Should You Rent a Car for a Copenhagen Cruise?

The second row decides most answers.

Copenhagen is a city you see on foot, by metro and from a canal boat — a car spends those days parked.

It starts to make sense once the plan leaves the city, and makes most sense when it crosses the bridge to Sweden.

The last row matters more here than in most ports — bicycles have their own lanes across the city, and the right of way with them.

From the airport, the M2 to Kongens Nytorv, a change there to the M4 for Orientkaj and then bus 25 or 164 reach Oceankaj in about 40 minutes on a 3-zone ticket, DKK 30. That’s about US$5 each — a family of four, two adults and two under-12s, pays DKK 60, our arithmetic.

The airport metro station sits in direct extension of Terminal 3, with trains every 4 to 6 minutes by day — you reach it on foot from Terminal 3, with no bus in between.

Wonderful Copenhagen prices a taxi from Oceankaj to the airport at about DKK 425 on a weekday daytime and DKK 520 in the evening, roughly 40 minutes; the daytime figure is for weekdays. At about US$65 by day, that’s per cab, not per head.

The port itself, Copenhagen Malmö Port, prints DKK 450 to DKK 550 for the same ride. Two official pages, two figures — budget the higher one.

Since Jan 1, 2026, Denmark caps taxi prices nationally: a start fee of DKK 94.68 on weekdays and DKK 106.52 in the evening, at night and at weekends. The cap’s evening rate runs 6 PM to 6 AM and from Friday 6 PM to Monday 6 AM.

Wonderful Copenhagen gives weekday daytime and evening figures only; the national cap charges its evening rate all weekend, so we’d budget the evening fare on a Saturday or Sunday.

Uber in Copenhagen sends licensed taxi drivers, not private cars — so expect something close to a taxi’s fare from the app as well.

MSC says a free shuttle runs every 30 minutes from Orientkaj metro to Oceankaj; its Finnish page adds “until 14:00”, and neither says whether other lines’ passengers can ride.

Norwegian’s page routes you instead by S-train to Nordhavn and then “approximately a 45-minute walk” or a bus it numbers 26. With luggage, we’d take the bus over that walk.

Price the car against these rides before you price it at all.

The Danish Road Traffic Authority accepts a non-EU licence “issued in the Latin alphabet or accompanied by a translation in Danish, English or French”. A US licence is in the Latin alphabet, so it qualifies as it stands.

The State Department: “Your U.S. state’s driver’s license is acceptable in Denmark for up to 90 days.”

Denmark’s own rules list an international driving permit under the 1926, 1949 or 1968 conventions as an alternative, not a requirement, for a licence like yours. Carry one if you already have it — it does no harm.

None of the rental pages we read asked for an IDP either. Sixt wants a passport or ID card alongside the licence — so the passport travels in the car with you.

If your trip runs past 90 days, the State Department’s limit starts to bite — ask the Danish authority before you drive on.

Sweden’s rules are a separate question, and the Malmö page covers what we could and couldn’t confirm for the crossing.

Right turns on red are prohibited — a habit American drivers bring with them, so unlearn it before you leave the car park.

Bicycles have their own lanes and the right of way, and there are a lot of them. Check the bike lane on your right before every right turn, in mirrors and over your shoulder.

The State Department gives 50 km/h in town, 80 on open roads and 130 on motorways, driving on the right. In miles, that’s roughly 31, 50 and 81 mph, our conversion.

The State Department: “It is illegal to use a hand-held cell phone while driving”.

Driving under the influence, even on a bicycle, “is considered a serious offense”; we couldn’t read the legal limit on an official page. Don’t drink at all if you’re driving — a number we can’t confirm is no number to aim for.

Children aged 3 to 12 who are under 36 kg or under 135 cm need a car seat, and seat belts are compulsory. Ask for the seat when you book, not at the counter.

Diesel cars and the city’s environmental zone are on the day-trips page — the zone site names diesel cars only, so a petrol rental is the simple choice.

Kronborg is the in-between case — under an hour by train from Central Station, then a short walk.

If it’s your only day out, the train does it. The Kronborg section has the hours and tickets.

Rent for the touring days only, and collect the car close to where those days begin.

For a Kastrup arrival that’s the Car Rental Centre; for a day out from a city hotel, the counters by Central Station. The desk cards list both.

How Discover Cars handles deposits and coverage is in our review.

Dollar amounts here come from the ECB’s Oct 2, 2026 reference rates, roughly 15 cents a krone; expect your card to land a little differently.