Copenhagen Invites Destinations Worldwide To Join Copenpay

CopenPay began in Copenhagen as an initiative that rewarded tourists with free perks for simple responsible actions, from picking up litter in the canals to arriving at museums by bike.

Building on its success — and interest from more than 100 destinations worldwide — Copenhagen will launch DestinationPay on December 3.

Developed by the official tourism organisation of Copenhagen, WonderfulCopenhagen, DestinationPay is a global, ready-to-use framework that allows cities and regions to create their own version of CopenPay and reward visitors for actions that benefit local communities. It marks a shift toward a new tourism economy where value is measured not only by spending but by contribution. Several international destinations have already signed on.

To learn more, please visit: https://www.visitcopenhagen.com/copenpay

A Danish Hippie Oasis Has Fought Drug Sales For Years. Now, Locals Want To Tear Up The Whole Street

The inhabitants of Copenhagen’s freewheeling Christiania neighborhood plan to dig up the aptly named Pusher Street, in their latest attempt to stop illegal hashish sales which have led to deadly gang turf wars and sometimes violent confrontations with the police.

Residents of the hippie enclave are calling for volunteers to help dig up the street on April 6, the Berlingske newspaper wrote Thursday. All are welcome, and participants can take home one of its cobblestones as a souvenir.

It is yet unclear what will replace the street.

The residents are fighting to preserve Christiania’s reputation as a “free-wheeling society” made up of political idealists and aging hippies. For years, hash has been sold openly in Christiania from roadside stalls, among buildings painted in psychedelic colors. But inhabitants say that feuding gangs, not them, control the trade and the survival of their community hinges on ending it.

The neighborhood has been a world apart from the rest of Copenhagen since 1973, when hippies squatted at a derelict naval base and set up a community dedicated to the flower-power ideals popular at the time: free cannabis, limited government influence, no cars and no police.

After more than four decades of locking horns with authorities, they were given control over their homes when the state sold the 84-acre (24-hectare) enclave for 85.4 million kroner ($12.5 million) to a foundation owned by its inhabitants. There are nearly 700 adults and about 150 children living in the community today, and it’s one of the Danish capital’s biggest tourist attractions.

The “Christianites” have made several attempts to close the hashish market in the roughly 100 meter (328 foot)-long street. Police say the trade, worth millions, is controlled by the Hells Angels and the outlawed Loyal to Family.

Authorities tolerated hashish sales in Christiania until 2004, when police started to crack down. To preempt police raids, residents took down hash booths, but trading soon came back. Last year, they brought heavy machinery to tear down the market but masked men stopped them.

In the past month, Christiania has worked with local authorities to make plan that includes ending the drug trade and replacing it with other activities.

The social and housing ministry said that it was “an important prerequisite to get rid of the organized hashish trade” before Christiania can get 14.3 million kroner ($2.1 million) earmarked for the work.

A 30-year-old man who was selling drugs was shot and killed, and four others injured, in August; in 2022, a man selling hashish from one of the street’s booths was shot dead. The previous year, a man was shot and killed at the entrance to the same street.

Last year, the mayor of Copenhagen urged foreigners not to buy hashish there because of the deadly shootings.

BY JAN M. OLSEN

10 of The Best Theme Parks … That You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

Popeye village, Malta. Will the spinach be served with olive oil? Photograph: Alamy

Popeye Village, Anchor Bay, Malta

The 1980 film Popeye may have been a notorious flop but its has a legacy in the charming family attraction of Popeye Village, the self-consciously ramshackle collection of wooden buildings set on a beautiful bay constructed as a film set for the Robin Williams movie. Visitors can explore the colourful village, meet the characters and mosey into a range of attractions including a Popeye comic museum. There are also regular boat trips, puppet shows and a cinema, where you can, ahem, watch the Popeye film. It is what it is.
• Admission free. Check website for opening hours, popeyemalta.com

Efteling, Kaatsheuvel, Netherlands

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 Photograph: Alamy

Popular in the Netherlands but rarely visited by foreigners (94% of its visitors are Dutch), Efteling is a huge fantasy theme park with a large number of fairytale rides and attractions. It opened in 1952 and is among the oldest theme parks in the world – pre-dating Disneyland in the US by three years. Rumour has it that Efteling inspired Walt Disney to build his own, and Disneyland Paris consulted Efteling for tips on how to better appeal to a European audience. Among its flagship rides is the grand double-track wooden rollercoaster Joris de Draak, or Joris the Dragon, in which two trains race each other around the track. Sculptures of magical creatures are dotted throughout the park, including Brothers Grimm creation, Lang Nek (long neck), the unofficial mascot of the park.

• From €34, kids under 3 free. Open July-Aug 10am-8pm, Sept-June 10am-6pm,efteling.com

Vulcania, Saint-Ours, Auvergne, France

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 Photograph: Alamy

France does amusement parks with an educational slant extremely well. WhilePuy du Fou in the Vendée wows visitors with historical battle re-enactments, Vulcania makes volcanoes fun and worth learning about. As well as a museum (borrrr-ing! … just kidding, it’s full of ambitious interactive exhibits that help explain how volcanoes work), the park has rollercoasters, including the Dragon Ride that accelerates to g-force +2. The park was designed by Pritzker prize-winning architect Hans Hollein and its centrepiece is a 28-metre-high cone covered in lava stone on the outside, and a firey gold-coloured interior.
• Adults €24, kids 6-16 €17. Opening times vary, check website for details,vulcania.com

Grūtas Park, Druskininkai, Lithuania

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 Revolutionary fighter sculpture in Grūtas Park. Photograph: Daniel Alexander/Design Pics/Corbis

You know those retro Jurassic Park-type attractions, where you walk through a forest featuring giant dinosaur sculptures? Well Grūtas is like that, but instead of meeting diplodoci and T-Rexs you’ll find dinosaurs of the Soviet period: monuments of Lenin, Marx and Stalin scatter the park. Unofficially known as Stalin’s World, the park was established to preserve the history of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic era. Alongside the sculpture garden’s collection of 86 statues there are darker touches, such as guard towers and fragments of concentration camps (though they never went ahead with the idea of transporting visitors to the park on Gulag-style trains). There’s also a kids’ playground, Luna Park, based on Soviet times and a small zoo – presumably with animals the Russian’s didn’t send into space.
• Adults £4.35, kids 6-16 £2.20. Open winter 9am-5pm, summer 9am-10pm,grutoparkas.lt

Siam Park, Tenerife, Canary Islands

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 Photograph: Alamy

For a taste of Thailand (in Tenerife) look no further than Siam Park. The huge water park, built in 2008, features adrenaline-pumping rides, such as the Mekong Rapids, the Dragon and Tower of Power, the latter of which has a near-vertical 28-metre drop. Those who don’t want to risk losing their swimwear can opt for the park’s more relaxing options: drift along the Mai Thai river (not filled with the cocktail, unfortunately) or sunbathe on Siam beach.
• Adults €34, kids 3-11 €23. Open May-Oct 10am-6pm, Nov-Apr 10am-5pm,siampark.net

Leolandia, Capriate San Gervasio, Lombardy, Italy

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 Photograph: Alamy

If you’ve been traipsing round Milan and the kids are starting to get riled, Leolandia – an hour’s drive away – is the ideal place to let them unwind. The children’s theme park has been upgraded in the last two years: Peppa Pig world was added earlier this year, while Cowboy Town has been renewed. Alongside various rides and a petting zoo, the park has a range of shows, featuring fairies, pirates and parrots. On a side note, those looking for a particularly obscure, hair-raising Italian theme-park experience, should check in to Ai Pioppi playground in Treviso: a kinetic theme park built in the back garden of a restaurant and free to anyone who buys a meal.
• Adults €13.50, concessions €12.50. Open daily 10am-6pm, leolandia.it

Bakken, Klampenborg, Denmark

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 Photograph: Alamy

Did you know that Bakken is the world’s oldest amusement park? No, neither did we. Just 10 minutes north of Copenhagen (which also boasts the 19th-centuryTivoli amusement park in the city centre), Bakken is a charming, historic attraction that was founded in 1583. It is frequented by classical white-faced clown Pjerrot, but rarely attracts visitors from outside of Denmark. And while it may not be able to compete with the high-octane thrills of modern theme parks, Bakken still has impressive rides: the grand wooden Rutschebanen coaster, built in 1932, is considered a classic. The tasteful and nostalgic park is surrounded by greenery and makes for a easygoing (and corporate-free) family day out.
• Adults £24, kids £17. Open 26 March-30 August, check website for daily opening hours, bakken.dk

Tripsdrill, Germany

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 Photograph: Tobias Kleinschimdt/Corbis

Opened in 1929, Tripsdrill is Germany’s oldest theme park and, impressively, has remained in the hands of the Fischer family since it opened. The large park has a modern-built wooden rollercoaster, Mammut, which is a 860 metres long, as well log flumes and rapids rides. The wildlife park is another draw; around 130 species inhabit it, with wild horses, Arctic wolves and bears, along with regular falconry displays.
• Adults and children over 12 €28.50, kids 4-11 €24.50, under 4s free. Theme park and wildlife park open 28 Mar-8 Nov 9am-6pm; during winter season (Nov-Mar) wildlife park open 9am-5pm on weekends, tripsdrill.de

Area 47, Ötztal, Tirol, Austria

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Area 47 is a huge outdoor adventure park on the riverside in the Ötztal valley and full of the kind of activities that make people go “woah … dude!” It offers visitors an impressive range of opportunities to hurl themselves about the place: a 30 metre-high “mega swing”; a rope course suspended below a bridge, which is also fitted with a climbing wall; a water park and a diving tower; water-ski jumping slope and spectacular slides. You can also go blobbing (look it up) and the park runs rafting, canyoning and caving trips and has an off-road biking course. GoPro population: high.
• Admission and opening times vary depending on activity, check website for more details; a six-day park action package, including teepee accommodation, costs from €396, area47.at

High Chaparral, Värnamo, Sweden

Founded by Big Bengt (a name that will amuse those from the UK more than elsewhere), High Chaparral is a wild west theme park in the form of a frontier town – complete with steam train running through it. The highlight, however, has to be the epic shows that are like watching a live western film, complete with shootouts, explosions and people throwing each other off wooden porches. There are six different shows to watch, including one about the legendary swordsman Zorro and city patron Lucky Luke, who has to keep the bandits behind bars.
• Day pass from £16.50. Open 10am-6pm 30 May-25 June, 26 June-16 Aug, 21-23 and 28-30 Aug, highchaparral.se

Contributed by Will Caldwell, www.theguardian.com

Enterprise Rent-A-Car Launches In Denmark

Continuing its expansion into Europe, Enterprise Rent-A-Car has launched in Denmark through a new joint venture between two well-established Danish businesses.

Danske Bank-owned Nordania Leasing and Semler Group, one of Denmark's largest vehicle retailing and servicing operations, have joined forces to create the new car rental business, which will operate a network of Enterprise Rent-A-Car branches across Denmark.

The company opened a branch at Copenhagen airport on 17 February, has another location already planned to serve customers at Jutland's Billund airport and intends to open more sites throughout the country.
The proposed network of Enterprise Rent-A-Car branches in Denmark will be sited at key airport and transport hubs in order to meet the needs of business and leisure travellers. Branches will also be opened at existing Semler Group dealerships across the country to service customers from local communities.

The joint venture between Nordania Leasing and Semler Group sees the co-operation of two successful Danish organisations, which are already recognised for their superior customer care and understanding of the transport needs of businesses and consumers. All of Enterprise's international partners have been selected for their dedication to customer service.

Head of sales and member of executive board at Nordania Leasing, Henrik Rohmann-Sonderby, said: "Through this partnership we believe we have the opportunity to provide a genuinely new option to everyone looking to rent a vehicle inDenmark. Under the global Enterprise banner, we will combine Danish automotive expertise with a world-renowned culture of customer service."

"We are seeing demand for car hire grow throughout the country, as people want more flexibility and the ability to access vehicles in a range of different ways. Through our partnership with Enterprise we believe that we have the right support to become a major player in the sector."

Peter A. Smith, vice president of global franchising at Enterprise, said: "Establishing the brand inDenmark is significant as it was one of the last countries inEurope where Enterprise has not been available to date. Both Semler and Nordania have a strong vision as well as the infrastructure to deliver against a clear business plan for growth."

"Enterprise is built on customer satisfaction and I am convinced that we have chosen the right partners to carry on this legacy. We're looking forward to working with this very motivated and successful team to continue to grow the Enterprise business across the world, providing customers with more choice and – of course – outstanding service."

Nordania Leasing provides car finance for private individuals and businesses, as well as leasing vans, trucks, machinery, equipment and property for corporations. It employs 200 dedicated employees and has a long track record for sound business management and customer support.

Semler Group is the largest automotive group in Denmark with almost 100 years' experience in the import and sale of cars. The company employs more than 1,600 people and has a network of more than 50 dealerships acrossDenmark. Many of these will also become Enterprise Rent-A-Car branch locations offering full car and van hire services – alongside the traditional car dealerships.

A planned program of international expansion during the last two years has resulted in the growth of the Enterprise network into almost every European country.

With the inclusion of Denmark, the Enterprise Rent-A-Car brand is currently available in 32 countries inEurope and the Middle East. These are Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Macedonia, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia,Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the UK.

The company will become operational in additional countries throughout EMEA in the coming months.

Worldwide Enterprise has operations in more than 70 countries.

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Top 10 Historical Homes From Literature

History and literary buffs alike will rejoice as VirtualTourist members uncover the list of the "Top 10 Historical Homes From Literature."

Anne Frank House, Amsterdam, Netherlands During the Holocaust, Anne Frank and her family and friends lived in the attic of Prinsengracht 263, now commonly called the Anne Frank House.  Anne’s father, Otto, also conducted his spice business from this building. The doorway to the attic was hidden behind a moveable bookcase, constructed especially for this purpose. The men and women who worked in Otto’s business knew of the hiding place and they supplied the eight people with food and news of the outside world.  During her two years in hiding, Anne detailed her struggle in the international bestseller The Diary of Anne Frank. On 4, August 1944, the hiding place was betrayed. The people in hiding were deported to various concentration camps and only Otto Frank survived. After his release from the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz, Mr. Frank was presented with his daughter’s diary. He said it revealed a person he did not know; her thoughts and words were not those of the young girl he had known.  Today, the rooms of the Anne Frank House still evoke powerful emotions. Quotations from Anne’s diary, historical documents, photo enlargements, film clips, and origin al ephemera that belonged to those in hiding bring to life the events that took place here. Anne’s original diary and other notebooks can also be seen in the museum. Tip by von.otter, photo by Kajser-MK

Birthplace of Dracula, Sighisoara, Romania It is generally accepted that Bram Stoker’s famous character Dracula was based on the historical figure Vlad Tepes, also called Vlad Dracula and Vlad the Impaler, whose hometown is Sighisoara, Romania.  As ruler, Vlad earned the title “Impaler” due to his propensity to punish his victims by impaling them on stakes and displaying them publicly as a warning to any would be transgressors against his strict moral code.  He is credited with eliminating 40,000 to 100,000 Europeans this way between 1456 and 1462.  But he is also revered as a hero by Romanians for fending off the Turks who were invading his country. For those travelers interested, you can visit Casa Vlad Dracula which now houses the Museum of Medieval Arms on the first floor and a restaurant downstairs serving such delicacies as Tepes Steak covered in blood (tomato sauce) which you can wash down with Dracula blood to the accompaniment of human screams and creepy organ sounds by way of background music.  Should you have the urge to roam the town at night dressed as Dracula, there are souvenir shops where you can purchase the necessary cape and other gear.   Tip by wabat, photo by iwys

Maison Victor Hugo, Paris, France In 1832, Victor Hugo, author of Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, rented an apartment inParis for 16 years, which is now a museum with exhibits on his life. Entrance to the apartment is free, with a small charge to see the exhibitions on the first floor.  On the second floor, where he lived, you will find some of his personal collections of art and manuscripts, and interestingly, the apartme nt is now laid out to allow guests the opportunity to experience his whole life.  VirtualTourist members say it’s well worth a stop and for most visitors probably the only time you will be able to step foot in an apartment in the Place des Vosges section of Paris. Tip and photo by nemorino

Juliet’s House, Verona, Italy Perhaps one of the most famous literary characters is Shakespeare’s Juliet fromRomeo and Juliet.  Although she is most likely a fictional character, that hasn’t stopped her from having a house and a balcony in Verona. It is believed that this house belonged to a 14th century Veronese family which just might have been one of the families Shakespeare had in mind when he wrote the famous tale in 1594. VirtualTourist members say that for couples traveling, that one person should pay the small fee to stand on the balcony while the other takes a picture of them from the courtyard.  Tip and photo by nemorino

Karen Blixen Home, Kenya Karen Blixen was famous for her novel Out of Africawhich was a tale of her adventures in her beloved Kenya. She led a tumultuous life, but one that made for a very good story. Fortune brought her to Kenya, but her love for Kenya is what made her stay and call it home for as long as she did.  It was the autobiography of the life and times of Karen Blixen, an unwitting foreign transplant brought in to Kenya by her husband to help him run a coffee plantation. Blixen was eventually left on her own and abandoned by her husband to manage the plantation and during her time in Kenya she managed to win the affections and respect of the people.  The home is now a small museum.  VirtualTourist members say that it’s worth reading the book before visiting so you can imagine what took places there. Tip by Tallchick80, photo byenjoytravelling

Down House, Downe, Kent, England The home for many years to noted scientist Charles Darwin, the Down House in Downe, Kent, is where Darwin developed his theories of evolution and wroteOrigin of Species. The home itself is a beautiful building and houses a museum.  Downstairs, you will find all the rooms restored to the way they were when Darwin lived there and VirtualTourist members say the billiard room, where he used to clear his mind by playing billiards with his butler, is particularly interesting. Outside, you will find gardens, a greenhouse and a plot of land where Darwin would conduct experiments.  You can also take a stroll along Darwin’s “thinking path” where he used to go and meditate on his theories. Tip and photo by planxty

Hans Christian Anderson Birthplace, Odense, Denmark It was in the small town of Odense that the great fairy tales writer Hans Christian Anderson was born.  His family moved two years after his birth to what is now known as Andersen's Childhood Home. Though he had not lived in the first house long, it is that place that has become part of a museum devoted to him. The museum contains many original and copies of Andersen's books, sketches, paper cutouts, and collages.  VirtualTourist members say you may well wonder when trying the door why the house is locked.  Yet, looking through the window, you will see people and various artefacts inside. There is no information on the door how to get in and yet everybody seems to know where to find the entrance. So just follow the others and they will show you the way. Tip by evaanaa

Washington Irving’s Sunnyside, New York State Washington Irving, America's first internationally famous author and writer of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle, wanted a romantic home along the river where he could relax and write. His choice wasSunnyside in New York. Located right along the Hudson River, this bright little house was just what he had imagined. With wonderful views over the river from many of the rooms in the house and the veranda area as peaceful a place as you could find, it’s no wonder he was able to feel inspired here. VirtualTourist members say to take a walk around the grounds, then take a guided tour through the house to see where this great writer found his inspiration. Tip and photo by Herkbert

Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California Eccentric multimillionaire and legendary Newspaper Mogul William Randolph Hearst built this extravagant mansion, known as Hearst Castle, on a beautiful plot of land along the Big Sur Coast. The main structure, called Casa Grande, has over 60,000 square feet and features a huge medieval dining room, a pool designed after Roman baths, and a main sitting room full of European artwork. Guests were welcome at all times and they could stay at one of the three guest houses or take advantage of the Casa Grande's 56 bedrooms, 61 bathrooms, and 19 sitting rooms, but there was no room service.  And all guests were expected to take dinner with Mr. Hearst and the other guests in the main dining room. While staying at the house, visitors were welcome to use the Neptune Pool, a huge swimming pool overlooking the Pacific Ocean and framed with actual Greek ruins that Hearst imported from Europe, or they could enjoy the huge collection of animals at the world's largest private zoo.  Constructed between 1919 and 1947, it has been designated a National Historic Landmark and the Hearst Corporation donated it to the state of California who turned it into a State Park.  Tip by richiecdisc and Ewingjr98 photo bydabs

Green Gables Heritage Place, Cavendish, Prince Edward Island, Canada The “Green Gables” house on Prince Edward Island was originally owned by Lucy Montgomery's grandparents and is a modest home set in a wooded setting. She moved there at any early age and the home and her experiences in the area formed such a strong impression on her that the home became the basis of her well known 1908 novelAnne of Green Gables.  At the home there are guides from the Canadian National Park Service on hand to answer any questions and show you how Lucy and her grandparents lived in the early 20th century.  More interesting than the house, VirtualTourist members says, is the hike along the Haunted Woods and Balsam Hollow which Lucy talks about in her book. The trails, just like the house, have been well preserved.  As you walk along the two trails you can't help but think about how Lucy developed the memories that are now in her book.  Tip and photo by TooTallFinn24 Follow us on Twitter: @TraveloreReport