Superkilen Park, Copenhagen Travel Guide

Superkilen Park slices through the heart of Nørrebro as a long, tapering wedge of public space, almost a kilometre from end to end. Conceived as part of an urban renewal project, it was created to give one of Copenhagen’s most diverse districts a shared civic living room. Rather than a quiet, traditional park, it is an unapologetically urban landscape where bikes, prams and skateboards roll past neon signs and sculptural furniture.The design team – architects Bjarke Ingels Group, artists Superflex and landscape studio Topotek1 – treated Superkilen as a three‑dimensional exhibition of everyday objects. Locals with roots in more than 60 countries helped select items from their homelands, which were then re‑imagined and installed here. The result is a park that reads like a global scrapbook, bound together by strong colours and graphic lines.

At the southern end, the Red Square sets the tone with its saturated surface of reds and pinks that wrap across the ground and visually up surrounding façades. This zone extends the energy of nearby sports and cultural venues into the open air, with hard-wearing pavements designed for football, skateboarding, skating and informal games.Neon signs, a line‑dance pavilion from Texas and other imported features create a loose, plaza‑like space where music, ball games and café life intertwine. The intense colour makes even everyday activities feel theatrical, and the flat expanses double as an impromptu stage for performances, community events or simply kids cycling in wide circles at dusk.

Moving north, the park narrows into the Black Market, a square surfaced in dark asphalt, over which sweeping white lines are drawn like a giant graphic score. These stripes curve around benches, lampposts and trees, guiding movement yet inviting people to pause wherever they like.Here the mood slows. Chess tables, shaded seating and a central fountain encourage lingering conversations. Objects sourced from different continents – benches, bins, light columns and playground pieces – create a subtle sense of travelling the world while staying firmly rooted in Nørrebro’s everyday rhythm.

At the northern end, the Green Park delivers exactly what the neighbourhood once asked for: more greenery. Rolling lawns, low hills and tree‑lined paths open up into a softer landscape for picnics, sunbathing and dog walking. Families spread blankets on the grass while children explore slides, swings and climbing structures, including eye‑catching pieces with origins as far away as Japan or Afghanistan.Sports facilities are embedded in the terrain: a crater‑like court for football and basketball, running routes and open spaces for informal games. From the crest of the main hill you can look back along much of Superkilen and trace its transition from intense red to deep black to lush green.

The park’s most intriguing aspect may be its catalogue of imported elements, each linked to the background of local residents. A Moroccan fountain, Iraqi swings, a Spanish bull silhouette, Brazilian benches and a large chandelier from Italy are just a few of the pieces that punctuate the route. Plaques and subtle cues hint at their origins, turning a casual stroll into a quiet lesson in global geography and migration.Despite their varied provenance, the objects are stitched together by a consistent graphic language and careful placement. They transform Superkilen into a place where design, identity and everyday life meet, reinforcing the idea that a neighbourhood park can also be a statement about openness and shared belonging.

Throughout the day, Superkilen shifts character with its users. Early mornings bring joggers and commuters along the central cycle track; afternoons fill the play areas, sports courts and chess tables; evenings see the Red Square glow under neon, drawing skaters and friends meeting on the benches. Open at all hours and free to enter, it functions as both a local backyard and an international design landmark.Whether you come to photograph its bold lines, to let children burn off energy, or simply to sit with a takeaway coffee and watch Nørrebro’s diversity unfold around you, Superkilen offers a vivid snapshot of contemporary Copenhagen – inclusive, experimental and very much alive.