Aarhus Municipality: City, Forest and Beach

In Aarhus, city, forest and beach meet, providing easy access to green experiences all year round.

Culture

ARoS is home to Olafur Eliasson’s “Your rainbow panorama”, a permanent, circular glass artwork. The 150-metre-long and 3-metre-wide walkway glows in the colours of the spectrum. Visitors can reach it via stairs or a lift and walk along the panoramic path with views of Aarhus and the bay. ARoS also houses Denmark’s oldest museum collection outside Copenhagen; citizens of Aarhus founded it in 1859.

Den Gamle By in Aarhus conveys the history of Danish market towns through the four periods 2014, 1974, 1927 and 1864. From Aarhus Central Station, the open-air museum can be reached by bus: route 3A runs approximately every 15 minutes, while routes 14, 114 and 118 run approximately every 30 minutes. The main entrance is a 15-minute walk from Aarhus Central Station.

Moesgaard Museum is an archaeological and anthropological museum in Højbjerg, south of Aarhus, presenting staged stories about the human past and present. Its permanent exhibitions cover the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Viking Age and Middle Ages. The Iron Age exhibition features the Grauballe Man, considered the best-preserved bog body ever found. A Stone Age experience also offers the opportunity to use a bow and arrow.

The Infinite Bridge is a work of art by Aarhus architects Johan Gjøde and Niels Povlsgaard, which was originally part of the temporary ARoS exhibition “Sculpture by the Sea” in 2015. Below Varna Palace, visitors can walk along a 360-degree circular route measuring 188 metres in length. The seasonal wooden bridge leads from the beach at Varna into Aarhus Bay and is accessible from April or May until October.

Nature

The Marselisborg Forests are coastal forests south of Aarhus. In the area nominated for Aarhus’ nature canon, they cover approximately 600 hectares and form part of the Natura 2000 area “Giber Å, Enemærket and Skåde Havbakker”. Marselisborg Deer Park is located in the northern part, where visitors can observe and experience deer, fallow deer and wild boar up close all year round.

At Åby Skov, you can learn about the water cycle. The landscape is characterised by open expanses, far-reaching views over hilly terrain and small lakes. Egå Engsø near Aarhus is a scenic area with a diverse range of bird and animal life.

In and around Aarhus, there are idyllic east-facing beaches surrounded by forest and green areas, offering calm, child-friendly waters. Åkrogen is located close to the city centre and has a bathing jetty, playground and barbecue area.

For further orientation in the area, you can find location pages for Aarhus Municipality for Risskov, Norsminde, Løgten, Beder, Brabrand, Sabro, Gammel Løgten, Tranbjerg, Harlev, Tilst, Hjortshøj, Beder Malling, Holme-Højbjerg-Skåde, Aarhus, Skødstrup, Trige, Viby J, Solbjerg, Ajstrup Strand, Hasselager, Lystrup, Skæring, Ajstrup, Egå, Malling and Højbjerg.

Getting around

The AUminoen is a signposted hiking route through Aarhus University Park and the city’s green areas; it combines nature, architecture and history. Along Aarhus’ southern coast, the 17-kilometre Kystruten runs through forests and along the water to Skovmøllen near Moesgård and back. It can be used on foot, in running shoes or by bicycle.

In True Skov near Aarhus city centre, there are challenging hiking and cycling routes across an area of 650 hectares. The Land Route begins at a car park on the road to Vestereng near Bodøvej in the north of Aarhus and leads through the forest of a former military site, past Aarhus University Hospital in Skejby, to the edge of the village of Gl. Skejby.

The Forest Route at Mollerup Skov has two starting points: the car park in Mollerup Skov on Skejbyvej and the DCH dog-training area on Viengevej. In summer, visitors may encounter Aarhus tourism staff at signposted tourist bicycles.

For the higher-level travel overview: Central Jutland.