Chiara Barla came from Liguria in Italy to Copenhagen to delve into the excitement surrounding the new Scandinavian cuisine spearheaded by René Redzepi and his restaurant Noma.

Now rooted in the Danish capital herself, she runs Apotek 57, a beautiful café that meets all the high standards of Copenhagen's culinary scene.

At Coco, visitors to Copenhagen effortlessly blend with locals, thanks to the boutique hotel's delightful lobby area, featuring a café and bar in bohemian chic and a cozy green courtyard.

The ambiance upon entering the Coco Hotel is simply enchanting.

There’s a charming blend of indoor and outdoor spaces. Fabrics in soft natural tones, wicker furniture, white marble tables and an abundance of plants and flowers create a true little oasis in the lively Vesterbro district.

Near the Copenhagen harbor promenade, a few steps up on Peder Skrams Gade 15, you enter Iluka.

A floor-length red curtain along one side of the room hints at an elegant theatrical production.

Indeed, the carefully selected and lovingly prepared seafood and fish we enjoy deserve this special presentation.

On the right, the room is bright and welcoming, with warm, unpretentious wooden furniture and a white-tiled bar.

This is how we experience our visit to Iluka - exquisite and refined, yet relaxed and familial.

Nestled in a former printing building, the Akkurat Café sits in the southeastern corner, framed by expansive windows.

Outside, a sun-drenched terrace awaits, encircled by striking 1960s architecture. 

The café offers exceptional specialty coffee and lemonades, alongside wholesome breakfasts, indulgent treats and hearty lunches.

Being at Akkurat always feels a bit like stepping into an art gallery. 

The walls showcase rotating artworks, while a rectangular light installation hangs beneath the blush-pink ceiling, casting a warm glow.

At the heart of the space, three poured-concrete counters serve as the stage where coffee and matcha are crafted with meticulous care.

The hum of guests’ voices reverberates gently through the room, creating a relaxed and informal atmosphere. 

Bright and airy, Akkurat is a place where a simple coffee break has the power to lift your spirits.

Brilliant Apartments - the name may sound plain, but the apartments on the charming Oderberger Straße are anything but. 

Lovingly designed, familiar and full of character, they exude a sense of home away from home.

Nestled in Prenzlauer Berg, these fourteen unique apartments are spread across the front and rear building, in true Berlin fashion.

Weekly cleaning services and an on-site breakfast café provide just the right amount of convenience, so that we don’t miss the advantages of a hotel.

There are even facilities for doing laundry at home or dropping it off at the dry cleaner around the corner. 

Each apartment comes equipped with a fully functional kitchen for cooking our own meals. Though with so many of our favorite Berlin restaurants just a short walk away, staying in might not be all that tempting.

Tucked away in the enchanted courtyard of the Wilmina Hotel, the Lovis Bar reveals itself behind a black ivy-draped door. 

We descend a few steps into a historic vaulted cellar, where French artist Laurent Ajina has adorned the walls with delicate black lines on white lime plaster, giving the space a distinctive charm.

But it’s not just the design that sets the Lovis Bar apart. The drinks are as artful as the setting - imaginative, intricate concoctions crafted from mysterious, unlabeled bottles, measured and mixed with tiny beakers and pipettes. 

Alongside these exquisite cocktails, the bar serves refined bar food that not only pairs beautifully with the bold drinks but could easily hold its own as a light dinner.

In fact, arriving a little earlier to enjoy all the Lovis Bar has to offer is a highly recommended plan.

The little store on Leliegracht is filled with lovingly collected works. Butterfly boxes and iridescent green beetles, jewelry and antiques sit alongside handmade candles and artisanal soaps, while art prints hang above marvelous curiosities.

Apothecary cabinets and old glass display cases are filled to the brim, inviting exploration. It’s nearly impossible to leave without a small treasure in tow.

Wandering through Amsterdam’s Jordaan district, a little sustenance is just what you need.

At Breadwinner, hand-rolled sourdough bagels fresh from the stone oven are baked with organic ingredients.

In the small, bright shop with a handful of seats outside, we have our choice of plain sourdough bagels, salted, poppy seed or sesame, onion bagels, jalapeno and cheddar, or two sweet options - cinnamon raisin or chocolate.

A touch of Paris graces the elegant Maison Elle, with its lush green garden.

Breakfast in the morning means croissants, pain au chocolat and café au lait…

And when we enjoy it on pale blue velvet chairs in front of wood-paneled walls, we almost have to remind ourselves that we are not in France, but in Amsterdam and that the famous Rijksmuseum, with its old Dutch masters, is just a five-minute bike ride away.

Slow-roasted tomatoes, candied walnuts, fermented chili, confit Medjool dates, Jerusalem artichoke chips, homemade ricotta dumplings, boozy coffee biscuits, pistachio crème Anglaise… just reading the ingredients on the menu at Night Kitchen is enough to lure us there.

But there’s even more to it than that!

They describe their wonderful concept as “Dinner with Friends.”

This idea hails from Tel Aviv and has been successfully exported not only to Amsterdam but also to Berlin.

Being cooked for by friends, in a familiar atmosphere, with that extra touch of love that only dear ones can infuse into their food, is always a rare delight to find outside one's home.

At Amy and Julius's restaurant JA such a cozy feeling washes over you the moment you step into the charming space with its open kitchen.

It is here that we learn fine dining can indeed be incredibly familial.

Isn't it the most beautiful thing letting yourself drift without a schedule, daydreaming by the water for an afternoon, guiltlessly transitioning from the finest bakery to the most delightful ice cream parlor or enjoying an endless breakfast?

We believe, this approach can often provide a deeper sense of a metropolis’s rhythm, than a rigid cultural itinerary and sometimes it reveals the true treasures of a city.

Even if it’s just a brief weekend trip, it would be a pity to let haste and stress intrude. After all, when a city is enjoyable, we are bound to return.

Here, we share a few personal tips and secrets on how to savor a wonderful city walk and how to make our day truly perfect.

On Oderberger Straße in Prenzlauer Berg, a cozy retreat awaits just a few steps below street level, next to a charming terrace shaded by a red awning. 

The bar’s whitewashed walls, Toile de Jouy curtains, wooden tables, and school chairs with mustard-yellow cushions might easily transport you to Paris.

And there are not just exceptional French wines - the carefully curated selection also features exquisite bottles from Germany, Austria and Spain.  

The delicious sharing plates even draw inspiration from across the globe.

MaMi’s is the perfect place to escape the hustle of Berlin for a few hours, immersing yourself in soft music, fine wine and outstanding food, served by warm and welcoming hosts.

Behind large, bright windows in a classic brick building in Amsterdam's Oud West lies the enchanting household goods store, Dille & Kamille.

Enamel dishes, linen tablecloths, bergamot soap, acacia wood cutting boards, wildflower seeds, and garden gloves – everything that makes a home cozy and functional is available here.

Naturally, it’s easy to find a suitable gift for loved ones back home at Dille & Kamille. But treating yourself here is just as delightful.

We are often asked if we love Amsterdam more than our other favorite - Copenhagen. Thankfully, at the Scandinavian Embassy, we don’t have to choose.

Here, the coffee tastes as exquisite as it does at Noma and the cinnamon rolls are as fragrant and fresh as they are in the far north and yet we find ourselves in the heart of our beloved Amsterdam.

In Jordaan, the former working-class neighborhood, lies this little gem of a hotel, right on the Keizersgracht, perhaps the most beautiful canal in the heart of Amsterdam's canal ring.

The view from the room over the enchanting canal is so dreamy that it truly tempts us to have breakfast in bed. 

However, the delicious breakfast lovingly prepared in the large ground-floor salon, with a view of the charming garden, is worth tearing ourselves away from the morning view of the gently swaying canal boats.

And right outside the door awaits one of the most delightful quarters of the Dutch capital.

Isn't it the most beautiful thing letting yourself drift without a schedule, daydreaming by the water for an afternoon, guiltlessly transitioning from the finest bakery to the most delightful ice cream parlor or enjoying an endless breakfast?

We believe, this approach can often provide a deeper sense of a metropolis’s rhythm, than a rigid cultural itinerary and sometimes it reveals the true treasures of a city.

Even if it’s just a brief weekend trip, it would be a pity to let haste and stress intrude. After all, when a city is enjoyable, we are bound to return.

Here, we share a few personal tips and secrets on how to savor a wonderful city walk and how to make our Berlin-Day truly perfect.

Little birds flit into the ivy draping the facade.

Their cheerful chirping mingling with the distant hum of the city beyond. They dart out again, diving into a sea of green where waves of white blossoms rise and fall beneath our window.

Red brick walls, weathered by decades of history, frame a series of serene courtyards and lush gardens. 

Sunlight dances playfully through delicate ash leaves, casting fleeting patterns of light and shadow.

In Wilmina the bustling metropolis around us falls into oblivion.

Architects Almut and Armand Grüntuch-Ernst have masterfully transformed a former women’s prison from 1896 into the city’s most enchanting oasis.

The hotel feels like a wellness escape, yet it sits at the heart of Berlin - a hidden world within the city and our favorite secret haven.

Books and Bagels? You bet!

In many bookstores, a sign greets you at the entrance with a stern warning - no food or drinks beyond this point.

At Shakespeare & Sons, the expectation to treat their carefully curated selection of mostly English-language books with care is no different. 

But here, there’s a twist. The inhouse café, Fine Bagels, is an inseparable part of the experience.

Picture this - savoring sweet or salty handmade bagels, chocolate or plain rugelach, cookies and cakes, all while leisurely browsing through the shelves. 

Every visit tempts us to take at least one treasure home - a delicious one or a written one.

Hotel Frantz in Södermalm, near the Stockholm locks, exemplifies how to masterfully execute small luxury.

The historical rooms have been lovingly transformed into a charming, sophisticated city hotel.

The large, cozy bed, stylish bathroom, high-quality fabrics, and soft colors align perfectly with our tastes.

And the breakfast, served in the pretty Frantz Restaurant, is among the best we’ve ever encountered in a hotel.