After more than 9 weeks backpacking in Yucatan, Mexico and a quick trip to Cuba I landed back in Europe. At the beginning of this year I planned another road trip from Amsterdam like I did so many the last two years. Road trips are one of my fave ways to go off the beaten path in Europe so I was super excited to team up with Breakzy again. A road trip to Copenhagen was the plan but with the Breakzy App you never know where you end up.
Road trip partners
All my road trips from Amsterdam in the last years have been in collaboration with Peugeot Netherlands. As I never really put any time and effort in preparing for a trip it is always a surprise what car I will be given when I show up, however I know it is always a brand new model. I have been spoiled from the beginning as on my big Balkan road trip in summer 2018 I got a brand new 5008 GT Line for more than a month. This time I got the little brother: a Peugeot 3008 GT Line, a perfect car to tour through Europe.
As I am now traveling the world for almost 7 years continuously I have never had my own car, apart from my first two cars I bought for around €500 long time ago. So when you would have spot me on this road trip to Copenhagen in this brand new Peugeot you had probably seen a shining Traveltomtom, being very proud of his cool roadtrip car! :)
One essential fun factor of a road trip is good company and therefore I also teamed up again with one of Holland’s most authentic lifestyle bloggers Chloe Sterk from Dailynonsense. We have done multiple trips together in the past like a tiger safari in Dudhwa National Park in India or skiing in the Dolomites.
Breakzy road trip app
The main reason for this Europe road trip was our partnership with the Breakzy road trip app. In August 2018 I got in touch with this app on a Germany road trip and loved it so much that we decided to continue working together. Back then I tested Breakzy and ended up in so many cool adventures that I was sure this trip was going to be an epic one again.
Basically what Breakzy does is showing you cool things to do on your route and places to visit around you. So when for example you are traveling from Hamburg to Copenhagen you go to the Breakzy app, add your route and Breakzy tells you some cool stops on the route to make the road trip even more fun. Here is an example.
This way you kind of never know what the day will bring you, but you know for a fact that it is going to be fun anyway. And aren’t the best adventure always the unexpected ones?
Things to do on a road trip from Hamburg to Copenhagen
Alpin center Wittenburg
When I left Amsterdam in the morning and someone would have told me you will be snowboarding this afternoon, I would have laughed out loud. I mean I was on a road trip and was hoping for good weather so only brought summer clothes. Though a couple hours later I sat in a ski lift. How come? It was breakzy that showed us cool things to do on our route and we stumbled upon an Alpin Center Wittenburg, an indoor ski hall. We didn’t hesitate and took the opportunity to go skiing out of the blue. We rented winter clothes, shoes and a snowboard and laughed out loud on our first run down. What a great unexpected adventure!
Karting
Still full of adrenaline from the snowboard adventure I stepped into a go kart. This day was getting better and better. From driving on a highway for 4 hours straight to snowboarding to racing laps on a go kart circuit. It all went so fast that when I continued my way driving in my Peugeot 3008 I still didn’t realize how much fun I had in the last 3 hours.
The restaurant at Alpin Center Wittenburg served great food by the way.
As it was already late we headed straight to our Hamburg hotel. We stayed overnight at the 25Hours Hotel. A lovely boutique hotel right in the heart of the Hafencity. Unfortunately we had no time to check out Hamburg as the next morning we continued out Copenhagen road trip.
1st stop: Lubeck
Apparently famous for its Christmas Markets, but nevertheless worth a stop on a road trip to Copenhagen. Lubeck is actually a river island connected by many bridges. I had a feeling there were more churches than supermarkets which gave the city a medieval feel. It was cold and windy when we visited but I bet in summer this place is bustling. There were loads of outdoor terraces along the riverside and even boat tours on the river. After a pretzel and a hot chocolate we continued our road trip and searched the Breakzy app for the next stop.
2nd stop: Siesiby
If it would not have pooped up on the Breakzy app I would have never made it to this tiny little hobbit like village. Siesiby only consists of about 10 of those small half-timbered houses. Apart from a charming restaurant there is nothing to do, but worth a stop if you like taking photos of fairytale villages.
Siesiby still is Germany but just south of the border with Denmark. Today we would cross into Denmark and drive all the way to Copenhagen. Crossing the bridges in Denmark is not cheap by the way and something to think about when making a road trip to Copenhagen. The bridge towards Copenhagen was about €30 one-way!
Arriving in Copenhagen
Hotels in Copenhagen are damn expensive so we decided to book a private room in Danhostel Copenhagen. The room rate was a little under €100 but in a simple but clean room there were two single beds and a bunk bed, so if traveling in a group this would have been a great deal. Parking in Copenhagen center was pretty easy and not too expensive either I think. We could park right in front of Danhostel and paid about €30 for about 15 hours.
Breakfast at Sonny Copenhagen
As a sincere coffee lover I was happy with the recommendation found on the Breakzy app: Sonny. A hipster coffee place with delicious healthy breakfast. The portions weren’t that big but it was damn tasty and the coffee from the skilled barista was really good.
Tivoli Copenhagen
On our first road trip with Breakzy we unexpectedly ended up in Phantasialand, a theme park close to Cologne. That was so much fun that the Tivoli amusement park right in the heart of Copenhagen was one of the reasons we stayed overnight in the capital of Denmark. Tivoli is considered the oldest amusement park in the world and Walt Disney even came here for inspiration for his world famous theme parks. Tivoli is a small family park mostly catered to kids, but the location is unbeatable for an amusement park. Also the VR-goggles you can opt for in the rollercoaster are a damn cool experience.
Nyhavn Copenhagen
We couldn't resist strolling around the most famous district of Copenhagen before we left Denmark, because at the end of the day we were crossing the bridge into Sweden. Our next stop was Malmö, but only after we paid €53 one-way to cross the bridge! What? Not sure if you think this is normal, but to me it was an outrageous toll fee! Whatever, turning around wasn’t really an option anymore! :)
Malmö is only about 40 kilometers away, but Im pretty sure Ryanair or one of these low cost carriers in Europe have cheaper flights than driving yourself! LOL
Mexican restaurant Malmo
Although our Breakzy road trip was initially to Copenhagen we thought crossing the bridge into Sweden was already a cool adventure in itself. There is no land border between Denmark and Sweden and the bridge is the only way to drive from Copenhagen to Malmo. After our great day in Copenhagen we hopped in our car and drove to Malmo. Unfortunately the weather was not that good so the only thing left to do was drinking and eating. It was Saturday night after all. In the Breakzy app we found the Eatery Social Taquerim, a Mexican restaurant and it turned out to be a super hip spot in Malmo. I kind of felt underdressed, but loved looking at the hip Swedes on their night out. The jugs of Sangria helped making this a great night out.
Clarion Malmö Live
Staying in Malmö wasn’t a punishment at all as my hotel room was a corner suite at the Clarion Malmö Live hotel and damn the views from one of the highest building in the city were amazing. I also took time to chill for a little bit in the bath tub. Later when I earn money from travel blogging I want to buy an apartment with amazing city views! New York I am on my way… :)
Unfortunately the next morning we had just 1 hour to stroll through Malmo quickly before we hopped back in our car again crossing that same €53 bridge again back into Denmark.
Viking Center Ribe
This was probably one of the most random things we found on Breakzy, but it turned out to be such a cool activity. Through Breakzy we already found a lovely beach hut to stay overnight. But we didn’t have an activity for the day yet. First we stumbled upon Legoland, but then our focus was on something more cultural: the Viking Center Ribe. How cool was it that just this weekend the annual festival was taking place? A couple hours later I felt like walking through the Middle Ages. Our timing could not have been better.
Vikaer Strand Camping
The beach hut I just dropped was definitely a cool place to spend the night, but probably better in summer. It was 3 degrees outside! We arrived just in time at the Vikaer Strand Camping to soak up the last rays of sunlight and I admit the serenity really got to me. The last days had been super hectic and it felt great to sit back, relax and breath in the fresh air of the Danish countryside.
Vilstrup Kirke
During our Copenhagen road trip we saw so many yellow flower fields that we constantly said we need to stop and take pictures. Even on our second last day we said we will do it tomorrow. But when the Vilstrup Kirke popped up on the Breakzy app as a cool place to visit we were spoiled for choice. This picturesque church was surrounded by yellow flower fields so we caught two birds with one stone and as you can see it was great recommendation by Breakzy.
Some Copenhagen road trip tips
Toll roads
Although all roads from Amsterdam to Copenhagen are toll free, the bridges in Denmark are not! The fee for crossing the bridges is crazy high. The first bridge towards Copenhagen is a €35 fee, the bridge from Copenhagen to Sweden is €53. That means if you will pay around €175 to go and come back when you just like me cross into Sweden.
Environmental zone badges for German Cities
Make sure you have the right environmental stickers to enter German cities. Most German cities require you to have a ‘permission’ to drive in the city center, basically it is just a tax you pay. You can get the stickers at gas stations. With a green badge you are good to go for most environmental zones in Germany.
Parking in cities
It can be a pain in the ass honestly to find a parking spot or at least it will be expensive. Therefore I would try to find a city hotel with free parking. In Copenhagen I paid about €30 for 15 hours. In Malmo, Sweden I ended up paying €25 for 15 hours. Keep it in mind when you are planning your budget for your Copenhagen road trip.
Thanks for keeping up with the adventures of Traveltomtom.
Please share the link of this article on the internet if you liked my article. Every tweet on Twitter, pin to Pinterest and share on Facebook means a lot to me. Thank you very much in advance.