Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen

Copenhagen, the capital of Northern Europe, is Scandinavia's most alluring city for sure. Famous for its shopping malls, it has an amusement park named Tivoli which is a class apart than the rest. Copenhagen, Denmark is the main city near to Malmo where I practically spent up to four years. The city has the famous oresund bridge built that takes makes commuting easy between Sweden and Denmark. It is the perfect destinations to visit two cities in one go, as Malmo is just 30 minutes by train from Copenhagen. If you are looking for an outdoor activity that helps you spend quality time you’re your friends and family then Amusement and theme parks have to be your choice. You can practically spend up to a day or an entire weekend depending on your holiday.

Tivoli Park which is situated right at the shopping area near the train station is one of the most alluring destinations that will attract you. It has been one of my unforgettable experiences of my life; the park is the hub for theme park as well as a botanical garden which is a feast to your eyes. During summer you will have the pleasure of watching the best blooms of summer in this area. Built in 1843, was said to be among Walt Disney's inspirations for Disneyland.

I and my friend from the US always used to chat that US has so many options when it comes to theme parks and water rides. In Europe there was just this one that I knew of that was really good. The tickets I remember at the time was up to 79 DKK and mind you the rides if you intend to travel will cost you separately.

As far as the rides go, you cannot expect anything fancy and over the top as Scandinavians do not dig those kind of stuff. However what is a park without a roller coaster, they do have one pretty damn good Daemonen ('Demon') is a big old red steel coaster with plenty of loops that will give you the kick you desire. The Daemon is 20 meters tall and has 3 very fun loops. This sure has the major crowd getter and there is a waiting line if you can survive that then it is well worth the wait.

Think in terms of state fair, there are many games especially catering to the likes of little kids. Swings, Drops a major share of them specially catered to the little kids. Star Flyer, at 263ft (80m) high, the world's tallest carousel is here and only the strong hearted need to enter this as the screams were quite a scare. The GoldenTower is 207ft high and exerted minus 1G-force as it dropped from the golden cupola at the top to the ground below and then shot up again, bungee-jump style. Imagine yourself in an elevator and going down a 40 storey building in a fraction of a second, you feel a sudden thud in your stomach and your heart beats like never before. Have seen similar ones in the Malmo festivalen that is held in the city but it is a smaller version of the one that exists in Copenhagen.

Many things fade away when night strikes, but that’s not the case with this theme park Tivoli comes into its beauty and is magical in the night. Fantasy and magic a hard combination to beat for sure. As soon as evening approaches, the whole place lits up with the glow of custom-made soft-glow light bulbs.

During Christmas

Christmas time the lights lit up and welcome into the fantasy land that you always dream of. Europe has one of the best Christmas lightings that will last in my memories for a lifetime. Christmas in Tivoli is from mid-November until the very last days of December, with extended opening hours often until midnight so that many can view the magic of this place

Dining in Tivoli

When you are out on a vacation like this then eating does not seem a hassle, you will find everything you need from coffee to the fish and fries right in the park. There are proper cafes and eat outs available that will offer you a treat for your taste buds. For all those beer lovers you are going to love this place. There is a tradition to drink hot chocolate here my Danish friends, I remember when we had mentioned we were planning a visit his client mentioned us to drink hot chocolate. Have to stay there is nothing like relaxing and sipping a cup of hot chocolate.

It is a perfect getaway from the hustle bustle of every day life be it for grownups as well, kids seem to be the target audience for such family parks. Somehow the adults cannot resist its charm make it a point to visit it in summer and winter time as well. Let the kid in you be unleashed with all the fun in the theme rides.