Beauty at a high price

Among the European countries still to visit, Denmark had been at the top of the list for quite a while, and online I manage to find a low-cost flight after mid-August departing from Catania with a stopover in Rome outbound and Milan inbound. I book the flight to Copenhagen, then turn to booking hotels and, after barely 2 minutes of searching, already understand why Denmark is considered one of the most expensive destinations in the world. Exchange rate at the time: 1 euro = 7.25 DKK. We set off on 18 August; having arrived in Copenhagen in the afternoon we pick up a hire car, then leave for Odense, where we will spend the first night at the Best Western Odense; we visit the centre of Andersen's town in about 2 hours; the cold wind prevents us from lingering any longer and spoils the "fairy-tale" tour. Note: the bridge between Copenhagen and Odense is tolled, a full 235 DKK..

One way only.. 19 August: early-morning wake-up, hearty breakfast to face a long, demanding day. We spend the whole morning visiting Egeskov Castle and its park (admission charged at 188 DKK per person); the manor is surrounded by water and, before entering, we visit the park and the stables, today used as a permanent collection of vintage cars and motorbikes; the castle's interiors, though with original furnishings, don't strike us as much as the outside of the building. We set off north again, heading for Skagen (about 400 km); but before leaving the island we stop for a few minutes in a park famous for its deer. We arrive around 20:00, just in time to visit the nearby Kilsendende Kirke (a church buried in sand, with only the bell tower emerging) and enjoy the spectacular sunset on the beach at Grenen, where the romantic meeting of two seas delights photographers and tourists.

Night in a bungalow at the Rabjerg Mile Camping, a property with pool, shop, minigolf, playground, bike hire, etc. A bungalow, yes, but at hotel prices: 1274 DKK a night per couple, not including cleaning (500 DKK) or sheets; minigolf is charged too, as is the indoor pool; the outdoor one is free. 20 August: breakfast of bread and Nutella, then a minigolf challenge. We set off at 9:30; within an hour we are at Rubjerg Knude, the sand-buried lighthouse; we leave the car in a car park and venture out by bike (available free on site) as far as the first sand dunes, taking the wrong route and ending up turning a quiet stroll into a tiring 1-hour mountain-bike workout, through woods, scrub, potholes and sand...

We spend a couple of hours photographing the landscape from the dunes, then take the road back towards Skagen, stopping for lunch at Hirtshals, a little village on the coast, where we also spend time buying souvenirs. In Denmark you eat well, everywhere, but the prices are extremely high: 40 euro for 2 sandwiches with chips and 1 drink!! We return to the campsite just in time for a dip in the pool; then we drive about 4 km and spend the late afternoon at Rabjerg Mile, the "moving" mile of sand, admiring the ingenuity of the locals, who manage to adapt with racket-sports courts and bowling greens in the middle of the Danish desert. 21 August: we set off early in the morning to be at the opening of Legoland park in Billund at 11:00 (329 DKK each for the ticket). At 16:30 we set off towards Roskilde, where we arrive at 19:30.

With the bikes available at the hotel we take a tour of the town, going as far as the famous cathedral. We try to save a few kroner by having a snack with a yoghurt, but only at the moment of paying do we realise that the assistant weighs the bowl overflowing with every delicacy and rings up a bill of 69 DKK (that is, 10 euro ten...). 22 August: we set off on the castle tour: we will visit Helsingor (Kronborg Castle, famous because Shakespeare set Hamlet there), Frederiksborg (admission 75 DKK per person) and Fredensborg. At Helsingor, an alternative, cheap lunch with a purchase from a butcher's eaten on special benches with a view of the castle (we don't go inside, but take a walk along the walls and through the town, where we find numerous stalls and costumed performers). At Fredensborg we stop only for the obligatory photos.

Frederiksborg, on the other hand, fascinates us for its interiors, but also for its gardens and the surrounding lake. 23 August: from Roskilde we move towards the capital, to leave the car at the airport and then reach the Hotel Astoria, a stone's throw from the central station. We will spend two days in Copenhagen, immersed in a very pleasant city, discovering its best-known districts, such as Nyhavn, and the famous Tivoli park, and also visiting the areas unknown to most, such as the Street Food market, or the Christiania ghetto district.