The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark. The name Odense comes from the Norse god Odin. As Denmark’s third largest city, it offers the traveller a mixture of an exciting vibrant night-life, beautiful street-scapes, great shopping opportunities & a rich cultural heritage.
Odense city has 158,163 inhabitants, as of January 1, 2008 and is the main city of the island of Funen. It is the seat of Odense Municipality and was the seat of Odense County until 1970, and Funen County from 1970 until January 1, 2007 when the county became part of Region Syddanmark.
Odense is roughly in the center of Funen, which lies between the larger Zealand island & the Jutland peninsula. The first recorded reference to the city dates back to 988 AD in a letter from the German Kaiser Otto III.
Some recent archaeological finds have indicated that a settlement has in fact been around since the Viking period. At that time however, Odense was just the small centre of the Odin cult. In 1100, the first monastery, St. Knud’s was established by English Benedictine monks.
Up until the middle of the 17th century, Odense enjoyed the position as a main trading-centre for the people from the surrounding areas. Local produce & livestock were exported from the city. However a war with Sweden in the 1600s weakened the city’s economy, this economic downturn continued until 1803 when a canal linking Odense & the Baltic Sea was opened. This swiftly changed Odense into a port city & over the next 100 years Odense quickly developed into the modern industrial city which it is today. Currently Odense has a population of 185,871 people, thus making it Denmark’s 3rd largest city.’
Saint Canute’s Cathedral (Danish: Sankt Knuds Kirke) was formerly connected with the great Benedictine monastery of the same name, and is one of the largest and finest buildings of its kind in Denmark. It is constructed of brick in a pure Gothic style. Originally dating from 1081–1093, it was rebuilt in the 13th century. Under the altar lies Canute (Danish: Knud), the patron saint of Denmark, who had planned to conquer England from William of Normandy. He was slain in an insurrection at Odense in 1086. Odense is also the see of the bishop of Funen. * The cathedral has the skeletons of both the Saint/King and his brother on public display, it also boasts of one of Denmark’s finest altarpieces, a magnificent triptych by Claus Berg. A large fragment of Byzantine cloth is displayed next to the two skeletons.
Kings John (Danish: Hans) and Christian II are buried in the city. Our Lady’s Church, built in the 13th century and restored in 1851–1852 and again in 1864, contains a carved 16th century altarpiece by Claus Berg of Lübeck.
Odense Palace was erected by King Frederick IV, who died there in 1730. There is a theatre as well as a symphony orchestra, a zoo, and the Funen Village (Den Fynske Landsby) which is an open air museum with old houses typical for Funen.
The City Hall has a small scar from a battle between Germans and members of the Danish Resistance on 5 May 1945. The city’s coat of arms - located above the main entrance to City Hall - is damaged. On close inspection, the kneecap of Saint Canute is penetrated by a bullet.
Most of Odense’s attractions, bars, restaurants & shopping areas are very easily accessibly on foot. All of the city’s main hotels & hostels are located within the city centre or train station areas. As a general rule all of the major attractions are between 5 & 10 minutes of each other.
The exception to this is ‘The Funen Village’ (Den Fynske Landsby), which is about a 45 minute walk along the river. Similarly the zoo is on the same route & is roughly 30 minutes from the city centre. Both of these attractions are sign-posted all the way along the river.
Taxis are relatively abundant throughout the city, but they are quite pricey when compared to local buses. Areas which usually have a large amount of taxis waiting to pick up customers include, the taxi pick-up point at the trainstation, outside the Rosengård centre & at Fisktorvet.
On a Friday or Saturday night taxis can be found all over the city. You can hail a taxi on the street, or ask in a bar/restaurant for them to get one sent to come pick you up. It should be noted that taxis do cost more at night time.
For those interested in a more relaxed break, a river boat (Odense Åfart) can be taken from the bridge in Munke Mose Park (Nyvestergade) to the Zoo & to the forest next to ‘The Funen Village’. The journey, which takes around 30 minutes, is a very relaxing way of seeing Odense river, the Danish countryside & to just relax on a summers day. Sometimes live jazz bands occasionally play on-board during the summer months. Row-Boats & Paddle-Boats can also be rented at the same location.
The buses from Odense Bytrafik are available all over Odense. All city buses cost 16 DKK regardless of the destination. The regional train from Odense to Svendborg has a few stops in the Odense area. For example there is a stop at the picturesque Fruens Bøge area which is relatively near to The Funen Village.
Work can be difficult to find in Denmark unless you already have a fairly good level of Danish fluency. However for those who cannot speak the language work can be found delivering news papers, working in kitchens or collecting glasses in bars.
The city lies close to Odense Fjord on the Odense River (Odense Å). Its railway station lies on the route between Copenhagen and Jutland, the peninsular mainland. A 7.5 metre (25 ft) deep canal, dug from 1796 to 1806, gives access to the town from the fjord.
Accessibility to Odense was greatly increased when the ferry service between the two main Danish islands, Zealand and Funen, was replaced by the Great Belt Bridge - opened in 1997 for rail traffic, 1998 for road traffic. When the bridge opened, it was the second longest suspension bridge in the world. Its construction greatly cut transportation time between Odense and the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Copenhagen can now be reached by trains from Odense in 1 hour and 15 minutes. Odense is served by Odense Airport.
Bars in Odense have opening hours which tend to vary greatly. For example some bars close everyday at around midnight, while others stay open until 5AM or even later. Odense is generally a safe town for visitors, although criminal activities and violence occur and caution is recommended late at night.
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