Copenhagen charmed me with its trendy vibes, cutting-edge eco-architecture, very warm and friendly people, traffic jams of cyclers {not cars}, its focus on sustainability and amazing vegan food (who could have thought?).

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Copenhagen is an interesting city, with a compact downtown area and lots of canals, which makes it easier to explore it on foot. It is built around waterways and has many beautiful parks and gardens, making walking around the city a delight, even in winter.

Honestly, Copenhagen is more of a lifestyle place and is far different from other beautiful capital cities in Europe like Paris, London or Amsterdam. So don't be disappointed if you don't see the colorful buildings all over Copenhagen, as it seems in the pictures, or can't find romantic streets or fancy museums, because there aren't any. Being a Scandinavian city, it is outrageously expensive too.

Yet this city has its charm, and once you explore it, you're most likely going to love it. From the really friendly and good-looking Danes, to a fabulous nightlife (Danes definitely know how to party), expensive but cool shopping, to the various canals - there's just so much I loved about Copenhagen.

Everyone knows Copenhagen is known for its burgeoning dining scene, and the city has a lot going for it when it comes to vegan food too. From plant-based breakfast bowls and Hong-Kong-style bubble waffle bar to authentic Italian pizza, you'd be surprised with amazing vegan food joints Denmark's capital has to offer.

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Things to do in Copenhagen

Every Instagrammer's dream is to get the perfect click at the colourful and iconic Nyhavn waterfront, and it's truly worth it. This longish street with colorful buildings is packed with cafes, bars and restaurants, and is the most picturesque place in Copenhagen. Walk until the end of the harbour, and climb over the bridge. Its a beautiful walk, and another great place for pictures. In fact, even the side streets have some really interesting places so make sure to come here with some time in hand.

Once you've explored Nyhavn, it's time to take a boat tour of this beautiful city in a solar-powered boat by GoBoat. Its a self-guided tour, which means you have to steer the boat yourself and no previous riding experience is required for this. Their boats are sustainable and sail on sun, wind and water energy, making it a unique experience. It accommodates about 8 people and you can carry your own vegan food to make a great picnic out of this.

If you're traveling solo, or want to take a guided tour of the city, I strongly recommend taking the free walking tour of Copenhagen organized by Sandemans. Since I had local friends who took me around the city, I didn't take this tour, but it was highly recommended by my friends. The best way to explore Copenhagen is either biking or walking. From Strøget towards the Royal Library, further to stock exchange building and Nyhavn, passing by various canals and gardens is really how you can sink in the beauty of this city.
While the Little Mermaid often comes in the top tourist attractions in Copenhagen, I recommend skipping it altogether (I surely did). Its supremely overrated and a waste of time. There are so many other great things to do in Copenhagen instead (like strolling around the city, shop or eat).

Spend an evening at Tivoli Gardens, Europe's oldest amusement park. While it's not one of the best amusement parks I've been to, it certainly feels like a wonderland especially in winter when the city is clad in snow.

Nørrebro is the vegan hub of Copenhagen. A hip, multicultural neighborhood, this northern borough is full of places to eat, drink, shop, and explore. It is packed with vegan restaurants, dessert shops, and stylish sustainable fashion stores and secondhand shops including Souls, Sunday Munday, Nice Cream, Plant Power Food, Plads N and others in this district (between Nørreport Station and the lakes of the Dronning Louise Bridge).
No visit to Copenhagen is complete without visiting the Hippie Free Town of Christiania, often known as a weed-smoking "Green Light District". This autonomous anarchist district was set up by the hippies and oddballs in a former military installation about half a century ago. Nowadays, Christiana is a place where cannabis is still freely sold and consumed without interference from the police and has its own rules and regulations completely independent of the Danish government.

Inside many old buildings clad with loud and colorful graffiti, you'll find cool cafes and restaurants in Christiania, including veggie place Morgenstedet. It's a cooperative veggie food cafe run by youths and serves budget-friendly organic meals every day. There are many other food joints housed inside Christiania, like Grønsagen and Café Loppen, where you can find vegan-friendly meals. However, I strongly recommend visiting the plant-based cafe The Organic Boho, located a few meters away from Christiania's main entrance (it is also featured in the best vegan restaurants list below).

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Where to shop

With its focus on sustainability, there's no doubt that you'll be spoilt for choice when it comes to shopping consciously in Copenhagen. There are plenty of sustainable and vegan or vegan-friendly fashion and lifestyle stores in Copenhagen, and many multi-brand stores offer sustainable brands in their collection.

Sustainable fashionistas should definitely visit Be Awear where you will find brands like Ecoalf, Mandala, Knowledge Apparel and even eco-friendly lingerie brands. Its the perfect place to get your hands on warm vegan coats. One of the most popular and my favorite sustainable fashion store in Copenhagen is Res Res. This chic store is perfect for your cool fashion fix and stocks ethical brands like Nudie Jeans (my fav vegan denim brand), Armedangels, Kowtow, Dick Moby (for sunglasses) and Veja (for kicks), among others. The Organic Club for sustainable home and beauty products and for second-hand swaps.

The sustainable concept store Fair Nomad Society is also an interesting place that features mostly Nadinish designers with a focus on handmade items. I loved their upcycled homeware pieces and gorgeous jewelry.

Of course, you would want to visit one of the longest shopping streets in Europe, Strøget. This street is where you'll find all the major retailers from high street to high fashion.  While Stroget is interesting, for shopping I recommend exploring the streets parallel to Stroget, especially Latin Quarter. You'll find cool Scandi designers and interesting boutiques that are far better and hipper than your Zara, H&M or LV. When you are short of time, you can explore the department store Magasin du Nord where you'll find sustainable brands like Knowledge Cotton Apparel, Kat Von D (vegan beauty), and Matt and Nat. It is located towards the end of Strøget, on one of the other main streets.

Do explore Jaegersborggade, one of the hippest and most buzzing streets in Nørrebro district of Copenhagen. This narrow alley features interesting art galleries, organic produce shops, vintage clothes and stylish boutiques.

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Where to eat: Best vegan restaurants in Copenhagen

Copenhagen is truly a foodie's paradise. Although I am not really a foodie, even I couldn't resist treating myself without guilt in the vegan restaurants around the city, and I must say it was by far one of the best vegan food I've ever had. And I have traveled to so-called vegan capitals of the world including Berlin, London, New York and Los Angeles among others. I was glad that most of the restaurants were nice enough to customize the menu to fit my Jain diet, which made it even more exciting!

Here is the list of must-have vegan restaurants in Copenhagen that you absolutely need to visit (favorite first):

Plads'N

What? Vegan Pizzeria and Bar
Where? Blågårdsgade 27, Copenhagen 2200
Contact.? +4571625367
Timing? Mon-Thurs 12.00–22.00, Fri-Sat 12.00–24.00, Sun 14.00-22.00 hrs
Situated in the heart of trendy Nørrebro, Plads'N is definitely my favorite restaurant in town for its amazing food, the most beautiful and delicious pizzas and a great service to match. The owner and head chef Allan is very warm and can customize to every diet. His chef-special Jain and vegan pizza and focaccia bread, customized especially for me, was truly amazing. Honestly, I want to go back to Copenhagen just for this pizza and the vegan cheese croissants I had - the best ever.

Make sure to visit this awesome and quaint Italian restaurant, and do meet the chef Allan (has been successfully running vegan cafes and restaurants for over a decade), he's adorable and super friendly.

Once you've finished the meal, walk down towards the main street to explore the sustainable fashion stores in the area, including Be Aware and Res Res, which are walking distance from Plads'N.

The Organic Boho

What? Organic and healthy vegan cafe
Where? Prinsessegade 23, Copenhagen 1422
Contact.? +4531135002
Timing? Mon-Fri 10.00–21.00, Sat-Sun 10.00-21.00 hrs

You'd be surprised at the trending health food scene in Copenhagen, I sure was. I wasn't expecting much from Copenhagen when it came to vegan restaurants, and certainly not healthy cafes serving smoothie bowls and plant-based foods, but oh boy, I was so wrong. One place that completely surprised me was The Organic Boho.

Situated right outside the Christiana (the Freetown inside Copenhagen famous for openly available weed, bizarre colorful houses, and graffiti), The Organic Boho is an Ibiza inspired sustainable cafe that's adorable and serves the best clean food in town. Beautifully plated food decorated with colorful flowers and vegan cream cheese totally made our day and busted our winter blues - for real. This place popped-up in our search when looking for vegan places near Christiana and we were super delighted it did!

We ordered smoothie bowls, pitaya latte, flavorful salad, and avocado toast, which were all super delicious, but the best of all was their burger. Packed with fresh ingredients, it was beautifully plated and bursting with flavor. Seriously it is the best burger I ever had by far. We finished the meal with pretty a delicious cake and cupcakes that were yum!

When it comes to tasty vegan eats, that happens to be also healthy, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Café Kaf

What? Vegan cafe and patisserie
Where? Pirkegade 21, 2200 København
Contact.? +4542425943
Timing? 8.30-17.30 hrs
After digging into the cheese croissant and Danish pastries at Kaf, I seriously fell in love with Copenhagen. While Kaf opened in 2015, it turned completely vegan only in January 2019 and is Denmark's first vegan pastry shop.

This fun little pastry shop cum cafe does terrific cakes, croissants, breads, cookies and other sweet treats. Everything on their menu is fabulous and they have vegan versions of classic dishes that you can't usually find anywhere else. This is the place to try out the traditional Danish dish 'hygge' veganized (finally)!
They have outdoor seating that can be enjoyed on a warm day to indulge in brunch feast. Their treats aren't just memorable; they are worth every single calorie. This is one place you have to go if you're in Copenhagen.

Souls

What? Healthy vegan cafe
Where? Melchiors Pl. 3, 2100 København
Contact.? +4534100101
Timing? 8.30-22.30 hrs on Thu, Fri, Sat and 10-9.30hrs weekdays
It's generally difficult to find clean and vegan food when you're traveling, but that's not the case in Copenhagen. Souls vegan cafe is all about sustainable and healthy eats. They are definitely the most popular and hippiest vegan cafe in Copenhagen where you'll find the chicest crowd and great food. Started by two Aussies, this healthy cafe aims to give you a taste of Australia using local, sustainable and fresh ingredients.

I loved the fact that all the servers at the restaurant wear a cool t-shirt with the cafe's cool punch line - 'Eat like you give a fork'. We went to this place once at mid-afternoon and later for dinner and the place had a completely different vibe both the times. During the day, it has a very relaxed casual-cafe vibe, that combined with natural light and cool decor ensures you get awesome pictures. And at night it turns into this cool romantic place, where you can enjoy a meal with yourself or have a date night.

Here you will find the yummiest vegan pancakes (all-day), can try out indulgent vegan burgers, enjoy a guilt-free buckwheat pizza (it was yummy). They also have a healthy set brunch menu served until 2pm on weekdays and 3 on weekends, which I found overpriced and the portions were very small. They serve the best chai latte and acai bowl in town. This place is definitely on the expensive side, and since Copenhagen has so many other amazing vegan restaurant options, I'd recommend going here only once.

MadenItaly

What? Italian vegan restaurant
Where? Holbergsgade 22, 1057 København
Contact.? +4560565026
Timing? Tue-Sat 11-20 hrs, Sun & Mon closed
Located right behind the picturesque colorful buildings of Nyhavn, Denmark's first vegan Italian restaurant MadenItaly serves authentic Italian fare including pizza, risotto, pasta, plant-based gourmet cheese, and home-made cakes. If you're craving for a true Naples-style pizza, this is the place to go. I couldn't have enough of their pizza - crispy on the outside and soft & chewy inside.

Make sure to book a table, this place is always busy and without a prior reservation, you could be politely refused a table.

P.S.: They run busy and have very limited vegan options. But if you call them a day in advance, they can prepare vegan and Jain options for you.

Plant Power Food

What? Healthy vegan cafe and juice bar
Where? Fælledvej 15, 2200 København
Contact.? +4593306615
Timing? 10-22hrs

Sunday Munday

What? Hong Kong-style plant-based bubble waffle and ice-cream bar
Where? Frederiksborggade 50, 1360 København
Contact.? +4552632956
Timing? Temporarily closed for few months (please check before going)
Sunday Munday gives a cool vegan spin to bubble waffles, a popular street snack in Hong Kong, also popularly knows as egg waffle. Think ice-cream sundaes wrapped in a waffle cone with bubbles. Sweet treats with a side of a drool-inducing Instagram backdrop makes this place worth a visit.

For the Insta addicts, pair a bubble waffle with ice-cream, choose some of your favourite toppings to throw inside and you’ve got yourself one incredibly delicious and Instagrammable dessert.
However, although I managed the perfect picture of this combo, honestly I didn't like ice-cream with the waffle because it got too messy to eat and the waffles turned soggy. My guy was smart enough to get the ice-cream and the waffle separately and we both loved them on their own.

They also serve great coffee in oat milk and choice of other milks. There is another vegan ice-cream shop just next door, in case this one is closed. It's called Nice Cream and serves a range of vegan treats like ice cream, acai bowls, and more.

Reffen

What? Sustainable and organic street food market
Where? Refshalevej 167A København
Contact.? +4533930760
Timing? Temporarily closed in winter until April 2020

Refshaleøen, nicknamed as Reffen, is the organic street food market of Copenhagen and also a foodie's paradise packed with old shipping containers turned into food carts. You will be spoilt for choice when it comes to vegan food options in this street market. Organic Balance, the vegan food stall in Reffen, serves amazing Asian vegan food including their signature homemade spring rolls with noodles and organic greens, steamed Jasmine rice with organic veggies and fresh juices. Reffen displays a food map outside, clearly marking places that are vegan, vegetarian or veg-friendly to help you find a place suitable to your dietary needs.

In addition to the places above, I highly recommend visiting the vegan, plastic-free and gluten-free Matcha Bar in Vesterbro where you will find delicious matcha drinks made with ceremonial grade matcha (matcha mocktail anyone?) along with other interesting options like hazelnut cashew latte, spirulina latte and lemongrass chai latte. Fancy a colorful smoothie bowl or decadent cheesecake? This is the place for you. Fancy some vegan hotdogs? Then visit Plantepølsen. For the most indulgent vegan burgers in Copenhagen, head to Two Monkeys, the vegan eatery by the team of Latienda (former vegan food cart in Reffen). They serve Beyond Meat burgers. Moo Moo Isbar is highly recommended for dessert lovers. This vegan ice-cream bar is awesome and also serves fabulous vegan milkshakes!

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WHERE TO STAY IN COPENHAGEN

Finding a sustainable hotel in Copenhagen is an easy feat. Since I was in the city for over a week, I decided to explore two different hotels - Hotel SP34 and Mann Les Suites, both sustainable boutique hotels were highly recommended by locals.

I would not recommend Hotel SP34 at all, because there was nothing great about this hotel and it wasn't worth the price at all. The rooms were decently sized, but the service was very average. The staff at the front desk included young students, and while they were cheerful, they had no idea about how to serve the customer. The hotel even lacked basic amenities, for example you have to pay for even the basic items in the "Free breakfast".

Manon Les Suites

A Beautiful Eco-friendly Hotel But Not Really a Luxury Property

I loved my stay at the eco-friendly Manon Les Suites, but let's get this thing clear - it is definitely not a 5-star or a luxury hotel by any standard. I've stayed in plenty of 5-star hotels and this isn't even close. Nevertheless, this Guldsmeden hotel is beautiful with a deep commitment to sustainability. The best part of the hotel? Their Instagram-worthy jungle-themed pool in the center of the building, which is also one of the coolest spots in town.

Every eco-conscious traveler will love this hotel. They have paid great attention to detail to make the hotel genuinely planet-friendly - right from the toiletries, they offer, to the reusable water bottle they provide for you to carry around town, to the organic cotton robes and the organic breakfast they serve. Even the toilet roll in the rooms are from recycled paper and they use only compostable plastic bags, where needed.

I was a little disappointed with the fact that the hotel had even some basic things missing like an in-room phone to call the room service or housekeeping in some rooms. One other major disappointment was the hotel had real deer heads and horns as a statement piece on their walls - at the entrance and a few other places.

However, they are very vegan-friendly, with a wide range of vegan options on their breakfast menu as well as other meals.

The hotel is centrally located and well-connected with public transport. Tivoli is just a 10-minutes walk and Vesterbro and Nørrebro about 15-minutes from the hotel and there is a lake just next door.

Read the full review of the hotel here.