If you are travelling with your family, then there is a wealth of attractions and sites to explore around the Danish capital of Copenhagen. One of the most iconic is the city’s Tivoli Gardens.

The Tivoli Gardens is in the center of Copenhagen – right across from the central train station of the city. The Tivoli is Copenhagen’s amusement park – it opened in 1843, making it the second-oldest operating amusement park in the world.

The Tivoli is hugely popular, both with visitors to the city and with locals – it plays an important part in the day-to-day life of the city.

Embrace the seasons

Something that the locals of Copenhagen always look forward to is the changing of the seasons at the Tivoli Gardens. The lavish decorations of the garden are changed to mark the different phases of the year. The five seasons that are celebrated by the Tivoli Gardens are – Easter, Summer, Halloween, Christmas, and Winter.

For Easter, the decorations are a celebration of Spring – the gardens are awash with daffodils, with Easter lambs a key feature.

For summer, the garden focuses on food and the taste sensations offered by the cuisine of Denmark.

Halloween becomes a total pumpkin-fest, with spooky decorations and a straw bale maze to get lost in.

Christmas is showcased by dazzling festive lights and Christmas markets.

In the colder months, the gardens become a Winter Wonderland, full of snowmen, frost crystals, and a skating rink.

Jump on board and take a ride

A key feature of any amusement park is its rides, and Tivoli doesn’t disappoint. For the thrill-seekers there are rides such as the Vertigo, turning you upside down while travelling at 100 kilometers per hour. However my favorite is the slightly more sedate wooden roller coaster. The roller coaster was constructed in 1914, and it is one of only seven roller coasters in the world that has a brake-man on board every train.

Treat yourself

I love the range of local sweets and delicacies that you can sample from the various food stalls throughout the Tivoli Gardens.

One of the highlights is Vaffelbageriet – a patisserie that specializes in homemade ice-cream and waffles. The Vaffelbageriet patisserie first opened in 1906 and today is still run by the founding family. You will probably need to try a few different flavors of ice-cream to find your favorite, although I always go for a combination of licorice and strawberry. When you are ordering your ice-cream at Vaffelbageriet patisserie, they will probably ask you if you want ‘guf’ on top of your ice-cream. The answer to this question is yes – trust me, you do want guf. It’s essentially a fluffy foam made from egg whites and sugar – it is generally flavored with fruits or berries. It really is delicious, and somehow takes ice-cream to a whole new level.

Licorice is another Danish specialty that is hard to resist. Lakrids is a Danish licorice brand that has a stall in the market. They will let you try a few different samples before you have to try and make a decision – I really like the salty licorice but tend to always go for the chocolate covered licorice because it is impossible to resist. Stock up on treats and take them back to your aparthotel Copenhagen. This is what a family vacation should be.