Itinerary

May 29 - June 9, 2023

Day 0 (May 29, Monday)

  • Ideally, arrive in Copenhagen afternoon or evening.
  • Check in at Imperial Hotel, Farimagsgade 9, DK 1606 K∅benhavn V
  • The tour guide will meet you in the hotel.

Day 1 (May 30, Tuesday)

  • Breakfast at Imperial Hotel
    • National Museum in Copenhagen (guided tour)
    • Bus guided tour of Copenhagen
  • Hotel in Copenhagen: Imperial Hotel Copenhagen
  • Dinner at Madklubben Vesterbro, incl. beverages (near the hotel)

Day 2 (May 31, Wednesday)

  • Breakfast at Imperial, then leave for Roskilde
    • Viking Ship Museum (guided tour)
  • Driving to Ringsted for overnight at Scandic Hotel
    • N∅rretorv 57, 4100 Ringsted, Denmark
  • Dinner at Scandic Hotel

Day 3 (June 1, Thursday)

  • Breakfast at Scandic Hotel
  • Depart for Slagelse
    • Land of Legend, Lejre
    • Trelleborg Viking Fortress (guided tour)
  • Hotel in Slagelse: Vilcon Hotel & Konferancegaard
    • Lorupvej 44, 4200 Slagelse, Denmark
  • Dinner at Vilcon Hotel

Day 4 (June 2, Friday)

  • Breakfast at Vilcon Hotel
  • Depart for Schleswig, Germany
    • Hedeby (guided tour)
    • Danevirke (guided tour)
  • Driving to Geniesser Hotel Historischer Krug in Oeversee, Germany
    • Grazer Platz 1, 24988 Oeversee, Germany
  • Dinner at Geniesser Hotel

Day 5 (June 3, Saturday)

  • Breakfast at Geniesser Hotel
  • Depart for Ribe
    • Ribe Viking Center (guided tour)
  • Driving to Esbjerg
  • Hotel in Esbjerg: Scandic Olympic Hotel, Strandbygade 3, 6700 Esbjerg
  • Dinner at restaurant Flammen in Esbjerg

Day 6 (June 4, Sunday)

  • Breakfast at Scandic Olympic Hotel
    • Bork Viking Harbor, Bork Havn
  • Drive to Struer
  • Hotel in Struer: Grand Hotel Struer, ∅stergade 24, 7600 Struer
  • Dinner at Grand Hotel Struer

Day 7 (June 5, Monday)

  • Breakfast at Grand Hotel Struer
  • Drive to Fr∅strup in North Jutland
    • T∅mmerby Viking Burial Site, Fr∅strup
  • Stay at Kokkedal Slotshotel, Brovst
    • Kookedalsvej 17, 9460 Brovst, Denmark
  • Dinner at Kokkedal Slotshotel

Day 8 (June 6, Tuesday)

  • Breakfast at Kokkedal Slotshotel
    • Lindholm Hills Viking Burial Site
    • Aggersborg Viking Fortress
  • 2nd night stay at Kokkedal Slotshotel, Brovst
  • Dinner at Kokkedal Slotshotel

Day 9 (June 7, Wednesday)

  • Breakfast at Kokkedal Slotshotel
  • Depart Kokkedal Slotshotel
    • Fyrkat Viking Museum, Hobro (guided toru)
    • Viking Museum at Aarhus (guyided tour)
  • Stay at Sophiendal Slotshotel by Skanderborg
    • Låsbyvej 82, 8660 Skanderborg, Denmark
  • Dinner at Sophiendal Slotshotel

Day 10 (June 8, Thursday)

  • Breakfast at Sophiendal Slotshotel
    • Kongernes Jelling (Home of the Viking Kings) by Vejle
  • Drive to Copenhagen
  • Stay at Wake Up Borgergade by Nyhavn in Copenhagen
    • Borgergrade 9, 1300 K∅benhavn, Denmark
  • Dinner in Nyhavn at Nyhavns Faergerko

Day 11 (June 9, Friday)

  • Breakfast at Wake Up Borgergade
  • Check out and flights out

About

An educational tour designed and organized by Archaeological Legacy Institute (ALI) and our experienced Danish guide, Benedikte Ehlers.

A tour led by Benedikte Ehlers in tandem with archaeologist Dr. Richard Pettigrew.


This 10-day tour circumnavigates Denmark, all the way from Copenhagen into northern Germany and completely around Jutland, to visit the chief Viking sites and interpretive centers. The journey begins in Copenhagen with the National Museum, the best place to explore Danish history and culture. Then we proceed to Roskilde, nearby on the island of Zealand, the historic seat of Danish kings and queens and the location of the Viking Ship Museum, with its permanent exhibit of five original Viking ships.

We remain in the island of Zealand for Day 3 while visiting the Lejre Land of Legends open-air museum and the impressive Trelleborg Viking Fortress constructed by King Harald Bluetooth in AD 980, before we venture all the way to Schleswig, Germany, on Day 4 to see Hedeby, the key Viking trading city that was active throughout the entire Viking Age. Hedeby's location is strategic, as it linked the Baltic Sea trade routes to the North Sea via a short (9-mile) overland portage. Not far away is another one of our stops, the Danevirke, an ancient system of fortifications, dating back at least to the Iron Age, that may have served also as a shipping shortcut between the Baltic and North seas.

After finishing Day 4 on the German side of the border, we head out on Day 5 to Ribe, Denmark's oldest town, on the North Sea, where we make a stop at the Ribe Viking Center. Here we have a chance to step inside reconstructed Viking buildings and take part in activities that were familiar to Vikings, such as archery and Viking games. Day 5 ends in Esbjerg, Denmark's main port on the North Sea.

Day 6 focuses on Bork Viking Harbor, a living history complex at a place alongside the huge Ringk∅bing Fjord that once launched Viking ships into the North Sea. We end this day with a drive to Struer on Limfjord, the long waterway that connects the Baltic and North seas in North Jutland. From here, on Day 7, we venture off the beaten path to T∅mmerby Viking Burial Site, a vast Viking cemetery with many single-stone monuments, before retiring for the night (and the next night!) at Kokkedal Castle in Brovst. This is a real castle dating back to the 14th century, complete with its moat and other original features!

With Kokkedal Castle as our base, we set forth on Day 8 to visit two nearby sites: Lindholm Hills Viking Burial Site and Aggersborg Viking Fortress. Probably all the the Lindholm burials originally were marked by stones, but many of these were removed in the Middle Ages; despite this, many markers remain. Aggersborg is the largest of Denmark's Viking ring castles built by Harald Bluetooth, and actually Denmark's largest archaeological feature overall, with an inner diameter of 240 meters.

On Day 9 we drive southward from Kokkendal Castle on the final leg of our journey to visit two outstanding museums. The Fyrkat Museum features another of Harold Bluetooth's ringforts plus a Viking farmstead. The Viking Museum at Aarhus, in Denmark's second-largest city, is a window onto the town originally founded by the Vikings in exactly the same place where the city stands today. Then, after spending the night at Sophiendal Castle (another castle!), we make our way back to Copenhagen on Day 10 via the Kongernes Jelling, the Home of Viking Kings, where Harald Bluetooth and his father, Gorm the Old, installed large stones with runic inscriptions. From this place, Gorm and Harald ruled their kingdom. The interpretive center here in 2021 was named the best tourism project in Europe! It's also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Dinner on the last night will be at a restaurant in Nyhavn, Copenhagen's most popular and charming destination on a 17th-century waterfront. A great way to finish the tour!


Total Price (double occupancy): $4,350 to $5,175, depending on the number of participants. Pricing is subject to change and assumes double occupancy; a single lodging fee of $580 will be added.

Registration fee: $2,200 to ALI. This amount is included in the total price above. Spots are limited, so register today!

Costs included: All lodging, private ground transportation, all entry fees, archaeologist tour leader, evening lectures, local guide, breakfasts, and dinners.

Costs not included: Air fare to and from Denmark, gratuities for service providers (guides, waiters, drivers, maids), alcoholic beverages, lunches.

Dates: May 29 - June 9, 2023

Reserve your spot today!

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Contact us directly at: tours@archaeologychannel.org