Nordhavn: The Danish ‘city’ that’s been designed for an easy life

Copenhagen’s once-industrial port has been planned to make everything – from schools and play areas to businesses and recreational spaces – accessible within five minutes.

While cruising the canals of Copenhagen in the summer of 2023, my guide pointed out Nordhavn, the city’s once-industrial neighbourhood, excitedly claiming it would become the coolest new city in Europe. From the boat, I couldn’t see much beyond a few residential buildings and lots of giant construction machinery, but, as an architect, I was interested to know more.
So, 12 months later, I returned to Copenhagen and headed back to Nordhavn, just a 15-minute metro ride from Copenhagen’s central station.
This time, standing at Århusgadekvarteret, the core of the new development, I could see gleaming apartment buildings, high-end office spaces and a cafe-lined boardwalk along the previously industrial harbour. Dozens of people were lying on colourful beach towels spread across the waterfront, all soaking in the Scandinavian summer sun. It was a peaceful, serene scene, with none of the morning commuter chaos I was used to seeing in cities around the world.
And that’s because Nordhavn has been specifically designed to make life easier.
“Although it looks like any modern district, it’s the world’s first five-minute city,” explained my guide, Bente Hoffman from immersive cultural tour company Slow Tours. “When the project is complete, everything you need will be within a 400m walk.”