Egeskov Castle in Denmark
Egeskov Castle was the perfect stopping point between Copenhagen and Legoland on a travel day. It takes about two hours to reach Egeskov Castle from Copenhagen by car. The castle has a little something for everyone and we easily spent the day there.
Egeskov Castle was completed in 1554 and like most castles was designed for defensive purposes. It was occupied by many families over the centuries but has been open to the public since 1959. CondeNaste Traveler named it one of the 50 most beautiful places in Europe.
We started our visit with lunch. The castle has several places to grab a bite and you’re welcome to bring your own picnic. We were heading from Copenhagen and went directly to the cafe, set in the gardens. We ordered some soups and salads to share and found a seat near the small garden playground. Jeff and I were able to enjoy our delicious lunch while the kids happily played, running back to us for each bite. The cafe also has picnic baskets you can arrange ahead of time to pick up and find your own place in the garden. This seems like a lovely choice if you know you are coming for the day.
We headed over the bridge and into the castle. Each floor of the castle holds different exhibitions. We headed right for Titania’s Palace on the second floor. This doll house has 3,000 individual components and is truly amazing. H loved looking into all the rooms, O was less than entertained and wanted to just run around the house over and over.
I took O out to run around in the gardens while Jeff stayed with H to continue exploring the castle.
The gardens are extensive and I let O lead the way. We ended up exploring the gardens as we traveled around the moat. O mostly wanted to help the gardeners out by plucking flowers from the lawn, but we walked through garden after garden with seamless transition.
We met up with Jeff and H at the treetop walk where we walked the 100 meter long tree top trail, enjoying the views of the castle and the old birch forest.
The tree top walk also has great views of the surrounding grounds.
We also made a thorough visit to the playgrounds which surround a 700 year old oak tree that was there when the castle was built.
The kids left no part of this great playground unturned. There were plenty of options for O to enjoy as well larger play structures for H.
There is also a large activity area in front of the snack shop dubbed “Great Grandfather’s Playground.” This play area has soapbox cars, stilts and other “old timey” games. There is also a large maze, which we did not have time to explore. (There are actually 3 mazes to try out – one outside the park grounds near the parking lot and the original 300 year old circular maze.)
If all of this isn’t enough for you the castle grounds are also home to several car museums including one featuring emergency vehicles. There were ambulances and firetrucks to climb on as well as older ones on display. The kids literally could not contain their excitement at all the vehicles.
The castle even has our favorite playground toy – the moveable digger!
We left the park with two crying kids. They did not want to leave but were tired from our day of fun. They were quickly asleep as we continued our drive to Billund, only another 1.5 hours away.
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