Booking, tickets and opening days
The practical questions people ask before a museum day in Copenhagen: how tickets work, what they cost, whether the city pass pays off, which museums are free, and how the day trips fit in.
How does booking through this site work?
This site does not sell tickets. When you tap a ticketed museum's button, it opens that museum's own ticket page or the listing it sells through, and you book there at the live price. Nothing is charged on this site, and your price is the same as reaching that page directly.
Do I need to book museum tickets in advance?
For the big-draw museums on a busy day, yes. Places like Rosenborg, Christiansborg and the Blue Planet sell timed-entry slots that can run out at peak times, so holding a slot ahead is worth it. Smaller museums rarely need it. The Round Tower is the one exception you cannot book ahead at all, since it sells tickets at the door only.
Which Copenhagen museums are actually free?
Only one major museum is genuinely free to everyone, all year: the David Collection, with its world-class Islamic art near the King's Garden. Older guides still call SMK, the National Museum and Frilandsmuseet free, but all three now charge adults, though anyone under 18 still enters free. Thorvaldsens Museum is free for everyone on the last Wednesday of each month.
How much do museum tickets cost?
Most adult tickets fall between about 60 and 260 kroner. The Round Tower is around 60, the palaces and art museums mostly sit between 125 and 225 depending on the museum and how much of it you include, and the Blue Planet aquarium is the priciest at roughly 220 to 260. Under-18s enter free at essentially every major paid museum, which changes the math for families.
Is the Copenhagen Card worth it?
It can be, if you move at a museum-heavy pace. The card bundles entry to more than 80 attractions with unlimited public transport, priced by length from about 589 kroner for 24 hours up to 1,419 for 120 hours. Two or three paid museums plus your transport in a day usually cover the daily cost; a slow trip with one museum a day rarely does.
What is the difference between the Copenhagen Card and the City Pass?
The City Pass is transport only: it covers the buses, the Metro and the trains across the zones, but gets you into no museums. The Copenhagen Card bundles both the attractions and the transport. If you have already sorted your museum tickets and just need to ride, the City Pass is the cheaper tool; if you want entry plus travel on one card, the Copenhagen Card is the one.
Does the Copenhagen Card cover the day-trip museums?
Yes, for the coastal ones north of the city. The card includes the regional trains out to Humlebaek for the Louisiana museum, Hillerod for Frederiksborg Castle and Helsingor for Kronborg Castle, along with entry to all three. The one museum on this site it does not cover is the Blue Planet aquarium, which is left off the card, so buy that ticket separately.
Which museums close on Mondays?
Most of the art museums shut on Mondays: SMK, the Glyptotek, Thorvaldsens, ARKEN and Louisiana all close. Plenty stay open, though, so a Monday is not a write-off. The National Museum, Christiansborg, the Blue Planet, Experimentarium, the Round Tower and Frederiksborg Castle all run on Mondays.
Can I visit the Louisiana museum as a day trip?
Easily. The coastal train from Copenhagen Central reaches Humlebaek in about 40 minutes, then it is a 10 to 15 minute walk to the museum. Louisiana pairs modern art with a sculpture park looking across the Oresund to Sweden. It closes on Mondays, and the Copenhagen Card covers both the train and admission.
Are children's tickets free?
At essentially every major paid museum in the city, anyone under 18 enters free, including the National Museum, SMK, Rosenborg, the Glyptotek, Christiansborg and Amalienborg. You may still need to add a free child ticket when you book a timed slot. Family science stops like Experimentarium and the Blue Planet charge a reduced rate for young children rather than nothing.