When you live in Copenhagen, museums can sometimes feel like places you “should” go rather than places you want to. Admission fees add up quickly, and unless you’re a student on a field trip or a tourist with a 72-hour card, it’s easy to keep pushing cultural visits off for “another day.”
That’s why the K7 card is a little revolutionary. For one week each September, anyone aged 18–27 gets free access to more than 160 museums and cultural institutions across Denmark.
In other words, seven days where the only barrier between you and a deep dive into art, design, and history is your curiosity.
This year, I put K7 to the test with a museum crawl in and around Copenhagen. Could I squeeze in big hitters, hidden gems, and maybe even a day trip — all without spending a krone on tickets?
Spoiler: yes. And here’s how it went.
How Did I Choose My Museums?
On both days, I had guests with me. On the first day, a student/tourist from the Netherlands joined me. So, I chose museums that cover the city too. Moreover, we were short on time. So, we skipped the very obvious choice: Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. I went there last year, and I think this deserves at least half a day. Besides, it’s free on the last Wednesday of the month. So, I can just go there again and again..
The next day, I was torn between the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and ARKEN Museum for Samtidskunst. Both required the same travel time from me; however, as I had visited Arken before, I chose the other one. During my visit to SMK, I had two newcomer students with me. I believe it was the perfect opportunity to break the ice for them about Copenhagen culture.
Long story short, this year, I went to Københavns Museum, Designmuseum Danmark, Cisternerne, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, and Statens Museum for Kunst.
Stop 1 – Museum of Copenhagen (Københavns Museum)
I started at the Museum of Copenhagen, a natural introduction to the city’s story. From medieval merchants to today’s urban planning, the museum is compact, well-curated, and surprisingly interactive.
I saw the key to Copenhagen, paintings of the Gate of Vesterbro, and much more. To my surprise, I learned that the Børsen fire wasn’t the first to claim invaluable parts of Copenhagen. The museum highlighted the 3 big fires that burnt down Copenhagen within a span of 80 years. In one of the rooms, there was an interactive to-scale map of Copenhagen, which was fun to explore.
Normally, I’d hesitate to pay 110 DKK for a quick one-hour visit — but with K7, it felt perfect as a warm-up.
Stop 2 – Designmuseum Danmark
Next, I went over to the Designmuseum. If Copenhagen has an identity, it’s here: clean lines, clever functionality, and furniture that makes you want to redecorate your flat completely. The exhibitions are bright and playful, and it’s the kind of museum you can dip into for just an hour.
Here, the Pressure Force exhibition caught my eye. It peeked into the 100 years of Danish fabric printing, and I was surprised to learn that the textile scene in Danish arts and crafts is pretty big.
Even more, I was surprised to see works with ‘Batik’ – which I assumed only belonged to South Asia. However, with my hopes turned high, I was disappointed by not finding anything related to ‘Muslin’. Apart from that, I absolutely enjoyed my visit there, and after seeing the furniture collection from the Danish Modern exhibition, I found a new curiosity about Danish design.
But I had to rush that day, and I sped through a big part of the museum. Again, K7 erased the pressure to “get my money’s worth.”
Stop 3 – Cisternerne
Then came a sharp turn — both geographically (into Frederiksberg) and atmospherically. The Cisterns are a former water reservoir turned subterranean art hall. Walking down into the dim, dripping chambers feels more like entering a movie set than a museum.
The current exhibition by Jakob Kudsk Steensen blended sound, light, and shadow. It felt uncomfortable and eerie, and I believe that was the intention.
I left the spot, damp, a little chilled, and very glad the card encouraged me to try something so different.
Stop 4 – Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
The start of the second day wasn’t even in Copenhagen proper. A 40-minute train ride north brought me to Louisiana, perched on the coast with sweeping views of the Øresund. The collection is global and modern — Giacometti, Kusama, Hockney — and the museum’s architecture and gardens make it as much a destination as an exhibition space.
Among all the current exhibitions, I loved the 100 Jahre exhibition by Hans-Peter Feldmann. It comprises 100 pictures of people aged 0-100. And as the museum described, “as a representation of human aging, it also becomes a mirror for the viewer” – I stood at one point and started reflecting on my life.
Apart from that, the Kaari Upson exhibition also struck me. But there was another soothing moment when I found a passage that led to a viewing area of the sea. I was missing the roaring sea for a while now, and this provided a profound sense of nostalgia.
Nonetheless, I was quite surprised by the footfall in the museum. I never imagined that this many people, especially young people, would come here on a weekday morning.
With K7 covering the 145 DKK entry fee, it felt like the best bargain of the week.
Stop 5 – SMK – The National Gallery of Denmark
In the afternoon, I crossed town to SMK. This is Denmark’s flagship art museum, and without K7 it would have cost 120 DKK. However, as it was the SMK Friday, it was free anyway.
The scale is impressive: Danish Golden Age paintings, French Impressionists, and contemporary installations under one roof.
I was lucky because my visit coincided with the opening of a new exhibition titled ‘Surrealisme på Papir’. Here, I got introduced to the concept of surrealism in a structured way. Moreover, there were meticulously planned points of interaction, where the audience could try to make their own art. For me, my heart started beating fast when I was slowly approaching the work of Salvador Dali. Since my freshman days as an undergraduate, I’ve been looking into his art, and I have hundreds of saved pins on Pinterest around his work. I never imagined I’d see his work with my own eyes.
The best and worst part of the museum was the footfall. On one hand, I was elated to see so many people (especially youngsters) interested in art. On the other hand, it felt a bit annoying to stand in line for around 30 minutes to see the Surrealism exhibition.
It’s easy to spend half a day here, but even two hours felt worthwhile. If the K7 card has a “mic drop” moment, it’s at SMK.
Reflections on the Crawl
In two days, I visited five museums worth over 600 DKK in tickets, all for free with K7. More importantly, I never had to choose between “big value” museums and “small, quirky” ones. The card encouraged me to try both, to spend 30 minutes in a house museum without guilt, and then lose myself for hours in SMK.
Another aspect I wanted to mention is the transportation. I believe a lot of people went to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art on the 12th because there was an offer going on in DOT. Because of the half-marathon, a 1-99 Zone ticket was 60 DKK for 12 hours. As it is now, Non-EU students aren’t entitled to the Ungdomskort, I believe this was a major factor that encouraged them to visit museums outside of Copenhagen.
Lastly, it reminded me of the time in my home country, when I was going to museums, exhibitions, and concerts almost every week. Walking through Copenhagen with the K7 card brought that rhythm back, and for a moment, it felt like I was picking up an old habit I’d been missing.
Tips for Future K7 Users
When you’re planning your week, it’s worth treating the museums like stops on a little crawl. They’re closer together than you might think, and hopping between them gives the day a rhythm, almost like café-hopping, just with art and history instead of lattes.
I also found it fun to mix things up: pairing the big institutions like SMK or Louisiana with something completely different, like the underground Cisternerne, made each visit stand out more.
Here’s the thing: seven days is generous, so you can either take it slow and spread your visits out or go all in with a cultural marathon. And don’t forget to look beyond Copenhagen.
Louisiana is just a short train ride away, ARoS in Aarhus is a world-class destination, and smaller regional museums often give you an entirely different kind of cultural experience.
Final Word
The K7 card isn’t just a discount scheme, it’s an invitation. For one week each year, under-28s can live as if Denmark’s cultural institutions belong entirely to them. My crawl proved that with a bike, a train ticket, and some stamina, you can turn Copenhagen (and beyond) into your own open-air campus.
And if you’re lucky, you’ll leave with damp shoes from the Cisterns, a phone full of design photos you’ll never recreate at home, and the feeling that culture here isn’t a luxury, it’s your right.
