Overview

This review of Christiansborg Palace covers the royal reception rooms, kitchens, stables and ruins. which are open to the public. Other parts of the palace complex contains the Danish parliament Folketinget, the Supreme Court, and the Ministry of State. The present building dates from the 1920s and is the third palace on the site, as the previous ones burnt down. The palace has richly decorated royal reception rooms, which are used by the Danish Royal family parties, gala banquets and ambassadorial audiences. There is also public access to the royal kitchens and in the afternoons only to the royal stables. The ruins of both the original castle on this site dating from the 1100s and Copenhagen Castle are also open to the public. if you are visiting please check the opening hours on their website as the state rooms are sometimes closed for functions.

Transport & Parking

The palace is in the city centre. There are a number of buses that stop nearby. The metro and buses in Copenhagen have designated spaces for wheelchair users. Their website says that "Disabled parking space is available at the Bertel Thorvaldsen Plads (by the entrance to the Thorvaldsen Museum)."

Access

When I got of the bus I was facing the palace and there was some building work going on outside. It wasn't easy to work out where the public entrance was. I went through one of the archways and found a step free route, which brought me round to the other side of the building. There is a large central courtyard where vehicles were parked and this has large cobblestones (they were so large that a couple of times my crutch got stuck in the gap). However round the outside of the courtyard there is a pavement path, so that most of the cobblestones can be avoided. There is no outdoor seating areas. There are different sections open to the public and there is a ticket desk at each one. None of the ticket desk had queues, just one or two people in front. When I arrived I made the mistake of going up and downstairs to get to the ticket desk for the royal reception rooms. I would suggest buying your tickets at either the stables or kitchens if you require step free access. Royal Reception Rooms: These are located on the 1st floor and are accessible by lift. There are also grand, ornate staircases to enter and exit. If you require the lift you need to be accompanied by a member of staff as you enter threw a separate door. The lift is only large enough to accommodate 1 wheelchair user at a time. The lift comes out by the Queen's Stairs, where there is also an accessible toilet. The state rooms open to the public are then entirely step free. At the end of the route there is another staircase so if you want to use the lift you have to retrace your steps. There are a number of very ornately decorated rooms to see, When I visited in August it wasn't too busy and as the rooms are spacious. it didn't feel crowded. There are a couple of places were you can sit and rest. The only problem I had was when I finished the route I didn't see any member of staff to ask to take me back downstairs. I ended retracing my route and when I got to the Queen's Stairs I asked a member of the public if they had seen a member of staff and they kindly went downstairs to the entrance find a member of staff. The member of staff arrived within a few minutes and took me back downstairs. Royal Kitchens: There are located in the basement. There is some shallow steps with a platform lift. Once inside the kitchens are step free and are very spacious. Royal Stables: There is a step free entrance. The stables have large cobblestone (which are a little tricky to walk on with a crutch but doable). There were a couple of horses when I visited. There is also a film show, with subtitles in English and there is some seating in this area. There is also a small museum/ gallery. The Ruins: There was a couple of shallow steps to the entrance (I didn't notice another way in) and once inside there was a ticket desk and a platform lift to the basement or about 12 steps with handrails on both sides. There is low lighting in the ruins and large cobblestone paths. Their website says that "wheelchair or a walker for free by contacting the ticket office." and that Assistance dogs are welcome.

Toilets

There is an accessible toilet on the 1st floor of the Royal Reception Rooms, by the Queen Stairs. It was spacious, clean and had grab rails. It didn't require a special key and there was no emergency cord. The website says that there is also an accessible toilet in by the ticket office and entrance of the Ruins. However, I didn't use this. There is no accessible toilet in the stables.

Staff

All the staff were very helpful and friendly. I was accompanied in the lift up and down to the state reception rooms by a member of staff. The only reason this didn't score 5 was the lack of visible staff on the 1st floor when I was wanting to descend the lift to exit.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

I loved my visit. There is such a lot to see and well worth visiting. The state rooms are impressive. The kitchens and stables are fun to explore. The ruins are fascinating but are quite extensive, so if it's not your thing or you have limited time this would be the one I'd suggest dropping.

Photos