the next morning and buy that single airport fare separately. On a normal daytime arrival, though, activating at the airport and riding straight in is the simplest move. VisitCopenhagen's travel pages keep the current airport transport details.
How do the S-train, Metro and regional trains differ?
They are three separate rail systems that the card treats as one. The S-train is the red suburban network linking the centre to the inner suburbs and towns like Hillerod. The Metro is the driverless city line, including the airport branch. The regional trains run longer distances up the coast. All three sit inside zones 1 to 99, so one card rides them all.
Knowing which is which saves confusion at the platform, because the signs and the maps use different colours and letters. The S-train, or S-tog, shows up as lettered lines on red trains and covers most of what a visitor needs within greater Copenhagen. The Metro runs more often and later, especially useful at night, and its M2 line is the one that reaches the airport.
The regional trains are the workhorses for the longer coastal runs, and they are the ones you take toward Helsingor and Humlebaek. For a traveller, the practical point is that you do not have to care which system a given trip uses. If both your start and end fall within the covered zones, the card handles it, and every station in central Copenhagen and its castle towns does.
Which family museum can you reach by S-train?
The Experimentarium, the city's big hands-on science centre, sits at Hellerup about 15 minutes out on the train. The card covers the ride, and the centre is on its attractions list, so entry is included too. For families facing a grey day, it is the easiest rewarding trip the S-train opens up.
Hellerup is close enough that the journey barely registers, which makes the Experimentarium a low-effort win when the weather turns. The centre packs sixteen interactive zones across several floors, a giant tesla coil and a well-known spiral staircase, and children tend to lose track of time in it. Because it is fully indoor, it shrugs off rain that would ruin a castle day.
This is the kind of trip that shows why the card's transport reach matters beyond the headline sights. A family can ride out on the same pass they use downtown, spend a full afternoon, and ride back, all without a separate ticket. To hold a slot at peak times, book the Experimentarium ahead and check availability for your date.
Which museums can you reach on the S-train with the card?
The strongest is Frederiksborg. The S-train runs north to Hillerod in about 40 minutes, and from that station a short hop brings you to the grandest Renaissance castle in Scandinavia. Both the ride and the entry are covered by the card, which turns the S-train into a free shuttle to one of the region's best museums.
The S-train is not just for commuters. Its northern line ends at Hillerod, and from there a short bus or walk brings you to Frederiksborg, sitting on three islets in a lake and holding 500 years of royal portraits. The castle is open every day of the year, Mondays included, which makes it a reliable option when the city's art museums are shut for the week.
That daily opening is a genuine advantage on a Monday, when the Glyptotek, the National Gallery and Louisiana all close their doors. A card-holder can take the S-train out to Hillerod for a full castle visit while other travellers are stuck for options. Book Frederiksborg Castle ahead of a busy weekend and check availability for your date, though the card covers the entry either way.
Does the card cover the trains to the castle day trips?
Yes, all the main ones. The card's zones 1 to 99 stretch to Hillerod for Frederiksborg, Helsingor for Kronborg and Humlebaek for Louisiana, so the regional trains out to each are included. One honest note: the Metro reaches the Blue Planet aquarium at Kastrup too, but that admission is not on the card, even though the ride is.
The castle day trips are where the transport coverage really earns its place. Frederiksborg at Hillerod sits on the S-train, while Kronborg at Helsingor and Louisiana at Humlebaek are on the coastal regional line, and every one of those routes stays inside the covered zones. You ride out, tour a castle whose entry the card also covers, and ride back, paying nothing on the day.
The one thing to keep straight is the difference between transport and entry. The card always covers the ride within the zones, but only covers entry at the attractions on its list. The Blue Planet is the clear example: the Metro out to Kastrup is included, yet the aquarium ticket is not, so you would pay that separately. It is the single most common surprise for card-holders, who reasonably assume that a place the transport reaches must be on the pass. Check any attraction against the official list before you build a day around it, and treat the transport reach and the attraction list as two separate promises. For the full day-trip logic, see my Louisiana day trip guide, and to judge the whole pass, whether the Copenhagen Card is worth it for your trip.