Every ghost walk in Copenhagen
The English and Danish split, stated plainly
Most cities that sell ghost walks sell a dozen of them. Copenhagen does not. The guided English-language ghost walk on this page is a small operation and the dates are thin: one reviewer who otherwise enjoyed it complained about “the lack of choice for dates.. only one available for the whole month”. That is the honest starting point, and everything else follows from it. If you read only one line here, read that one.
The two Danish walks are not a consolation prize. The nightman’s walk goes after the natmænd, the people who emptied the latrines and dismembered executed criminals and were counted uærlige — dishonourable — for it. The folk-legends walk covers the Devil loose in Laksegade, a widow buried alive and a bride whose anger darkened the sun. Both are guided in Danish. If you read Danish, take one of them; if you do not, the English-language page sets out exactly what is left.
The second thing to settle: whether it will be dark
A ghost walk in Copenhagen is a daylight problem. On 21 June the sun sets at 9:57 pm and nautical twilight does not end until roughly 10:58 pm, so a summer evening walk happens in full daylight. On 31 October the sun sets at 4:35 pm. Same guide, same stories, completely different walk. When it actually gets dark has the month-by-month sunset table, and the month page turns it into a recommendation.
Lantern and black cloakCopenhagen: Guided Ghost Walk through Haunted City
A killing in 1899Copenhagen: Murder Mystery Hunt by The Round Tower
Nineteenth-century murderCopenhagen: Murder Mystery Hunt by Amalienborg Palace
Six trolls in the woodsCopenhagen: The Six Forgotten Giants Hunt and Nature Walk
The city’s outcastsCopenhagen: Nightman’s Tour in Danish
The Devil in LaksegadeCopenhagen: Guided Walking Tour of Folk Legends – in Danish
What each one actually is
The guided ghost walk is the flagship and the only guided ghost walk in English. An hour and a half, a guide in a black cloak carrying a lantern, meeting at Nytorv in front of the court house and finishing at Kongens Nytorv beside Nyhavn. The operator has been running since 2004 and says outright that there are “no special effects nor elaborate props”. It is storytelling. Rated 5.0 from 14 reviews. Full page.
The Round Tower murder mystery is a self-guided hunt set in 1899: detective constables, a missing person and a bloody briefcase. You walk Rundetårn, Gråbrødretorv, Købmagergade, Strøget, Vor Frue Kirke, Gammeltorv and Vor Frue Plads, solving as you go. It is fully analogue — no phone, just a pen. Minimum two people, two to four recommended. Full page.
The Amalienborg murder mystery is the same format on different ground: a woman’s murder in nineteenth-century Copenhagen, running from the Pier past the Aleksander Nevskij Church, Skt Annæ Plads, the Odd Fellow’s Mansion and Nyhavn to Lille Sandstræde. The booking stays valid for 93 days, which makes it the most forgiving thing on this page. Full page.
The six forgotten giants is not a ghost walk and does not pretend to be. Four hours, in English, out of the city by private transport to find six wooden trolls built by Thomas Dambo: Sleeping Louis, Hilltop Trine, Oscar Under the Bridge, Thomas on the Mountain, Little Tilde and Teddy Friendly. Coffee break and a meal included, not for under-12s. It carries 138 reviews at 5.0, more than everything else here put together. Full page.
The nightman’s tour runs 75 minutes in Danish from the statue of Absalon on Højbro Plads, and it is the darkest subject of the six: three centuries of a parallel society at the bottom of Danish life, with its own rules and its own language. Full page.
The folk-legends walk runs 90 minutes in Danish from the University steps, and it is where the Laksegade poltergeist of 1826 turns up — the episode that left Danish the phrase “Fanden er løs i Laksegade”. Full page.
The three most people choose between
| Copenhagen: Murder Mystery Hunt by The Round Tower | Our pickCopenhagen: Guided Ghost Walk through Haunted City | Copenhagen: The Six Forgotten Giants Hunt and Nature Walk | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Language | English or Danish | English | English |
| Guided? | No, self-guided | Yes, with a lantern | Yes, plus transport |
| How long | As long as you take | 1 hr 30 | 4 hrs |
| Starts at | Rundetårn | Nytorv, by the court house | Valdemarsgade 15 |
| Time of day | Whenever you like | Evening, on set dates | Daytime |
| Minimum age | None stated | 7 | 12 |
| Minimum party | Two people | One | One |
| Rating | 4.5 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Reviews behind it | 2 | 14 | 138 |
| View → | Book this → | View → |
Choosing in a minute
You want a guide, in English, telling you things after dark: the guided ghost walk, and book it for October rather than June. You want to go when you like and argue with your own group: one of the self-guided hunts. You have a whole day, children over twelve and no appetite for executions: the six giants. You read Danish: the nightman’s walk or the folk legends. The same question answered by situation is on the decision page, and if you are travelling with a group or small children, start with groups and families.
Nytorv is not decoration. A permanent execution scaffold stood on that square from 1627, rebuilt in 1728 as an octagonal masonry podium, and it was not taken down until 1761. The last executions there were in 1758 — Frederik Hammond and Anders Sundblad, beheaded for forging securities — and the pillory kept working until 1780. The guided walk assembles on top of it. What happened on Nytorv.
Live availability
Dates for the guided ghost walk are below. They are the constraint on this whole site, so check them before you plan an evening around them. If nothing fits, the two self-guided hunts start whenever you like, and the decision page lays out the alternatives by situation.
Those dates don’t work?
The guided ghost walk runs on set evenings and sells out early in October. Browse what else is bookable in Copenhagen — the self-guided murder mysteries you can start whenever you like, and the daytime walks — and pick a date that suits you, with instant confirmation.
Frequently asked questions
How many ghost tours run in Copenhagen in English?
One guided ghost walk, which is the flagship on this page. Alongside it there are two self-guided murder-mystery hunts that work in English, and one four-hour daytime walk in English. The nightman’s walk and the folk-legends walk are Danish only: the English-language picture.
Which walk should I book first?
The guided ghost walk, because its dates are the thinnest. Everything else on this page either runs in daylight or starts whenever you like, so it can be fitted around the evening you manage to get.
Is a summer ghost walk worth taking if it is still light?
It is the same guide and the same stories, but it is a walk in daylight: the sun sets at 9:57 pm on 21 June. October is the honest recommendation. See when it gets dark and is it worth it.
Do any of these walks suit young children?
The guided ghost walk is not suitable for under-7s and the six giants walk is not for under-12s. The self-guided hunts have no stated age limit but need at least two people: taking children along.
Where does each one start?
Nytorv for the ghost walk, Rundetårn for the first hunt, the Pier for the second, Valdemarsgade 15 for the giants, Højbro Plads for the nightman’s walk and the University steps for the folk legends: every meeting point.