Things to Do in Roskilde, Denmark: Walking Guide

Roskilde is one of Denmark’s oldest cities, set at the end of Roskilde Fjord on the island of Zealand. Its medieval cathedral, Viking ships, early churches and museums make it a rewarding destination for anyone interested in Denmark’s history and culture. Neywo offers a free audio guide for Roskilde with 38 narrated places, so you can explore the city while listening at your own pace.

Roskilde is an easy way to discover a different side of Denmark beyond Copenhagen. The city grew into an important religious and royal centre during the Middle Ages, and its cathedral and monasteries shaped its history. Later, its maritime heritage and contemporary music culture added new dimensions to the city.

What to see in Roskilde

Roskilde Cathedral

Roskilde Cathedral is the city’s most important landmark and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Known in Danish as Roskilde Domkirke, it has been the official burial church of the Danish monarchs since the fifteenth century. The cathedral contains 40 royal tombs, including 37 known tombs and three attributed to members of the royal family.

The present building was constructed during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Its architecture brings together styles added or altered across 800 years, including Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical, Eclectic and Functionalist features. Built largely from brick, it is one of the earliest brick Gothic cathedrals in Scandinavia and helped spread Brick Gothic architecture across Northern Europe.

Cathedral Square and Webers Gård

Cathedral Square provides an important setting for exploring Roskilde’s historic centre. One of the buildings to look for here is Webers Gård, a historic house included in the city’s heritage.

The square also helps place the cathedral within the wider story of Roskilde. During the Middle Ages, the city was a powerful religious centre, and the Bishop of Roskilde was one of Denmark’s most influential figures.

Viking Ship Museum

The Viking Ship Museum stands beside Roskilde Fjord and is Denmark’s national museum for ships from prehistory and the Middle Ages. Its central exhibition presents five original Viking ships, known as the Skuldelev ships, which were excavated nearby in 1962.

The museum’s oldest building is Vikingeskibshallen, or the Viking Ship Hall, opened in 1969. Its location beside the water connects the exhibitions with the maritime landscape that is central to Roskilde’s Viking history. The museum explores ships, seafaring and boatbuilding culture in the distant past and the medieval period.

Roskilde Museum

Roskilde Museum focuses on the cultural history of Roskilde and the surrounding area. Its exhibitions use local finds to tell the story of the town and its development.

The museum’s main branch occupies two listed buildings at the corner of Sankt Olsgade and Sankt Olsstræde. The Sugar House was formerly a sugar refinery, while the Liebe House was once a merchant’s house. Together, the buildings form part of the museum’s historical setting.

Lützhøfts Købmandsgård and the Museum of Tools

Lützhøfts Købmandsgård, also called Købmandsgården, includes a former granary on Ringstedgade. Its first floor houses the Roskilde Museum of Tools, known in Danish as Roskilde Håndværksmuseet.

The museum opened in 1977 as part of Roskilde Museum. Alongside its displays, it contains working private workshops for a wood carver, a silversmith and a weaver, offering a closer look at traditional crafts.

Old Church of Our Lady

The Old Church of Our Lady, or Gammel Vor Frue Kirke, is an 11th-century brick church and a surviving part of the site of Roskilde’s former Our Lady’s Abbey. It was built around 1080 by Svend Nordmand, the Bishop of Roskilde.

The abbey was founded in the early twelfth century for Benedictine nuns and became part of the Cistercian reform movement in 1177. It was suppressed in 1536 during the Protestant Reformation in Denmark. The church’s current appearance also reflects restoration work carried out in the 1850s.

New Church of Our Lady

The New Church of Our Lady, also known as Ny Vor Frue Kirke or Vor Frue Kirke, stands in Vor Frue within Roskilde Municipality. It provides another connection with the city’s long religious history and the former presence of Our Lady’s Abbey.

St Ib’s Church

St Ib’s Church, or Sankt Ibs Kirke, is an early medieval Romanesque building on Sankt Ibs Vej. The rectangular church dates from the beginning of the twelfth century and is first mentioned in written records in 1291.

It served as a parish church until 1808. During the Napoleonic Wars, it was used as a military hospital. After its porch, choir and tower were demolished in 1815, the nave was used as a warehouse until 1884. The church was later restored and reconstructed, and it received protected status in 1987. Medieval frescoes remain inside.

Roskilde Miniby

Roskilde Miniby is a detailed model of the city as it appeared in 1400. Churches and monasteries dominate the miniature landscape, reflecting Roskilde’s medieval importance.

The model is built at a scale of one to two hundred, covers six by eight metres and contains more than 900 miniature buildings and trees. The idea was developed in connection with Roskilde’s thousand-year anniversary in 1998, and the model was placed on Sankt Ibs Vej, immediately north of Byparken, in 2005.

Sct. Hans Kirketomt

Sct. Hans Kirketomt is an ancient monument in Roskilde Municipality. This quiet archaeological site offers another reminder that the city’s history extends beyond its better-known cathedral and museums.

Rockmuseet

In Roskilde’s Musicon district, Rockmuseet explores the sounds, images, objects and symbols of rock, pop and youth culture. Its exhibitions follow Danish rock, pop and youth culture from the 1950s onward.

The museum opened in its present form on April 29, 2016. It brings a modern cultural perspective to a city more commonly associated with medieval history and Viking ships.

Ayasofya Mosque

Ayasofya Mosque is a Turkish mosque in Roskilde. Its five domes and two minarets make it a distinctive presence, although the building stands in a courtyard at 11 Allehelgensgade. The mosque was officially inaugurated on May 10, 2018, and is operated by the Roskilde Kulturforening association.

How to explore Roskilde with Neywo

Download Neywo’s free Roskilde audio guide and explore the city independently. It includes 2 walking tours, 1 bus route and 1 bike route:

• Royal Roskilde: Cathedral, Squares and Old Churches — 2.91 km, 115 minutes and 11 narrated stops.
• Vikings, Fjord and Denmark’s Oldest Stone Building — 1.99 km, 61 minutes and 6 narrated stops.
• Bus 201A: Old Town to Svogerslev — 6.6 km, 28 minutes and 4 narrated stops.
• Roskilde by Bike: Fjord to Old Town — 3.2 km, 16 minutes and 5 narrated stops.

The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Narration is available in 11 languages, making Neywo a practical alternative to a traditional free walking tour in Roskilde. You can also use it to connect the cathedral and old churches with the Viking Ship Museum, the fjord and the city’s newer cultural attractions.

Roskilde makes a rewarding stop when exploring Zealand, whether you are visiting from Copenhagen or planning a wider trip through Denmark. Download Neywo and discover its history one narrated place at a time.