Between urban history and landscape, Køge offers two distinct focuses for your stay: historic places in the town and the Køge Å Trail, a cycling and walking route. This makes planning concrete. You can focus on individual cultural themes or turn your attention to a continuous route and its landscape sections. Which aspect you give greater weight to depends on whether you are more interested in urban history or a longer outdoor activity.

Urban history at specific places

Køge Museum is centrally located in Køge and presents the town’s history in a merchant’s courtyard dating from 1619. The date refers to the courtyard, while the exhibition focuses on the town’s history. At this museum, you can encounter both a clearly identified historic building and a broader look at Køge.

Køge Torv was laid out in the 13th century. A market featuring, among other things, meat, fish and vegetables has been held here for 700 years. The market takes place on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 8 am to 3 pm; check the date before your visit. Guided town tours also start at Torv. This means the market and the tour share the same named starting point, although the tour runs on a seasonal schedule.

Guided town tours cover Køge’s history, including its past as a trading town and the witch trials that took place there. The tours are seasonal offerings, and their themes may vary. If you are planning a tour, check the date and programme in advance. This will help you assess whether the topics offered match your interests, without assuming that every tour covers the same subjects.

The historic buildings also represent different aspects: Det Gamle Hus is one of Denmark’s oldest dated half-timbered houses; Køge Rådhus is Denmark’s oldest town hall building still in use. Half-timbering is a construction method featuring an exposed timber frame. The two descriptions refer to different comparison groups: dated half-timbered houses on the one hand, and town hall buildings still in use on the other. An interior visit to Det Gamle Hus is possible at Køge Library; check the access arrangements before your visit.

The Køge Å Trail: a route through varied landscapes

The Køge Å Trail is a 22-kilometre cycling and walking route. It runs from Køge via Dyndet in Borup to Borup Station, through forests, alongside bogs and through villages. Along the way, there are views of the open countryside. This makes the route different from a visit to a single historic place: the focus here is on the route, its varied landscape sections and its named endpoint. Local trail conditions can change; check them before setting out.

When planning your stay, you can consider the two focuses separately: the museums, buildings, town tours and market introduce different aspects of Køge’s history; the Køge Å Trail is a standalone cycling and walking route. This lets you decide which part of your travel interests you would like to give more weight to.

Discover more destinations: Borup, Lille Skensved, Stubberup, Ejby

Return to the main travel overview: Køge Municipality.