Ancient Ruins
Jelling Stones & Viking Monuments
Denmark's 'birth certificate': UNESCO-listed runic stones raised by Viking kings Gorm and Harald Bluetooth alongside massive burial mounds.
← All routes
Road trip route · Germany · Denmark
Hamburg to Copenhagen drive time, distance, costs & the best stops
- Drive time
- 5 hr 4 min
- Distance
- 469 km
- Fuel (est.)
- €29
- Tolls (est.)
- Not estimated
The Hamburg to Copenhagen drive
The drive from Hamburg to Copenhagen covers 291 miles (469 km) and takes about 5 hr 4 min without stops. That makes it a comfortable one-day drive. Leave in the morning and you'll arrive with the day ahead of you.
Two roads do the work. Roughly 43% is on the E20 and another 32% on the A7. On the way you go past Norderstedt, Rendsburg and Flensburg, and you'll be near Kolding roughly 2 h 34 min in. The border from Germany into Denmark comes between Flensburg and Aabenraa, about 169 km in.
It's flat. Nowhere along the way did we measure the road higher than about 72 m above sea level.
Expect fuel for a typical petrol car (~40 mpg) to cost around €29 one-way (we don't estimate tolls for Denmark). Prices shift monthly, so treat these as ballpark figures.
At 291 miles this is longer than 77% of the 144 routes covered here, so it is worth treating as a trip in itself rather than a transfer. Even in a single day it crosses 2 countries, so keep documents where you can reach them.
The road, kilometre by kilometre
Towns within a few kilometres of the fastest route, with the time it takes to reach them without stopping, plus where you cross the border.
- StartHamburg
- 20 kmNorderstedt13 min in
- 97 kmRendsburg1 h 3 min in
- 152 kmFlensburg1 h 39 min in
- 169 kmInto Denmark
- 186 kmAabenraa2 h ingood place to stop
- 213 kmHaderslev2 h 18 min in
- 238 kmKolding2 h 34 min in
- 306 kmOdense3 h 19 min in
- 338 kmNyborg3 h 39 min in
- 377 kmSlagelse4 h 5 min ingood place to stop
- 406 kmRingsted4 h 24 min in
- 445 kmGreve4 h 49 min in
- 469 kmCopenhagen
How high it goes
Roads you'll be on
- E20201 km · 43%
- A7151 km · 32%
- E4590 km · 19%
Best stops between Hamburg and Copenhagen
Within ~30 km of the driving route, worth the detour.
Castles & Palaces
Egeskov Castle
Europe's best-preserved moated Renaissance castle on Funen, rising straight from its lake amid playful gardens.
Famous Bridges
Old Little Belt Bridge
The elegant 1935 steel truss bridge linking Jutland and Funen at Middelfart. Now a quiet scenic crossing beside its motorway successor, with bridge-walking tours on its upper girders.
Landmarks
The Wave (Bølgen), Vejle
An undulating five-tower residential building on Vejle Fjord, one of Denmark's most striking pieces of contemporary architecture.
Famous Bridges
New Little Belt Bridge
Suspension bridge carrying the E20 motorway between Jutland and Funen, opened in 1970 alongside the older 1935 crossing.
What you need for this drive
Rules for each country on the route, in the order you meet them.
Germany
- Tolls
- No motorway tolls
- Must carry
- warning triangle, hi-vis vest, first-aid kit
- Winter tyres
- Required in winter conditions
Low-emission zones: Umweltzone (about 36 active, incl. Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart, Cologne).
Denmark
- Motorway
- 130 km/h · 50 in town
- Tolls
- No motorway tolls
- Must carry
- warning triangle
Low-emission zones: Miljoezoner (Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Aarhus, Odense, Aalborg).
Checked against national road authorities and the ECB reference rates. Rules change — confirm before you travel.
Famous drives in Germany and Denmark
Legendary routes you could bolt onto this trip, with real distances and stop counts.
Black Forest High Road (B500)
Cuckoo clocks, dark-wood villages, cake, and a high road that floats above the canopy
158 km · 3.2h driving · 4 stops · 2 days
Romantic Road
Half-timbered villages, walled medieval towns, and Bavarian beer all the way to Neuschwanstein
333 km · 4.6h driving · 6 stops · 5 days
Hamburg to Copenhagen FAQs
How long is the drive from Hamburg to Copenhagen?
Driving from Hamburg to Copenhagen takes about 5 hr 4 min nonstop, covering 291 miles (469 km). Add time for breaks: most drivers stop every 2 hours.
How much does it cost to drive from Hamburg to Copenhagen?
Fuel for a typical petrol car (~40 mpg) costs roughly €29 one-way. We don't estimate tolls for Denmark, so check the toll roads there before you go. Estimates are indicative: prices change monthly.
Can I drive from Hamburg to Copenhagen in one day?
Yes, at about 5 hr 4 min of driving, Hamburg to Copenhagen is a comfortable one-day drive with a couple of breaks.
Which roads do you take from Hamburg to Copenhagen?
The fastest route uses the E20 (about 201 km), the A7 (about 151 km), the E45 (about 90 km). It passes Norderstedt, Rendsburg, Flensburg, Aabenraa.
Where should I stop on the way from Hamburg to Copenhagen?
If you stop every couple of hours, Aabenraa comes up about 2 h in, and Slagelse comes up about 4 h in. All are just off the main road.
What other drives can I plan on Plan Your Road Trips?
We publish drive times, distances and fuel estimates for 144 routes across Europe and beyond, including 13 other drives in the same country. Browse them all on the routes index.
What are the best stops between Hamburg and Copenhagen?
Top-rated stops in the drive corridor include Jelling Stones & Viking Monuments, Egeskov Castle, Old Little Belt Bridge: see the full list of 5 stops on this page.
More drives from Hamburg & Copenhagen
Planning a bigger trip? Try the free Germany road trip planner, browse every destination we cover or the Denmark planner, take it with you on the road, or read the driving in Denmark guide.