Skovshoved Hotel, Charlottenlund, near Copenhagen, Denmark - Explore & Book

"If you've ever wanted to stay in one of those inimitably stylish Scandinavian seaside hotels - airy interiors, seductive lighting, cosy fires, welcoming bar - then you've hit the jackpot here. It's been a hotel in some shape since the 1600s, although the present building dates back to 1860. Despite being only 30 minutes by bus from central Copenhagen, you feel a world away in this pleasantly sleepy, affluent suburb (think the Danish equivalent of the Hamptons). Head inside the pristine flowerbox-clad frontage, slip past reception and find a candlelit sitting area with an honesty bar and plenty of white sofas on which to lounge; round the corner, the restaurant invites you to feast on premium Hereford steaks and wines. Upstairs are 20 light-filled bedrooms (plus 2 in a separate annexe), and there's a cosy pub bang next door. Five minutes' walk away, the hotel has a private jetty from where the hearty (and hardy) can dive into the sea for a bracing pre-breakfast wake-up, and slightly further on there's a beach for those gloriously long Scandinavian summer evenings. Highs Easy access to some of the area's best beaches, plus the bus from central Copenhagen stops right outside; bike hire is available, tooA lovely historic feel, with plenty of photos charting the hotel's long pastBreakfast on your private balcony, overlooking the seaExcellent food, both in the restaurant and the buzzy pub; alternate between them according to your moodThe rooms are generally large and bright Lows The suburban location is very quiet - not ideal for first-time visitors to the city or those seeking nightlifeDespite the cosy fires, seaside Copenhagen on a grey winter's day is pretty grey indeedAccess to the sea jetty and beach is across a fairly busy main roadWhen we last visited, some areas felt a little worn around the edges, but we've been informed there have been some renovations since then" - Will Hide