Getting to Roskilde From Copenhagen

Roskilde is the standard Viking day out of Copenhagen, and it is an easy one.

Independently, by Train

Roskilde is a short train ride from Copenhagen Central — frequent departures, and the sort of distance that makes it a half day rather than an expedition. From the station, both the Viking Ship Museum and Roskilde Cathedral are walkable.

This is the cheapest route by a wide margin: train fare plus entry from $31. If you are comfortable navigating a Danish train, do this.

Guided, From Copenhagen

The guided day tours exist for people who would rather not, and for people who want more than Roskilde in a day. They come in two shapes:

Roskilde-focused — the ship museum plus the cathedral, sometimes a palace. $156–$180. A long half day, well paced.

The big castles day — Kronborg (Hamlet’s Elsinore), Frederiksborg, and Roskilde, at $216. 2,149 reviews at 4.9, the deepest sample of any day tour in this category. It is a genuinely full day and the museum is one stop among several, so book it for the castles with Roskilde attached rather than the reverse.

Which to Book

Roskilde Cathedral

Worth the walk regardless. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the burial church of Danish monarchs, with royal tombs spanning centuries — a very different building from anything in Copenhagen, and the reason the guided tours pair the two.

Timing

Go May to September if you have the choice, so the sailing runs. Out of season the museum is still open and the boatyard still works, but the fjord trips do not sail and the visit is meaningfully smaller.

See day tours and tickets →