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I recently finished reading The Tenant, a crime novel/thriller set in Copenhagen, Denmark. As I was reading, I realized they mentioned a lot of specific locations in Denmark and thought hey, it would be fun to write a post of places you could visit from the book! And here we are.
So, I took not of all these places that were mentioned to put this list together of places from The Tenant that you can visit in real life! I know I love visiting places I’ve read about, even if it’s only briefly mentioned.
I can’t be the only one, so I hope this is a fun post for you, too! Some of the places in this list they actually go to and others are just mentioned as landmarks or things nearby wherever they are but I still included them.
There may be minor spoilers in here but nothing that will ruin the book for you. Just mentions of characters throughout it. If there is anything major, I’ll mark it.
The Tenant is a police procedural set in Copenhagen. One day Julie Stender’s body is literally stumbled upon by her elderly apartment neighbor. She is found with intricate lines carved into her face and Esther de Laurenti, the landlady, soon comes under suspicion when ties are made between her and Julie.
And for the fact that she is writing a novel that is suspiciously similar to the way Julie was killed. It’s up to Jeppe Korner and Annette Werner to get to the bottom of everything and untangle their twisted pasts.
If there are any other fiction books you’d love to see something like this for, let me know!
Jutland
Jutland is actually a peninsula shared by Germany and Denmark but we’re just talking about the Denmark side here today. There are plenty of things to do in Jutland and places to go there that look pretty awesome.
Aarhus, Billund, Aalburg, and Varde are four popular cities in Jutland but it also has lots of great islands to visit like Romo, Besser Rev, or Livo.
There isn’t really one place in Jutland in particular that is mentioned (mostly Sorvad which I’ve included separately) so we’re covering a few bases here to give you an idea of what the whole area is like.
Here are some cool things to do and tours to consider throughout Jutland:
- Visit the Holmsland Sand Dunes
- Historic walking tour in Aarhus
- Aalborg like a local walking tour
- Visit Rinkobing Fjord
- Aarhus street art and rooftops tour
- Aarhus Capitol culture tour
- Visit some Viking museums
- Explore Legoland
Sorvad
Sorvad is in Central Jutland, about 156 miles west of Copenhagen. This little town isn’t brimming with things to do but it does have a UNESCO World Heritage Site: the Jelling Mounds, Runic Stones, and Church.
Sorvad was the home to Julie Stender, the murder victim in the book. I don’t think anyone in the book goes there, but it is mentioned a few times.
Ny Carlsburg Glyptotek
This was just used in the book as a landmark to mark their location of where they were in the city. But wait, what is the Ny Carlsburg Glyptotek? It’s an art museum!
This museum was founded in 1888 and is in the heart of Copenhagen. It’s home to more than 10,000 works of art and archeological objects from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome as well as Danish and French art from the 19th century.
Even if you don’t go in (which you totally should because art is awesome but no judgement here if it’s not for you), the architecture is still worth passing by to see.
Phoenix Copenhagen
Now, this one isn’t an exact mention in the book. It might be but just under a different name. Instead of the Hotel Phoenix, it’s now the Phoenix Copenhagen.
This is definitely not a budget friendly place to stay, but it does look pretty nice. This luxury hotel is in the heart of Copenhagen as well. It’s near the subway and a short walk to the Amalienborg Palace and Nyhavn waterfront.
The hotel first opened in 1848 but has had a rough history between then and now. It was confiscated by the Germans during WWII then turned into the headquarters for the Danish Communist Party and Land og Folk newspaper.
Then, in 1990 and 1991 it was refurbished as a hotel and you can stay there again today. In the book, this is the hotel that Julie’s parents stay at when they come to Copenhagen.
National Museum of Denmark
The National Museum of Denmark is the place to go to learn about Denmark and it’s history. You can learn about the prehistory of Denmark and finds like the Egtved Girl and the Sun Chariot.
You can also learn about the rest of the world while you’re here. I’m not really a museum person but just browsing their website has me wanting to go! I mean, how cool is this spearhead and this god figure!?
Christiansborg Palace
This is another landmark mentioned to just give proximity to wherever they were but you can visit the palace and experience 800 years of history while you’re there!
See the Royal Representation Rooms, the Queen’s Tapestries, and the Knight’s Hall in the palace. And on the grounds you can visit the Royal Stables, the Royal Party Kitchen, the ruins under the castle, and the Christiansborg Castle Church.
Royal Danish Theater
Next up is the Royal Danish Theater and something pretty major happens here, so SPOILERS IN THE NEXT PARAGRAPH!
This is where they find Kristoffer murdered and left hanging in the chandelier over the audience while a show is going on. SPOILERS DONE!!
Your visit will probably be a lot less grim than that though, so don’t skip this one! Unless you just aren’t a theater person. But the you can at least pass by the outside which is still impressive.
You can find out what shows are going on when you’ll be visiting right here.
Copenhagen Canals
In the book, Jeppe goes for a walk by the canals. There isn’t anything gruesome that happens here, it’s just a place he visits that you can, too!
The Copenhagen Canals are similar to those you’ll find in Venice or Amsterdam, but on a less grand scale. That doesn’t mean they’re any less impressive though.
You can either walk along the canals throughout the city or you can hop on an hour long canal tour. The tour is probably going to be the best way to get to see the canals and all the sights along them.
Tivoli Gardens
They don’t actually go to Tivoli Gardens at all but it’s mentioned as a landmark nearby quite a few times.
This is an amusement park in Copenhagen open from mid-April to mid-September with rides and (I quote, from Wikipedia) “pleasure gardens.”
The park opened in 1843 and is the third oldest amusement park in the world and second most popular seasonal theme park in the world!
Tuborg Bottle
Jeppe meets one of the investigators up at the top of the observatory to discuss some suspicions in a more private place(?) so the other employees can’t overhear them. Weird choice, but whatevs.
As I was reading, I wasn’t sure this was a real thing, I’m not sure why it would be made up, but it’s not. It’s very real and very old.
It was originally built as Denmark’s contribution to the Nordic Exhibition of 1888 and has moved around the city a bit but in 2003 it was renovated and moved back to live next to the Tuborg headquarters.
You can’t go in it anymore, but you can go by to check it out.
Faroe Islands
Annette comes to the Faroe Islands to talk to Julie’s former teacher’s mother. She isn’t here long, just flies in for the interview and leaves, but you may as well stay a while!
You obviously won’t be here trying to solve a murder so you’ll be able to do fun things like look for puffins on Mykines, visit Tinganes and Torshavn Old Town, see the viking village Kirkjubour, or do some kayaking.
The Faroe Islands are one of my top bucket list destinations. They look amazing. And puffins! Those are reason enough to go.
Have you read The Tenant? What did you think of it? Have you been to any of these places?
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