Nyhavn

Facts

From slum to top tourist attraction

Alongside Tivoli and The Little Mermaid, Nyhavn is now one of Denmark's largest tourist attractions. The canal, which leads from Copenhagen Harbour up to Kongens Nytorv, was built in about 1670 while Kongens Nytorv was being made into a cobblestone square, shortly before Charlottenborg was built. From the beginning, the south side was the nice side" – the Charlottenborg side - and the north side was "the bad side" – the town side - because the land belonged to the municipal authorities. Nyhavn was developed in the late 17th century. The blue house, number 9, is a former town house that was built in 1681. "

Public place

Selected entry

Ladies of the night, sailors and the Little Mermaid

Listen to the story

play
pause

Update Required To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.

Story written by Claus M. Smidt

Time / Periode 1670

2 Comments 0 recommendations

For many years, Nyhavn was reserved for sailors and prostitutes. Nice folk gave it a wide berth. Today, it has a better class of clientele and the densest concentration of restaurants in Copenhagen. The anchor at Kongens Nytorv is a memorial for the Danish seamen who fell during World War II. Denmark's famous writer of fairytales Hans Christian Andersen lived in Nyhavn three times. He lived at number 20 for a few years in the 1830s where he wrote fairytales such as The Magic Galoshes". He also lodged at number 67 in 1849-60 and 1862-65, making it the property where he lived the longest during his somewhat nomadic life. "