post-industrialarchitecture

Carlsberg Byen: the brewery district and the elephant gate

The 19th-c Carlsberg brewery becoming a new neighbourhood — four elephants, courtyards, the experience museum.

Drafted by Claude — the editor hasn’t walked this one yet. We’ll update this notice once it’s been verified on the ground.

Distance

3 km

Time

~ 90 min

Start

Enghave plads metro (M3)

End

Carlsberg S-tog

Best at

afternoon

Right now

17°C· Partly cloudy

Open in Maps for turn-by-turn, or take it offline as GPX.

Carlsberg Byen — Carlsberg Town — is the former brewery district becoming a new Copenhagen neighbourhood. J.C. Jacobsen built the original Carlsberg here in 1847; brewing carried on until 2008, when production moved to Fredericia. The land has been under redevelopment since, layered around the old brewery buildings, the historic gates, and Elefantporten — the four life-sized granite elephants Vilhelm Dahlerup designed for the 1901 entrance.

Three kilometres, ninety minutes through the conversion. Start at Enghave plads metro and walk south-west down Vesterfælledvej. The first brewery walls appear within minutes — yellow brick, copper-domed buildings, the industrial-romantic vocabulary the 19th-c Carlsberg architects favoured.

The Elephant Gate is the photograph. Four granite elephants on plinths, carved by H.P. Pedersen-Dan, each representing one of the Jacobsen family children. Walk through. The brewery courtyards open behind — old brewing halls and the brewing-master's villa, now repurposed as housing and offices.

Visit Carlsberg is the experience museum at Pasteursvej 24 — the brewery's official heritage walkthrough, charged entry. End at Carlsberg S-tog, opened in 2016 to serve the new district.

The route

On the map.

A soft dashed line, numbered stops. It’s a suggestion, not a turn-by-turn.

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

01
1
Enghave plads metro
M3 Cityringen at the eastern edge of *Carlsberg Byen*. Walk south-west on *Vesterfælledvej* toward the brewery walls; they appear within five minutes.
01
Enghave plads metro
M3 Cityringen at the eastern edge of *Carlsberg Byen*. Walk south-west on *Vesterfælledvej* toward the brewery walls; they appear within five minutes.
02
2
Vesterfælledvej walk-in
The first stretch of brewery wall. Yellow brick, copper-domed buildings visible behind, the industrial-romantic vocabulary of late-19th-c brewery architecture. The wall pretends the brewery is still a closed place; it isn't.
02
Vesterfælledvej walk-in
The first stretch of brewery wall. Yellow brick, copper-domed buildings visible behind, the industrial-romantic vocabulary of late-19th-c brewery architecture. The wall pretends the brewery is still a closed place; it isn't.
03
3
Elefantporten (the Elephant Gate)
*Pasteursvej* entrance. Four life-sized granite elephants on plinths, carved by H.P. Pedersen-Dan, the gate designed by Vilhelm Dahlerup in 1901. Each elephant carries the initials of one of J.C. and Laura Jacobsen's children. Walk through; the gate is the most photographed object in *Carlsberg Byen*.
03
Elefantporten (the Elephant Gate)
*Pasteursvej* entrance. Four life-sized granite elephants on plinths, carved by H.P. Pedersen-Dan, the gate designed by Vilhelm Dahlerup in 1901. Each elephant carries the initials of one of J.C. and Laura Jacobsen's children. Walk through; the gate is the most photographed object in *Carlsberg Byen*.
04
4
Brewery courtyards
The yards behind the gate. *Jacobsens Akvarium*, the old brewing-master's villa, the storage halls now converted to housing and offices. Walk the cobbled paths; the conversion is the architecture, not just what's inside the buildings.
04
Brewery courtyards
The yards behind the gate. *Jacobsens Akvarium*, the old brewing-master's villa, the storage halls now converted to housing and offices. Walk the cobbled paths; the conversion is the architecture, not just what's inside the buildings.
05
5
Visit Carlsberg museum
*Pasteursvej 24*. The brewery's official heritage experience — the history, the cellars, the horses (the brewery's classic Jutland horses still live on site), the tasting at the end. Charged entry, English-friendly, the official Carlsberg story.
05
Visit Carlsberg museum
*Pasteursvej 24*. The brewery's official heritage experience — the history, the cellars, the horses (the brewery's classic Jutland horses still live on site), the tasting at the end. Charged entry, English-friendly, the official Carlsberg story.
06
6
Carlsberg S-tog
Opened 2016 to serve the redeveloped district. S-tog back to *Vesterport* and *København H*. The new residential streets around the station are the future of *Carlsberg Byen*; walk a couple of blocks before getting on the train.
06
Carlsberg S-tog
Opened 2016 to serve the redeveloped district. S-tog back to *Vesterport* and *København H*. The new residential streets around the station are the future of *Carlsberg Byen*; walk a couple of blocks before getting on the train.

Carlsberg Byen: the brewery district and the elephant gate

On the map.

Things to notice.

Enghave plads metro

Enghave plads metro

Vesterfælledvej walk-in

Vesterfælledvej walk-in

Elefantporten (the Elephant Gate)

Elefantporten (the Elephant Gate)

Brewery courtyards

Brewery courtyards

Visit Carlsberg museum

Visit Carlsberg museum

Carlsberg S-tog

Carlsberg S-tog

Two more, on similar days.

Holmen and Nyholm: navy, architecture school, opera house

Kødbyen: the meatpacking district at evening