Wanderlust - 04.2020

wanderlust.co.uk April 2020 155

A

re you going to
Legoland?” asked
the immigration
o icer to the child
in front of me. The
a irmative was almost shouted
by the little girl, who was clearly
excited despite the late hour. It
suddenly dawned on me why the
delayed light to Billund Airport
had been packed full of families.
And why, once we were through
to landside, they all melted away
to hotels near the original Lego
factory, while only ive people
got on the bus to Aarhus.
Denmark’s second city,
deserves more visitors in its own
right. It might not have the Pirate
Boats or Frog Hopper rides of
Legoland, but this compact
coastal destination does o… er

the rightcomboofculture,

entertainmentandgoodlooksto

maketheidealshortbreak.

Decantingfromtheairportbus

(it’s a90-minutejourneyintothe

city),theirstthingthatstruckme

wasthesheernumbersof

bicyclessittinginracksalongthe

streets.Thesecondthingwas

thatthemajorityofbikeswere

unlocked.Apparently,the

numberofbicyclesperhead

herearethehighestinDenmark,

andAarhuscertainlypridesitself

as a bike-friendlycity.Myhotel

overlookedonethemainroads

andyettheviewthenext

morningrevealedmorebikes

thancars–itwasthequietest

city rushhourI’deverseen.

But,incaseyou’rewondering

whetherAarhuswouldbetoo

ASK A LOCAL

“Take a walk in the Latin

Quarter in the evening

for a drink and food.

A trip out to Moesgaard

Museum is great fun and

can be combined with

eating at Skovmøllen,

awonderful restaurant

ard

s,

r

From its cosmopolitanfeelandworld-classgalleriestoitsenticing nature and bike-

friendly streets, Denmark’ssecondcityistheidealshortbreak,says Lyn Hughes

Step back in time
Den Gamle By’s
‘Old Town’ was the
“irst open-air
museum of its kind

Pocket

Your cut–out and keep travel companion

SHORT BREAK IN...

AARHUS,

DENMARK

sleepy for you, fear not. This

former European City of Culture

o… ers world-class galleries and

museums, festivals and music.

It’s a university city too, giving it

a vibrancy and cosmopolitan

feel. Open-air cafés line the

canal that snakes through the

city centre, while foodies are

spoiled for choice with some of

Denmark’s best restaurants.

If city life becomes too much,

the surrounding forests, lakes

and the coast beckon. Aarhus

dubs itself ‘Denmark’s capital

of nature for a reason’. I wasn’t

surprised when one guide

told me she was a former

student at the university who

had beendrawn back to make

Aarhusherhome: “Why would

I leave?”⊲