Tag Archives: Jutland

Tips for a Tourist in Sonderborg

In the beginning of May Ann’s sister, Cecilia, and a friend came to visit us in Sonderborg for 5 days. We asked her to write a guest post about her experience. Cecilia is currently studying at DCU in Dublin.

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I am just back from 5 days spent in the Sonderborg area visiting Ann and Michael. I had been to Denmark before visiting Copenhagen and south Jutland, but this was my first visit to Als and its environs. We were blessed with some good weather, with the sun shining on most days, which was a welcome change to the Irish weather.

My main tip to anyone visiting the area is to get a good pair of comfy shoes since walking is undoubtedly the best way to see the town. The pier next to Sonderborg Slot was a favourite walking place of ours during our stay with really beautiful views and a relaxing atmosphere. But perhaps coming from a small island and now living in a big city, makes me slightly biased to the wonders of the sea (and a blue sky).

Sønderborg Slot i solen

The people in Denmark seemed to be extremely friendly, and I did not have much problems in communicating. Surprisingly enough, it was only at the tourist information in Sonderborg that I was asked whether I could speak German once I started speaking in English. Luckily I studied German for 6 years during secondary school so I managed to get the required information. However, people on the street we stopped to ask for directions, and people in shops were overall quite helpful, and even where the level of English was not that high, communication was not an issue.

If you are staying for more than 2 days, however, I would suggest you rent a car. This is because, once you spend a day visiting Sonderborg town (Sonderborg slot, perhaps the Dybbol site, and soaking in the atmosphere on the first day and Danfoss Universe on the second day), it would make sense to venture further afield. Nevertheless, keeping Sonderborg as a base is a good idea, since it is truly a lovely town and you can never get tired of walking along the pier in the evening and stopping for a coffee or ice cream at the café there.

We rented a car from Europcar in Sonderborg for the middle three days of our trip, having spent the first day walking around Sonderborg and the last day at Danfoss Universe. I was quite excited about this because I got to drive on the right hand side of the road (which is the wrong side where I am coming from i.e. Malta and more recently Ireland). But for those who have never done this before, do not despair. I did not find it to be that hard, and got into it quite quickly, although for the first day I had to keep telling myself: keep to the right…keep to the right.

Having a car, we got to go further afield. Froslev Prison Camp, I think, was one of my favourite places, being well laid out, having English versions for most (probably all) exhibits and really interesting. However, the highpoint of having a car was undoubtedly our visits to Germany, which is a short hop away from Sonderborg. Having lived on 2 different islands, this has not yet been possible to date. However, you must keep in mind that you then need Euros to use in Germany in addition to the Danish Kroner in Denmark (though with credit cards, this is a minor issue nowadays).

Us in front of Egeskov Slot

A further tip for a trip to the area is to remember to get your inner child out, especially when visiting places like Danfoss Universe and Egeskov castle. It is only by doing this that you can get maximum enjoyment out of the visit.

Tak Ann, Michael and all the people I met in Sonderborg and on this visit. I will hopefully be back :).

Als Ferry

Ferry Fynshav-Bojden #16/99

A pain of living on an island is the ease with which you can get to other places. Believe me! I know! I lived in a country the size of Als for the first 21 years of my life with no bridges to anywhere! It is true that Als is connected to mainland Jutland by two bridges. However, the traditional way of connecting islands is with the use of ferries, and Als is not lacking here either.

Als Ferry

One of the ferries connects Fynshav on Als to Bojden on Fyn. The trip takes around 50mins. This means that rather than spending around 1.5hrs on a motorway you can get to Fyn within 10mins driving on country roads and 50mins relaxing on a ferry (+ time to drive to you destination on the other side).

You can easily make reservations online or by calling the company. Learning from our mistakes we would strongly suggest you do that! If you don’t have a reservation you will only make it onto the ferry after all the people who have reserved have. We managed to get on the ferry in both directions without a reservation. However, it was tight both times, and a 2hr wait for the next ferry is probably not your idea of a good time.

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This ferry provides a useful connection between the south of Jutland and the south of Fyn, facilitating the ease by which you can go from Als to the two main Danish islands (Fyn, and Zealand further on). It is also a pleasant way of getting to Egeskov Slot from Sonderborg as we did. Way more relaxing than being cooped up in a car for the time required!

Sonderborg Castle #2/99

This review is based on our visit to Sonderborg Castle when we were in the area for my interview in early September. 

Fortifications in the Sonderborg Castle area have been around since the 12th century. The site, a piece of land jutting out from the island of Als into Als Fjord was excellently located to protect this area of Denmark from attacks from the south. This also puts the castle in a very picturesque location.

May 11/10 Sunset on the slot

Over time, what started out as a tower within a much larger system of fortifications developed through numerous transformations into the castle we see today. Nowadays, the castle houses the Southern Jutland Museum.

The museum covers the history of the castle on the ground floor, and the history of Southern Denmark from the middle ages to today on the upper floors. There are also exhibits of historical collections from the local area, such as of textiles and ceramics.

The museum packs quite a lot into the space without making the place feel crowded. Unfortunately, the information panels are only sporadically in English. This made it quite difficult to follow the story of any one section. I was, however, told that they are working on English translations at the moment, which is positive.

I have always loved museums, and my current studies and experiences have put me in close contact with quite a lot. So I must admit that I really appreciate having a national museum in Sonderborg. Maybe I should get more involved with it? Would love to find a way!

Photo by Judith Doyle