What to experience – from architecture, coastal living and local, authentic gems to museums, historic buildings and family outings - from Helsingør to Hornbæk.
____
The Travel Edit is a summer article series in The Journal, where inspiring profiles share their personal guide to the places in Denmark they have a special connection to.
Pil Kallesø is an architect, originally from Helsingør, and runs her own architecture studio together with her husband. After several years in Copenhagen, she has moved back to Helsingør, where the family lives in the iconic Romerhusene, designed by the architect Jørn Utzon.
As an architect and communicator, Pil has a unique ability to make architecture feel present and approachable.
On Instagram, she invites you into everyday life with two young children, where architecture is not only about beautiful buildings, but about the way we live, sense and spend time together – and about the spaces that frame the rhythms of family life.
Here, Pil shares her guide to North Zealand – from museums and historic buildings to harbours, forests, beaches and local gems.
Pil Kallesø is an architect, originally from Helsingør, and runs her own architecture studio together with her husband. After several years in Copenhagen, she has moved back to Helsingør, where the family lives in the iconic Romerhusene, designed by the architect Jørn Utzon.
As an architect and communicator, Pil has a unique ability to make architecture feel present and approachable.
On Instagram, she invites you into everyday life with two young children, where architecture is not only about beautiful buildings, but about the way we live, sense and spend time together – and about the spaces that frame the rhythms of family life.
Here, Pil shares her guide to North Zealand – from museums and historic buildings to harbours, forests, beaches and local gems.
I was born and raised in Helsingør and attended the local Steiner School for twelve years. My entire family still lives here, and this area has always been a huge part of my identity. After ten years in Copenhagen, we bought Romerhuset, one of Jørn Utzon's iconic courtyard houses in Helsingør, in 2020 and moved back home. I've never looked back.
What I love about North Zealand is that we have it all: cultural heritage, forests and beaches. Helsingør is one of Europe's best-preserved medieval towns, and a walk through the old town centre reveals just how beautifully it has all been preserved.
In summer, I love the small harbour towns and the coastal lifestyle – especially Hornbæk Beach and Plantation, which have been part of my childhood and are part of our family life with young children.
I also love that the local identity is still alive – that you can feel the DNA of the town. I often feel there can be a tendency for everything to look like something you'd find in Copenhagen, but I'm actually looking for the opposite.
That's why I keep returning to the places that have always been there: a great bagel from Miss Coffee, served the same way for 30 years, or peel-your-own prawns by the harbour. It may not be the newest or trendiest, but it's authentic – and it tells you something about the place.
Miss Coffee: Stengade 17, 3000 Helsingør
Bakeria at Helsingør Harbour. They make the best pastries in town. Their little courtyard is wonderfully cosy, and in summer they host a Friday bar with drinks, beer and snacks.
Another place I'm very fond of is Hej Humlebæk by Humlebæk Station. This is where I occasionally meet my friends from the children's Steiner kindergarten over a good coffee and a sandwich.
Bakeria: Nordhavnsvej 3, 3000 Helsingør
Hej Humlebæk: Hal Kochs Vej 14, 3050 Humlebæk
Bakeria at Helsingør Harbour. They make the best pastries in town. Their little courtyard is wonderfully cosy, and in summer they host a Friday bar with drinks, beer and snacks.
Another place I'm very fond of is Hej Humlebæk by Humlebæk Station. This is where I occasionally meet my friends from the children's Steiner kindergarten over a good coffee and a sandwich.
Bakeria: Nordhavnsvej 3, 3000 Helsingør
Hej Humlebæk: Hal Kochs Vej 14, 3050 Humlebæk
We often go to Hellebæk and the old Hammermølle, which serves fantastic traditional Danish open sandwiches. The protected mill and its surroundings are absolutely wonderful, and it's one of those places where time almost stands still. Afterwards, we nearly always walk around the lake and on into the forest.
It's the kind of place that captures everything I love about North Zealand: nature, history and tranquillity.
We also always return to Divino in Espergærde, where I've been going since I was a child. It's a family-owned Italian restaurant with good food, good prices, Italian waiters and an interior that's wonderfully 1990s in exactly the right way. Diagonally across the road is their pizzeria Divina, where we often pick up pizza and take it down to Espergærde Beach with the children. That's pure summer to me.
Hammermølle: Bøssemagergade 21, 3150 Hellebæk
Divino: Strandvejen 159A, 3060 Espergærde
We often go to Hellebæk and the old Hammermølle, which serves fantastic traditional Danish open sandwiches. The protected mill and its surroundings are absolutely wonderful, and it's one of those places where time almost stands still. Afterwards, we nearly always walk around the lake and on into the forest.
It's the kind of place that captures everything I love about North Zealand: nature, history and tranquillity.
We also always return to Divino in Espergærde, where I've been going since I was a child. It's a family-owned Italian restaurant with good food, good prices, Italian waiters and an interior that's wonderfully 1990s in exactly the right way. Diagonally across the road is their pizzeria Divina, where we often pick up pizza and take it down to Espergærde Beach with the children. That's pure summer to me.
Hammermølle: Bøssemagergade 21, 3150 Hellebæk
Divino: Strandvejen 159A, 3060 Espergærde
Tegners Museum. I've been visiting since I was a child, and it's still a place we visit often. The combination of the art, the landscape and the very special atmosphere makes it one of my favourite places in North Zealand.
When we're there, we almost always drive past Thorshøjgaard, a biodynamic farm near Dronningmølle. We always take home their beef salami and grill sausages. On the way, we often also stop at Damsmosegård, where you can buy biodynamic milk in large glass bottles straight from the roadside fridge.
If you enjoy theatre, I'd also recommend checking out HamletScenen at Kronborg. It's a very special experience for both adults and children. It's a place that manages to bring together history, culture and community across generations.
Tegners Museum: Museumsvej 19, 3120 Rusland
Thorshøjgaard: Museumsvej 1, 3120 Dronningmølle
Damsmosegård: Villingerødvej 61, 3120 Villingerød
HamletScenen: Kronborg 16, Kronværksbyen, 3000 Helsingør
Tegners Museum. I've been visiting since I was a child, and it's still a place we visit often. The combination of the art, the landscape and the very special atmosphere makes it one of my favourite places in North Zealand.
When we're there, we almost always drive past Thorshøjgaard, a biodynamic farm near Dronningmølle. We always take home their beef salami and grill sausages. On the way, we often also stop at Damsmosegård, where you can buy biodynamic milk in large glass bottles straight from the roadside fridge.
If you enjoy theatre, I'd also recommend checking out HamletScenen at Kronborg. It's a very special experience for both adults and children. It's a place that manages to bring together history, culture and community across generations.
Tegners Museum: Museumsvej 19, 3120 Rusland
Thorshøjgaard: Museumsvej 1, 3120 Dronningmølle
Damsmosegård: Villingerødvej 61, 3120 Villingerød
HamletScenen: Kronborg 16, Kronværksbyen, 3000 Helsingør
I have my eye on the newly opened Butik Hverdag in Helsingør. I also love Soeurs in Gilleleje and the wonderfully unique Tibberup Høkeren in Helsingør, which is always worth a visit.
Butik Hverdag: Stjernegade 17A, 3000 Helsingør
Soeurs: Vesterbrogade 3F, 3250 Gilleleje
Tibberup Høkeren: Sct Anna Gade 4A, 3000 Helsingør
Hornbæk Beach, Hornbæk Plantation, the landscape surrounding Tegners Museum, Grib Forest, Gummistranden in Helsingør and Hellebæk Forest.
Tegners Museum: Museumsvej 19, 3120 Rusland
Hansens Is in Brostræde in Helsingør or at Hornbæk Harbour. Frk. Marina at Helsingør Harbour is also really good.
Frk. Marina: Nordhavnsvej 2c, 3000 Helsingør
Hornbæk Beach, Hornbæk Plantation, the landscape surrounding Tegners Museum, Grib Forest, Gummistranden in Helsingør and Hellebæk Forest.
Tegners Museum: Museumsvej 19, 3120 Rusland
Hansens Is in Brostræde in Helsingør or at Hornbæk Harbour. Frk. Marina at Helsingør Harbour is also really good.
Frk. Marina: Nordhavnsvej 2c, 3000 Helsingør
Helsingør Harbour is a fantastic place to be with children. You'll find Bakeria, Frk. Marina, the harbour baths, a playground and Øresund Aquarium, where children can catch crabs together with the staff. Meanwhile, you can sit with a coffee from Miss Coffee and enjoy the view. And don't be too proud to order a plate of peel-your-own prawns or fish fillet from the fishmonger. It's the essence of a Danish summer. The best part is almost that, as a parent, you can actually relax while the children play or catch crabs, because the harbour area is so well designed.
I wish I had more time to read. Mostly it's professional literature and inspiration for our projects, or books together with our children.
On the other hand, I already know that I'll be listening to Fries Before Guys. I've listened to the podcast faithfully since the beginning, and they come with me everywhere – when I'm drawing projects, putting the children to bed, cleaning or grocery shopping. They always give me a good laugh and a good feeling.
– Helsingør Harbour with Kulturværftet, Nordhavnen and Øresund Aquarium
– Hornbæk Beach and Plantation
– Hellebæk and the old Hammermølle
– Tegners Museum and the surrounding landscape
– Kronborg Castle, where our architecture studio is in the former infirmary
Follow Pil Kallesø here
Even if you don’t use aromatherapeutic skincare or products for the home, nature still ensures that aromatherapy is all around us. Trees and plants release invisible plant compounds, phytoncides, which research links to lower stress levels and increased activity in the body’s natural defence cells. This is a beautiful account of forest bathing, nature’s aromatherapy and the scientific evidence behind it.
