practical information you'll need if you’re new in denmark
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Government & Statistics
Denmark is one of the oldest monarchies in the world. Our present queen is Queen Margrethe II. She has two sons, the elder Frederik, the Crown Prince and second son is Prince Joachim.
Our Royal Family can trace their ancestors back to the ninth century when the Vikings still ruled Denmark. At present the Royal Family has no real governing power, but assists in promoting the country and has many official duties. Danes are proud of their Queen and her family.
Since the Viking period and the other periods that followed, Denmark has become a democracy and has now a long history of democratic rule. It is today high on the list of countries in the world where the democracy is most successful. Free mixed market capitalist economy applies. Our current Prime Minister is Mette Frederiksen, she has been the leader of the Social Democrats.
The home of the Danish Parliament is Christiansborg Palace and is located in the middle of Copenhagen.
Denmark has a state-level government under which there are 5 regions with a total of 98 local governments called Kommunes, meaning local municipality.
Denmark is member of the European Union, although not the monetary union. Denmark is also a member of the United Nations and NATO. Currently our previous Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen is the Secretary General for NATO.
General Living and Culture
The national language is Danish, but English is very widely spoken as a second language.
Danes highly value their free time and families. They love to travel and spend time with close friends and family. Many participate in sports such as running, biking, football (soccer) and sailing as well as cultural activities such as going to museums, seeing films, and visiting the theater. As soon as the weather permits the Danes will be seen sitting out in public parks or on the beaches enjoying the sun.
The Danish cultural life is varied, offering music, ballet, film, and theater. The Royal Danish Ballet, the opera houses in Jutland and Copenhagen as well as the Århus symphony orchestra all enjoy international acclaim. Denmark is also known as the country of music festivals and in the summer there is a varied and international choice of music including rock, folk music and jazz, and even outdoor opera performances.
There are many fantastic museums such as, The Museum of Modern Art, Arken and Louisiana just to name a few, which attract a large number of international visitors every year.
Denmark is known to be one of the safest countries in the world. Foreigners often mention security and safety as the Denmark’s most distinctive features. Children walk to school on their own, and bodyguards are rarely used by politicians, diplomats or celebrities. The country’s parliament is open to the public, and it is common to see ministers cycling through the city. Even the Queen can go shopping in with a minimum of security.
Children are welcomed nearly everywhere and there are many parks with playgrounds even in the middle of Copenhagen. One of the special sights in Denmark is the sight of unguarded prams and pushchairs outside cafés, where the parents are inside enjoying a warm drink while their children sleep peacefully in the fresh air. Danes feel safe and act accordingly.
Danes value modesty, punctuality but above all equality and social responsibility.
Danish humor is often ironic or sarcastic in a gentle backwards sort of way. Danes usually don’t mind laughing at themselves. The right to free speech is felt even when joking. Ironic speech is something everybody has to get used to; people saying one thing, but meaning the opposite. It is in many ways similar to the English way of joking.
Climate
The weather in Denmark is fairly mild for Scandinavia, but considered cold for anybody used to 26 to 32°C. Summers bring temperatures averaging around 22-26°C (72-79°F) with lows of around 14°C (57°F). In winters temperatures hover just above and below 0°C (32 F), but the wind factor will often make it feel much colder. Rainfall is moderate too, but spread throughout the year, so showers are possible in any season. Snowfall is light and usually doesn’t stay on the ground very long. Most snowfall will happen around January and February.
Calendar
The Danish Holiday calendar is based on the Lutheran Christian Calendar, but has of course other holidays.
January 1st New years day.
Easter and Pentecost Holidays:Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Day and Easter Monday.
April 16th is the Queen’s birthday.
June 5th is the Constitution Day Denmark.
24th December is Christmas Eve and the 25th and 26th are both Holidays too.
31st December New years eve, on this day most offices are closed, but some shops might be open at least for some part of the day.
Time zone is GMT +1 and in Summer it is +2
Working hours
In Denmark the normal work week is 37 hours. Most companies will have opening hours from 9am to 4pm Monday to Thursdays and Friday 9am to 2pm. Some companies will have people working out of these hours, but the phone will not be answered. Many Danish companies will allow for “flexi” hours and often some days working from home are allowed too. For meetings, people are expected to be punctual.
Official government offices usually have shorter opening hours during the week for the public, but then have Thursday as the “long” day up to 6pm. This should be checked individually though as it differs from office to office.
Work holidays: Danish companies are by law obliged to give their employees 5 weeks/25 days of holiday per year apart from the days officially closed. The first year, the employee will normally have to pay for it. The second year the employee has “earned” the right to have it paid.
Dress code might be strict or rather relaxed. Do check your company policy! Danes generally find it desirable to be casual smart, always clean.
Dining
Breakfast: Usually very small portions. Oats, an egg, fruit or a bowl of cereal.
Lunch: Light and fast. The cold open sandwiches known as “Smørrebrød” which are served on Danish ryebread, called “rugbrød”are traditionally served for lunch.
To accompany the menu a beer will be served and maybe a small glass of aquavit or snaps, but never during work hours. Danes are normally quite particular about not mixing drinks and work.
Dinner: Dinners are always eaten at the dinner table with the whole family. Some traditional typical Danish dishes are:
Fried meat balls-”Frikadella”- ground pork/calf, served with boiled potatoes, sauce and vegetables or with potato salad, tomato slices and lettuce.
Fried hamburger- “Hakkebøf”-ground beef patties served with potatos and onions.
Æggekage; A thick omelette, served with fried bacon, chives, tomatoes and rye bread.
The daily cuisine has seen a big change over the last 20-30 years with especially Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Chinese food blending in to the normal Danish eating habits.
There are great restaurants found in all over the country, but of course the capital Copenhagen offers some of the greatest variety of fine restaurants and boasts an impressive 11 Michelin Star restaurants. The Restaurant Noma (Nordisk Madhus), to name one, has been voted the best in the world twice, with 2 out of 3 stars in the Michelin guide.