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Søndermarken

Historic royal hunting grounds turned hilly green refuge, where woodland paths, memorials and underground art unfold beside Frederiksberg Palace and Copenhagen Zoo.

4.5

Søndermarken is a historic, hilly park in Frederiksberg, just across Roskildevej from Frederiksberg Gardens and beside Copenhagen Zoo. Once a royal hunting ground for Frederiksberg Palace, it is now a 24‑hour public green space of meadows, woodland and winding paths. Highlights include the underground art venue Cisternerne in former water cisterns, evocative monuments such as the Danish-American Memorial Mound, statues of notable Danes, playgrounds and quiet corners ideal for jogging, dog walking and picnics.

A brief summary to Søndermarken

  • Pile Allé 55, Frederiksberg, 2000, DK
  • Visit website
  • Duration: 1 to 3 hours
  • Free
  • Environment icon Outdoor
  • Mobile reception: 5 out of 5
  • Monday 12 am-12 am
  • Tuesday 12 am-12 am
  • Wednesday 12 am-12 am
  • Thursday 12 am-12 am
  • Friday 12 am-12 am
  • Saturday 12 am-12 am
  • Sunday 12 am-12 am

Local tips

  • Combine a walk in Søndermarken with a visit to Cisternerne; the contrast between the bright park and the cool underground exhibition spaces is especially striking on warm days.
  • Bring a picnic blanket in summer and aim for the higher slopes for partial views towards Frederiksberg Palace and a quieter atmosphere away from main paths.
  • If you enjoy photography, visit around golden hour when low sunlight filters through the old trees and highlights the park’s hilly contours and statues.
  • Paths are mostly gravel and can be uneven in places, so choose comfortable footwear, especially if you plan to explore the wooded slopes or run in the park.
  • In cooler months, the park can feel noticeably breezy on the open lawns; layers and windproof clothing make it easier to linger and enjoy the scenery.
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Getting There

  • Metro and walk from central Copenhagen

    From central Copenhagen, take the M1 or M2 metro to Kongens Nytorv and change to line M3 or M4 towards Frederiksberg Allé or Enghave Plads; the ride takes about 15–20 minutes in total. From either station, expect a 15–20 minute walk along broad urban streets to the edges of Søndermarken, mostly on level pavement suitable for strollers. A standard single metro ticket within the city zones typically costs around 20–30 DKK and services run frequently throughout the day.

  • S-train and bus via Valby or Copenhagen Central

    Take an S-train to Valby Station or Copenhagen Central Station, then connect to a local bus heading along Roskildevej toward Frederiksberg. Combined travel time is usually 20–30 minutes depending on connections. Buses stop within a few minutes’ walk of the park’s southern or northern edges. A combined train and bus ticket within the city fare zones generally costs about 20–30 DKK, and services operate at regular intervals during daytime and early evening.

  • Cycling from inner Copenhagen

    Cycling from inner Copenhagen to Søndermarken typically takes 15–25 minutes, following dedicated bike lanes most of the way. The route is largely flat and well-signed, making it accessible for less experienced cyclists. You can use city bikes or standard rentals, usually priced from around 75–150 DKK per day depending on provider. Bicycle parking racks are available near main entrances around Roskildevej and Pile Allé.

  • Taxi or ride-hail within Copenhagen

    A taxi or ride-hail from central Copenhagen to Søndermarken generally takes 10–20 minutes depending on traffic. Fares are usually in the range of 120–200 DKK for the journey. Vehicles can drop you near entrances along Pile Allé or Roskildevej, but parking directly beside the park may be limited at busy times, so drivers may use nearby side streets for set-down and pick-up.

Søndermarken location weather suitability

  • Weather icon Any Weather
  • Weather icon Clear Skies
  • Weather icon Windy Conditions
  • Weather icon Mild Temperatures
  • Weather icon Cold Weather
  • Weather icon Hot Weather
  • Snow

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Discover more about Søndermarken

Royal hunting ground turned urban retreat

Søndermarken began life in the 18th century as the southern field and hunting grounds for Frederiksberg Palace, laid out at the same time as neighbouring Frederiksberg Gardens. Today the palace still crowns the hill to the north, while Søndermarken unfolds as a more rugged, less formal cousin to the manicured baroque gardens across Roskildevej. Here the landscape feels deliberately wilder, with sloping lawns, stands of old trees and long sightlines that hint at its royal past. This history is not just a footnote: traces of the original layout and the sense of a semi-wooded hunting landscape remain tangible as you follow broad avenues and narrower paths. The park’s evolution from private royal preserve to public green space in the 19th century mirrors Copenhagen’s own growth, as the palace grounds gradually opened to the city and became part of everyday life.

Woodland paths, meadows and quiet corners

What defines Søndermarken today is its varied terrain. Unlike many flat urban parks, it rises and falls in gentle waves, with wooded slopes, clearings and meadow-like grass that can grow long in summer. This creates a series of natural “rooms”: some open and sunny, others shaded and intimate beneath mature trees that shelter owls and songbirds. Local runners thread through the network of gravel paths, while dog walkers and families claim grassy patches for informal picnics or games. In some areas the planting is deliberately less groomed, encouraging biodiversity and making parts of the park feel almost like a pocket of countryside embedded in the city. On a misty morning or in low winter light, the combination of trees, hills and distant palace views gives the park a distinctly atmospheric character.

Cisternerne and the world beneath the lawn

One of Søndermarken’s most distinctive features is hidden underground. Near Roskildevej, a pair of glass pavilions and a fountain mark the entrance to Cisternerne, a vast system of 19th-century water cisterns that once formed part of Copenhagen’s early clean-water supply. The chambers were later transformed into an unusual exhibition space and are now part of the Frederiksberg Museums. Descending into Cisternerne takes you into a cool, echoing underworld of pillars, shallow water and carefully curated light, where contemporary art installations respond to the raw architecture. The contrast between the bright, breezy park above and the damp, cathedral-like halls below is striking, and together they give Søndermarken a rare combination of nature, infrastructure history and contemporary culture in a single place.

Monuments, memorials and Norwegian touches

Scattered through the greenery are several historic structures and memorials that reward unhurried exploration. The Danish-American Memorial Mound, raised in the 1920s with funds collected among emigrant Danes abroad, is a grassy tumulus with an inscribed entrance leading to an inner chamber commemorating those who left and never returned. Its secluded setting beneath tall trees and the beam of daylight entering from above give it a contemplative feel. Elsewhere in the park you may encounter rustic constructions such as the Norske Hus and other features inspired by Norwegian log-building traditions and romantic grottos, echoing 19th-century tastes for picturesque scenery. At either end of Norske Allé stand statues of the poet Adam Oehlenschläger and the statesman Carl Christian Hall, anchoring the park in Denmark’s cultural and political history.

Everyday playground for city life

For all its history, Søndermarken functions first and foremost as a local breathing space. A children’s playground makes it easy to visit with younger travellers, while open lawns double as informal sports fields and picnic spots. The terrain is varied enough to make a short loop walk feel like a mini-excursion, yet compact enough that you are never far from an exit back to the surrounding neighbourhoods. The park links naturally with adjacent attractions such as Copenhagen Zoo and Frederiksberg Gardens, allowing visitors to combine nature, animal encounters and palace vistas in a single outing. Whether you are here to run a few laps, sit under a tree with a book or descend into the depths of Cisternerne, Søndermarken offers a flexible patch of green woven tightly into the fabric of the city.

Light, seasons and changing moods

Because Søndermarken is open at all hours, it reveals different personalities with the weather and the time of day. On long summer evenings, joggers loop through golden light while families linger on the grass. In autumn, foliage turns the slopes into a tapestry of colour, and in winter a dusting of snow can transform the park into a quiet, monochrome landscape. Even in wind or drizzle there is shelter among the trees and a sense of calm away from traffic. The combination of hilly ground, old trees, cultural layers and that unusual underground art space makes Søndermarken more than just a patch of lawn. It is a place where royal heritage, city infrastructure and everyday recreation meet in a single, walkable landscape.

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