The Amager nature centre.
Just five minutes’ walk from Vestamager Metro, a wilderness awaits – or at least the next best thing. West Amager, or Kalvebod Common, is the sort of natural area rarely found so close to the heart of a metropolis like Copenhagen. In less than 15 minutes, you journey from the downtown urban jungle of the city centre to a real savannah.
Twice the size of the more famous Deer Park, Kalvebod Common offers endless skies and wide vistas, rare birds, a host of insects and protected amphibians, droves of deer and grazing cattle and sheep.
The gateway to these wonders is Amager Nature Centre, where children and adults are able to derive inspiration and learn about nature all year round.
Equipment is available to hire or borrow for a range of activities, be it studying nature, lighting a fire, baking bread, making popcorn, bird watching or exploring by bike, scooter or even roller-skates if you fancy getting around a bit more quickly.
You might find that useful. The big skies and panoramic vistas stretch as far as the eye can see, and the roads are as straight as arrows – evidence of the fact that this area was once used as a military training facility. The flat landscape is interrupted only by a few areas of high ground, which also date from the military era.
Close to the Nature Centre is a large adventure playground, Himmelhøj, which offers a variety of games and activities in four distinct areas created by the Italian landscape artist Alfio Bonanno. More sculptures are dotted around the verge of the modern Ørestad district and in the wilds of the common.