Background

Frederiksberg Palace (Frederiksberg Slot)

Baroque hilltop palace in Frederiksberg, once a royal summer residence and now a military academy, overlooking one of Copenhagen’s most beautiful historic gardens.

4.5
Find your perfect hotel, anywhere in the world.

When's your trip?

Who's coming?

Adult (18-90)
Min: 1 Max: 6
Add a child
At least one participant is required. Please adjust and try again.

Crowning a grassy hill above Frederiksberg Garden in Copenhagen, Frederiksberg Palace is an elegant Baroque residence from the early 18th century. Once a summer retreat for Danish kings and later a permanent royal home, it now houses the Royal Danish Military Academy and is only rarely open on guided tours. Even so, its ochre façades, chapel and sweeping views over the surrounding landscaped gardens make it a striking backdrop to any stroll through this historic green quarter.

A brief summary to Frederiksberg Palace

  • Roskildevej 28 A, Frederiksberg C, Frederiksberg C, 2000, DK
  • +4572817773
  • Visit website
  • Duration: 0.5 to 2 hours
  • Free
  • Environment icon Outdoor
  • Mobile reception: 5 out of 5

Local tips

  • Check in advance if any guided tours are scheduled during your visit, as interior access is limited and the palace normally functions as a closed military academy.
  • Combine your palace stop with an unhurried walk through Frederiksberg Garden and Søndermarken to appreciate how the building was designed as part of a wider landscape.
  • Walk up the hill in front of the palace for sweeping views across the lawns and lakes; early morning and late afternoon light are especially atmospheric for photos.
widget icon

Getting There

  • Metro and walk from central Copenhagen

    From Copenhagen Central or Nørreport, take the M1 or M2 metro to Frederiksberg Station, a journey of about 5–10 minutes. From the station it is roughly a 15–20 minute urban walk through Frederiksberg’s streets and past the edge of Frederiksberg Garden to reach the palace hill. A single metro ticket within the city zones typically costs around 20–30 DKK, and services run every few minutes throughout the day.

  • Bus from inner Copenhagen

    Several city bus lines connect central Copenhagen with Frederiksberg along major arteries such as Roskildevej and Falkoner Allé, with travel times generally around 15–25 minutes depending on traffic. Buses accept standard city tickets and travel cards, with single journeys usually in the 20–30 DKK range. Most buses stop within a short walk of Frederiksberg Garden, from where you continue on foot up the hill to the palace.

  • Cycling from the city centre

    Copenhagen’s extensive cycle lanes make it straightforward to bike from areas like the historic centre, Vesterbro or Nørrebro to Frederiksberg Palace in roughly 15–25 minutes. The route is mostly flat until the short final climb up Frederiksberg Hill. Public bike-share schemes and rental shops offer a range of bicycles, typically from about 100–150 DKK per day, and cycling is often the quickest and most flexible way to combine the palace with other nearby sights.

  • Taxi or rideshare within Copenhagen

    A taxi from central Copenhagen to Frederiksberg Palace usually takes 10–20 minutes, depending on traffic along the main arterials through Vesterbro and Frederiksberg. Fares within the inner city commonly fall in the 120–200 DKK range for up to four passengers. Taxis can drop you near the base of Frederiksberg Hill, after which there is a short but moderately steep walk up to the palace terrace.

Frederiksberg Palace location weather suitability

  • Weather icon Any Weather
  • Weather icon Mild Temperatures
  • Weather icon Cold Weather
  • Weather icon Hot Weather
  • Weather icon Clear Skies

Unlock the Best of Frederiksberg Palace

Buy tickets

    No tickets available

Book tours with entry

    No tours available

Book tours without entry

    No tours available

Discover more about Frederiksberg Palace

A Baroque Palace Above the Gardens

Frederiksberg Palace rises in warm yellow tones atop Frederiksberg Hill, its dark roofline bristling with chimneys and dormer windows that give it a distinctive Baroque profile against the Copenhagen sky. Built in the early 1700s as a summer residence for King Frederik IV, it was inspired by Italian Baroque villas of the period, with a strict, symmetrical layout and long façades facing the surrounding greenery. From the grassy slope in front of the palace, your eye runs down over Frederiksberg Garden, one of the city’s most beloved historic parks. The building’s elevated position was deliberately chosen to dominate the landscape, and even today the palace seems to preside over lakes, lawns and winding paths that stretch out below.

Royal Lives and Dramatic Stories

Behind the dignified exterior lies a dense web of royal history. The palace served not only as a summer refuge, but at times as a full-time royal residence. King Christian VI used it as his main home, and several key figures of Danish history were born or lived within these walls. In the late 18th century the palace became closely associated with the troubled King Christian VII, his English-born wife Queen Caroline Mathilde and her physician and secret confidant Johan Friedrich Struensee. Their intense and ultimately tragic relationship is one of the most famous chapters in Danish royal history. The story still clings to places inside the building, including the queen’s marble bath in the basement, preserved as a rare and intimate glimpse of royal domestic life.

From Royal Residence to Military Academy

By the mid‑19th century, the royal family gradually withdrew from Frederiksberg Palace, and in 1852 the last monarch left it as a residence. Some years later, its role in Danish life changed dramatically when it became home to the Royal Danish Military Academy in 1869. Since then, the palace has functioned primarily as an educational institution for army officers. This military use has helped preserve the building, but it also means that the interior is generally closed to casual visitors. Access is usually limited to scheduled guided tours, often held only a few times a year, while the officers’ training continues behind the Baroque façades.

Architecture and Interior Highlights

Although the exterior is what most visitors experience, the palace interior is richly decorated. The layout reflects early‑18th‑century tastes, with formal suites of rooms aligned along grand axes, painted ceilings and decorative stucco. The palace chapel, a notable feature of the complex, expresses Baroque religious architecture in a Danish context, blending solemnity with ornate detailing. The preserved marble bathroom associated with Caroline Mathilde is especially evocative. Its cool stone surfaces and mirrored walls speak of royal comfort and privacy at a time when such luxuries were rare. Together, these interiors illustrate how Baroque grandeur and personal spaces coexisted in a functioning royal household.

Frederiksberg Palace in Its Green Setting

The palace is closely tied to its surroundings. On the palace side, broad terraces and lawns frame the building and open towards Frederiksberg Garden, originally laid out in the Baroque style and later transformed into a more naturalistic landscape park. On the opposite side lies Søndermarken, another historic green space that forms a kind of leafy counterpart. Walking around the hill, you can shift from wide open views of the city to shaded paths beneath large old trees. The palace’s ochre walls often appear through gaps in the foliage, giving you fleeting perspectives that change with the seasons and the light.

Experiencing the Palace Today

Most visitors experience Frederiksberg Palace from the outside as part of a wider visit to the gardens and nearby attractions such as Copenhagen Zoo. The palace provides a stately backdrop for picnics, dog walkers, joggers and casual promenades up and down the hill. On days when guided tours are arranged, a limited number of guests are allowed inside to explore selected rooms, the chapel and elements of the historic interiors. These visits offer a rare window into royal and military life within one of Copenhagen’s most characterful Baroque buildings, even as the palace continues its daily function as Denmark’s officer academy.

Busiest months of the year

Busiest hours of the day

Popular Experiences near Frederiksberg Palace

Popular Hotels near Frederiksberg Palace

Select Currency