Copenhagen and Berlin are less than an hour apart by plane, but very different in spirit. Copenhagen is a mostly clean, mostly safe, mostly well-run, mostly get up early in the morning and get to work type of city. Berlin is fun, exciting, and a little bit chaotic.

Long before I lived in Copenhagen, I lived in Berlin for a couple of years. Imagine my surprise when, on a return visit, I found myself staying next to a shop called "Hygge", filled with Danish pillows, candles, and wooden figurines.

It was a Danish theme store, right in the middle of the German capital city, filled with items designed to create a cozy Copenhagen atmosphere in the raw rough streets of Berlin.

Of course, it's not uncommon for one city to have little tributes to a different city. After all, Copenhagen has a Berlin Bar, and a clothing store called New Yorker, and an Old Irish Pub.

But Berliners and Copenhagners have a special respect for each other. Berliners enjoy Copenhagen calm, while Copenhagners go to Berlin to get a taste of big-city life.

Hear more in this July 2026 podcast.

Read more at howtoliveindenmark.com, or book Kay Xander Mellish for an in-person or virtual presentation on Danish culture or living in Denmark at www.kxmgroup.dk.

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Copenhagen vs Berlin

Copenhagen vs Berlin •
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How to Live in Denmark