If you happen to’re contemplating a household vacation in Denmark, likelihood is your first selections are going to be Copenhagen or Legoland Billund, particularly if you happen to’re visiting Jutland with youngsters. Each get my vote, however there’s excess of Lego alone to your Jutland itinerary.
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After our journey in the direction of the top of August, discovering Vikings, historic cities, a wartime bunker within the dunes and spectacled bears – plus Lego galore – I’ve pulled collectively my solutions for one week in Jutland with youngsters, in addition to concepts if you happen to’ve received a bit longer to spend.
As a result of if you happen to’re in search of concepts for one week in Denmark, as this itinerary reveals, there are few locations with fairly as many kid-friendly actions crammed into such a small area.
Take a look at my full information to Denmark with youngsters right here
We by no means went past a 50-mile radius on this Denmark itinerary with youngsters and infrequently drove for longer than an hour (nice in case your youngsters aren’t followers of automobile journeys) however we by no means got here near operating out of issues to do. When you have much less time, you might additionally take the primary few days to make a Billund itinerary and stick in and round Legoland.
Jutland itinerary: Day 1 – arrive in Billund
Billund is round three to 4 hours’ drive from Copenhagen, or round an hour from Aarhus, so it’s simple to mix each into one journey.
However with low-cost flights from the UK to Billund, together with British Airways and Ryanair out of London (each of which labored out at related costs once we flew), most individuals fly straight there.
And Legoland is virtually subsequent door to Billund airport (actually, you possibly can see the planes land from the Polar Land space), with a number of the opposite sights very close by too.
Keep at: Legoland Fortress lodge
I might begin by telling you all the sensible causes to remain on the new Legoland Fortress lodge… however the greatest one is that it’s SO a lot enjoyable.
Lego dinosaur roaring outdoors as you stroll in? Yep. Lego dinosaur asleep by the hearth with bins of bricks to entertain the children as you verify in? One other yep.
And that’s earlier than you verify into the themed rooms – 142 throughout two buildings, designed for dragon knights, wizards and princesses, with Lego characters on the wall, a Lego cat above our mattress, and extra bricks by the bunk-beds in my daughter’s separate sleeping space.
Plus a locked treasure field, every containing completely different Lego goodies to your youngsters to seek out – there’s a path across the lodge and play space to get the code.
When my husband instructed me the bathe head within the lavatory was additionally made from Lego, I genuinely believed him for a couple of moments. It nonetheless wouldn’t shock me in the event that they ultimately work out a means to do that.
There are day by day Lego constructing challenges, and all of the workers put on minifigures on their badges which you’ll be able to swap.
Again to that sensible observe, your keep contains entry to Legoland which is only a few minutes’ stroll away, plus you possibly can skip the queue by means of a separate entrance.
There’s an outside playground, designed to seem like a Lego type fortress, and large household restaurant: breakfast is included, the night buffet had some good selections if (as a number of Denmark) barely pricy
We stayed for 2 nights: in case your flight arrives sooner than ours did, depart a while to get constructing and usually benefit from the enjoyable.
Jutland itinerary: Day 2 – Legoland, Billund
The unique Legoland park, it opened in 1968 and has expanded over time to incorporate 11 completely different areas, a number of rides – together with some to go well with youthful/extra cautious youngsters – plus some reveals and stay occasions, particularly through the summer season.
Legoland Billund opens at 10am and closes between round 6pm and 8pm, though rides could end earlier – one other huge bonus of staying so near the park is that when my daughter was flagging from our late arrival the evening earlier than, we might head again to the play space and room, and depart my husband to go on a couple of remaining sooner rollercoasters.
There’s simply sufficient to fill a day – begin with a wander round Miniland, with its Lego landmarks and recreations of various international locations, together with somewhat illustration of the airport, utilizing greater than 25 million bricks.
Or Duploland is ideal with littler ones together with somewhat monorail to pootle round and take within the sights.
For extra views, the Legotop is a round gallery which rises up 36m and rotates slowly round. As you’re wanting down on Miniland, the place every part’s already tiny, it feels as if you happen to’re even increased.
Previous the Star Wars fashions, my daughter’s wishlist featured Atlantis by SeaLife within the Creativeness Zone – spot the Lego submarine among the many fish.
However there’s additionally Ninjago World, Legoredo City – a cowboy/Wild-West type expertise – Pirate Land, Knights’ Kingdom, Journey Land and Polar Land, plus the brand new addition of Peppa Pig in 2024.
The peak restrictions are all the time clearly marked, and regardless of being a few centimetres beneath 120cm, my seven-year-old might nonetheless go on the overwhelming majority of issues (and didn’t fancy the extra adrenaline-fuelled choices anyway).
If you happen to’re undecided how a lot your youngsters will get pleasure from rollercoasters, that is undoubtedly the place to tempt them – after attempting out The Dragon, Minnie insisted we went straight again to queue up and check out it once more.
The water rides in Pirate Land had been successful (though she was a bit extra nervous concerning the drop within the Viking River Splash in Journey Land), cherished capturing the lights contained in the Temple, panned for gold in Legoredo City and noticed penguins in Polar Land.
There may be an app to obtain so you possibly can plan your day, verify stay trip occasions and get additional suggestions. We managed fairly fortunately with a paper map if you happen to don’t have it.
You can too get Q-Bots to skip the queues at Legoland however we actually wouldn’t have wanted one.
The tip of August is term-time for Danish faculties, and we by no means needed to wait greater than 5 or 10 minutes for something – even in vacation time, I’ve heard it’s quieter than Legoland Windsor.
The park is closed on some weekdays outdoors the principle summer season season, in addition to throughout elements of the winter months, so it’s price checking earlier than you go to.
Not all of the eating places shall be open outdoors peak months as properly, even in late August: you possibly can take picnics and if we went again, I’d undoubtedly try this – our pizza buffet was pretty commonplace theme park fare, and never the most affordable possibility.
Jutland itinerary: Day 3 – The Lego Home, Billund and Givskud Zoo
Legoland is likely to be the well-known title however the Lego Home, the place you go to get your personal fingers on the bricks, was considered one of my very own favourites.
Opened in 2017, the constructing – designed to seem like piled up bricks itself, with a couple of enormous vibrant ones close to the doorway – has a museum on the historical past of the model downstairs.
However the remaining is fully devoted to getting artistic: no-one sits out right here, there are workers to assist, encourage and encourage all ages to select up a couple of bricks. There’s additionally an app with extra concepts, though you gained’t be wanting inspiration as you wander.
My husband and daughter adopted the directions to construct one Lego craft and take a look at if it might fly, whereas I performed round with a heap of Lego designing my very own.
In one other space, you might make a Lego fish and scan it to look digitally in an onscreen aquarium, design your personal creature or attempt your hand at a cease movement video.
There are intricate fashions too, making up a complete Lego world – together with fairly a couple of scenes from motion pictures, together with (slightly fabulously) the set-up from Again to the Future – in addition to the prospect so as to add squares to a city and backyard simulation, with your personal creation altering life for the digital inhabitants.
And at every level, you possibly can scan your wristband to save lots of info, movies, pictures and extra so that you’ve received a memento report.
Even lunch has a Lego hyperlink: within the MiniChef restaurant, you employ particular bricks from the baggage on the desk to decide on your order which you then scan and after a slightly enjoyable video of Lego individuals getting ready your meal, is delivered by conveyor to a pair of robots (Robert and Roberta) close by in a field that appears like an outsized brick.
As you wait to gather your meals there’s Lego to play with: workers urged a few concepts for video games till we received sidetracked attempting to construct the tallest tower. Alongside the best way, the desk subsequent to us, which had been having their very own household constructing competitors, donated a small pyramid.
The ultimate oversize Lego behemoth ended up on show within the restaurant. This can be a world the place adults (and one small woman) spending half an hour setting up a huge tower is each completely regular and worthy of recognition.
I might fairly simply have stayed all day… and when you’ve got time, I like to recommend giving your self lots right here.
However there have been spectacled bears ready for us, so having watched a machine making the Lego bricks and selecting up our personal free memento, we headed off to Givskud Zoo.
The zoo, round a 20-minute drive away from the opposite Billund sights is a beautiful mixture of safari park and walk-around enclosures – and the 4 spectacled bears from South America are the most recent additions, serving to have fun the zoo’s fiftieth birthday.
Their house has a lot area, the zoo is hoping so as to add a couple of extra furry inhabitants to the sleuth.
The inspiration for Paddington, and the one bears that stay in South America (together with darkest Peru), I found that they’re slightly larger than their fictional counterpart, prowling and padding previous swimming pools and thru the undergrowth of their house, sometimes menacing a (cleverly protected) tree or two.
That was solely the beginning – there are lions (two prides, one on the safari route, the opposite on the strolling route plus a pair of brothers) together with giraffe, elephants, rhinos, gorillas, large otters, lemurs and numerous different animals. There’s even a guinea pig assortment!
If you happen to don’t have your personal automobile, a safari bus runs at sure occasions across the route, whereas if you happen to’ve received a rent automobile you possibly can park at numerous factors alongside the best way to interrupt up the safari part. A very nice option to do it with youngsters, so everybody can stretch their legs with out getting savaged.
There’s additionally a free digital audio information, whereas you may as well obtain the app which has particulars of actions, in addition to occasions for safari buses, eating places and outlets plus a map.
Between the animals, there are additionally a few themed areas – an Ice Age world and a superb assortment of dinosaur fashions, imposingly life measurement and towering above us among the many bushes… and the indicators asking guests to not feed the dinosaurs.
Minnie was in her aspect right here – it’s a tough determination whether or not animals or Lego high her checklist of favorite issues, so a day which mixes each is tough to beat. Though (once more) when you’ve got longer to spend, it’s simple to fill a complete day exploring and wandering right here.
Keep at: Lalandia Billund
This vacation park, a Lego brick’s throw from Legoland is a beautiful place for households to chill out – set in a number of inexperienced area with little playgrounds and leaping pillows, the vacation cottages sleep as much as 10 (or 8 in case your youngsters are over two).
They’re self-catering and there’s a grocery store with a wide selection on the location (or a few different larger ones inside a couple of minutes’ drive) plus a beautiful patio to sit down out on, in addition to eating and dwelling area, a correct kitchen, lavatory with bathe, to not point out a washer and drier.
One factor to notice is that in addition to hiring bedlinen/towels (except you convey your personal), you additionally need to pay for electrical energy and water. Anybody staying additionally will get free entry to Scandinavia’s largest waterpark, which we checked out the next day.
Learn my full overview of Lalandia Billund right here
Jutland itinerary: Day 4 – Lalandia, Billund
You need no less than a day to discover Lalandia – our huge focus was on trying out the Aquadome and stress-free, however there’s a lot to do right here that you might fortunately spend a number of days exploring.
And in addition to the waterpark, there’s a gentle play for youthful youngsters with added actions, plus bowling, an ice rink, arcade, climbing partitions, mini dry ski slope, sports activities, mini golf and a excessive ropes course as properly.
The bulk is tucked away inside the principle Lalandia constructing – as you undergo the revolving door, you’d by no means anticipate to see this mini piazza inside with its eating places and cafes, plus all of the actions and services as properly.
From snowboarding slopes and climbing partitions to a bowling centre, ice rinks, sport halls, and a Monky Tonky Playland, Lalandia provides rather more than its famed waterpark.
Lots of the actions do have an additional cost, even if you happen to’re staying on web site as we had been – you possibly can cost cash to your wristband and pay that means although.
We additionally found an outside mini golf simply between Lalandia and the Legoland Vacation village – that is undoubtedly extra within the loopy golf type than the one inside Lalandia which appeared extra like an indoor golf course in miniature.
And regardless of a couple of hilariously inconceivable holes, we had a number of enjoyable. There’s an honesty system if no-one is manning the ticket sales space (with a warning of fines if you happen to play with out paying and get caught) and you’ll pay in each krone and Euros.
However the Aquadome is the spotlight. For starters, there’s a wave pool and lazy river.
My daughter and some different youngsters didn’t get the hold of the lazy bit and determined they needed to swim round within the present… I reclined very fortunately in my blow-up tyre and allow them to.
There are additionally smaller slides and some shallow swimming pools for youths, plus a huge splash zone – be careful for the warning alert siren right here too… they actually imply it, and if you happen to’re not beneath cowl, you’ll get deluged.
Then loads of sooner slides as properly – fairly a couple of are for 120cm or over, which meant Minnie was simply too small (to her reduction) however fairly a couple of of these are for 2 individuals or extra.
Which sadly meant that neither my husband nor I might attempt them, as we couldn’t depart our seven-year-old on her personal however couldn’t slide alone both.
Regardless of that, there have been sufficient enjoyable flumes that includes greater than sufficient possibilities to be by accident submerged alongside the best way, plus an outside Jacuzzi which I retreated to at one level. In case your wristband is charged, you may as well use it to pay for drinks inside (in addition to to lock the lockers).
As somebody who enjoys waterparks however can’t think about spending all day there, staying at Lalandia is an enormous bonus as you possibly can pop in for an hour or two daily if you happen to needed, slightly than paying upfront and spending the complete day there.
Parking is free for the primary hour – or you possibly can depart your automobile by your vacation cottage if you happen to’re staying and stroll or get the land practice.
When you have longer than per week in Denmark, add an additional day staying at Lalandia with a view to spend a full day on the zoo and a full day on the Lego Home (as above), or add an additional two – or extra! – days for a extra chilled-out break having fun with the services.
Take a look at my overview of a keep at Lalandia Billund.
Jutland itinerary: Day 5 – Kongernes Jelling and Koldinghus to Ribe
It’s simple to spend a complete week in Jutland with youngsters round Billund – from the Lego to the zoo to Lalandia’s household sights, you gained’t rapidly get bored if you happen to’re planning a Billund itinerary.
However that actually is just scratching the floor of what there’s to do on this a part of Denmark, with royal historical past, the nation’s oldest metropolis and its official birthplace to find.
Solely half-hour away is Kongernes Jelling, with probably the greatest interactive museums I’ve come throughout for youths (and adults) plus some fascinating Danish historical past – and nice if you happen to’re in search of free issues to do with youngsters in Denmark.
The inspiration is 2 historic rune stones, which nonetheless sit outdoors (now in glass instances) subsequent to the museum itself.
One accommodates the primary point out of the title Denmark, created through the tenth century reign of the primary Danish king, Gorm the Previous (my daughter, an enormous fan of the How To Prepare Your Dragon books was delighted by his title!).
The second was created for his son Harald Bluetooth (sure, the title behind the cellphone expertise) who helped unify the tribes within the space.
It’s finest to discover the museum itself first, the place the workers solemnly instructed my seven-year-old that she might contact any of the displays… with one exception.
Something marked orange wasn’t elective, she completely needed to contact it, to convey the displays to life.
Her face lit up as she scampered off, decided to fulfil these directions (not even slowing all the way down to savour the actual fact a robotic was drawing in chalk behind the welcome desk).
There’s a improbable combine of data, with recordings telling extra about Norse mythology in addition to the prospect to just about stroll the trail to Valhalla.
We additionally received to find extra about on a regular basis Viking life. Regardless of the pillaging and plundering fame (a well-earned one, let’s be honest), the Vikings had been additionally farmers, merchants and town-builders.
However as a result of crusing out and putting terror into the hearts of your enemies was a reasonably main half, there was additionally an exhibit exhibiting the assorted weapons you may like to make use of, how deadly they had been and how briskly you may kill off an opponent with them.
After gazing down from the roof onto two burial mounds flanking a small church and the well-known rune stones, we headed all the way down to see them shut up, in addition to the white flagstones marking the define of the place a ship was as soon as buried.
For some nice books on Vikings for youths, try my high picks
Then extra likelihood to get fingers on at Koldinghus fortress, over 750 years outdated and a 40 minute drive away.
The previous royal residence in Jutland was partly destroyed in a hearth in 1808, and remains to be being restored, with structural helps which are carried out cleverly sufficient to be virtually a design characteristic in themselves.
It now homes collections of silverware, ceramics and historic artefacts, in addition to non permanent exhibitions.
Simply my daughter’s favorite half was the prospect to decorate up in seventeenth century costume, the peak of royal type from 1610, proper all the way down to gloves and tiara.
She took this very critically, searching out the ending touches for my outfit – I’m slightly glad ruffs have since gone out of style! – and selecting out two separate ones for herself.
I needed to remind her not every part else was fairly as touchable as Kongernes Jelling, though there’s an exercise path referred to as Within the Footsteps of the King to attempt, in addition to a viewing tower to look down on the beautiful city, a courtyard the place they had been establishing for a medieval banquet and a few fascinating displays.
One British-made gilded silver dressing set has handed from London to Denmark and Germany, to the USA and again to Denmark, linked to a royal scandal earlier than falling into the fingers of the Nazis alongside the best way.
Its first proprietor, Caroline Mathilde was the granddaughter of George II, married off to the mentally unstable Danish king Christian VII – accused of an affair, she was later divorced and banished.
Our remaining cease was Ribe, Denmark’s oldest city and a ridiculously picturesque spot which dates again round 1,250 years.
As soon as house to a tenth of the nation’s inhabitants, a number of the buildings date from the 1500s – the imposing cathedral and some others are older however after hearth, flood and plague, many had been destroyed and the city rebuilt within the sixteenth century.
On the similar time, Ribe began to grow to be a much less essential centre: fortunately for guests as we speak, as these historic and infrequently crooked beamed homes weren’t later demolished to make room for contemporary replacements.
Arriving not lengthy earlier than my daughter’s bedtime, I took the chance to discover somewhat on our first evening by taking the free Evening Watchman’s tour.
The submit itself is sort of as historic because the city, going again centuries as they stored the peace and warned of floods.
The official duties led to 1902 however through the 45-minute stroll round Ribe’s cobbled streets, the Evening Watchman revealed a few of the historical past of the function in addition to factors of curiosity: Scandinavia’s oldest college for instance, the Metropolis Corridor, and one constructing so wonky, there gave the impression to be barely a straight line in it.
Finished in Danish and English, there have been youngsters on the tour too, plus you hear a couple of snatches of the Evening Watchman’s track alongside the best way.
Keep at: Ribe Byferie resort
We checked in to the Danhostel Ribe, only a few minutes stroll from town centre – and if you happen to’re in search of a comparatively finances possibility, it’s price contemplating.
Nevertheless, if there had been availability, I’d advocate the Ribe Byferie resort, an analogous distance from town centre on the alternative aspect, with self-catering vacation houses which are good for households.
Nichola from the weblog Globalmouse and her household stayed there in 2018 – try her overview.
Jutland itinerary: Day 6 – Ribe to Tirpitz and Esbjerg
Spend somewhat longer exploring Ribe itself, together with a glance contained in the cathedral – when you’ve got time, you may as well climb the tower – in addition to the waterwheels, waterfront homes and ornate doorways among the many vibrant outdated buildings.
However put aside a while to move over to the coast as properly. Wild and windswept, the dunes line the seafront, hiding their very own newer historical past.
On the Tirpitz museum, you possibly can step inside a Second World Struggle bunker, constructed through the Nazi occupation of Denmark. Designed to be a part of Hitler’s Atlantic Wall defences, it was by no means really operational.
Atmospheric and infrequently eerie, I’d questioned how this darker interval of historical past would work with a seven-year-old, however there’s really much more to find than simply the wartime years.
And if you happen to’re considering {that a} concrete bunker doesn’t sound wildly thrilling, as with the opposite Danish museums we’d visited, they’ve used each choice to convey it to life, inside a state-of-the-art constructing tucked beneath the grass.
Together with tales from the occupation instructed by these on each side, the museum additionally tracks the historical past of the Jutland coast, from its historic individuals to Viking occasions, from conventional fishing village to seaside vacation vacation spot.
There’s a complete space devoted to ‘Baltic gold’ as amber was identified, full with bugs frozen inside items of amber.
The audio guides are cleverly carried out, so you possibly can merely level them at an indication and pay attention (or skip previous areas you’re not concerned with) in addition to sensory bins in a single space – touching ‘mammoth fur’ was a little bit of a shock.
Dangle round that gallery and also you’ll additionally see the entire room remodeled as a storm sweeps throughout the partitions.
Then into the concrete bunker to study extra concerning the plans for it, in addition to the each day lifetime of these based mostly right here: one information story confirmed a former German soldier returning for the museum’s opening, a thought-provoking combine of inauspicious reminiscences and the banality of rediscovering on a regular basis gadgets.
After a fast stroll on the dunes, head in the direction of Esbjerg for lunch – Tirpitz is round an hour from Ribe, Esbjerg roughly half-way between the 2.
Among the many wealthy Jutland farmland, stretching out flat in the direction of the horizon, wind farms dotted alongside the coast, you may as well spot the imposing Man meets the Sea sculptures.
Simply outdoors Esbjerg itself, the 4 enormous white statues of seated males tower above the waves.
Our go to to town, a style of extra fashionable Denmark, had ended up being on a barely wet Sunday so with a number of locations closed, we solely stopped briefly to refuel however when you’ve got longer (or higher climate), save a while to discover.
There’s additionally the The Fisheries and Maritime Museum close by, with an aquarium and ‘sealarium’ alongside the exhibitions on Denmark’s fishing and transport historical past. Or for extra animals, Blavand Zoo can be close by.
Jutland itinerary: Day 7 – Ribe Vikingecenter and again to Billund
Tips on how to finish your week in Jutland with youngsters? With extra Vikings, in fact. A go to to the Ribe Vikingecenter, simply outdoors town, was a improbable option to step again in time and convey Viking life to life!
Based mostly on three genuine archaeological websites from the world, you possibly can uncover a farm, city with a recreation of an early church and market the place individuals would have travelled by water to commerce – in the summertime there are nonetheless craftspeople promoting their very own creations.
We did handle to squeeze in a small sword combat and practised some archery, but in addition stamped a silver coin, watched glass beads being made, floor flour and tried wooden carving (utilizing particular exercise tokens), in addition to wanting inside homes massive and small.
There’s a sacred bathroom to discover and you’ll try the church, within the strategy of being painted.
We watched the weaver making his dyes, a Viking lady twining onions to hold for the winter, and eyed up Viking-style beds earlier than attempting to coax sparks from hearth stones.
At every spot, there are volunteers (and a few workers) in character to talk to – many really stay on web site through the summer season, sticking to a Viking lifestyle so far as attainable.
The animals on the farm are breeds which might have been much like these of a millennium in the past, even the meals on the tables (though much less strictly within the cafe!) is what individuals of the time would have eaten. With no time machine, it’s exhausting to assume how rather more genuine it might be.
My daughter additionally made herself snug in each chief’s chair that she might discover, wanting mildly imperious. Truly make that very imperious.
And that’s the place our personal week in Jutland needed to finish – tempting although it was to move south in the direction of the German border, round an hour away. However with our flight leaving from Billund later that day, it was time to return north.
We determined to take the scenic route again to the airport, alongside Jutland’s west coast, having noticed the Ringkobing Fjord on the map throughout our go to to Tirpitz, a skinny strip of land between the water and the ocean.
Extra of an inland lake than dramatic surroundings like Norwegian fjords, it was nonetheless a really fairly route.
Wind surfers and kitesurfers had been taking advantage of the final of the late summer season solar, and I spied remoted cottages and extra clusters of vacation lodging to fireside my creativeness for one more journey.
Regardless of cramming lots into per week, it felt that nowhere was ever very removed from anyplace else, and all so family-friendly that it was enjoyable slightly than frantic.
Not venturing past Legoland, when you possibly can see a lot coast and historical past in a couple of additional days, can be lacking out.
When you have longer to spend, fairly Vejle on the jap coast is understood for its artwork – together with a floating sculpture path.
Or former capital of tradition Aarhus is Denmark’s second metropolis and a tempting possibility for a metropolis break in its personal proper, particularly if you happen to’ve already visited Copenhagen, with historical past buildings and fashionable structure on the cobbled streets.
For concepts of issues to do in Aarhus with youngsters, try the following pointers from Museum Mum.
Take a look at my full information to Denmark with youngsters right here
*First printed 2019, final up to date 2024*
PIN FOR LATER: ONE WEEK IN JUTLAND WITH KIDS
Disclosure: My journey to Jutland was courtesy of Go to Denmark and the sights and lodging talked about. All opinions are my very own, together with a love of intelligent interactive museums and being allowed to play with Lego for hours on finish.
Photographs copyright MummyTravels
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