What can you do in Funen/Fyn in Denmark I wondered? After a week there I have an idea:
There are cozy coastal towns, culture and, above all, lots of nature. Here are my 6 best outdoor tips for the island of Fyn/Funen in Denmark: horse riding, hiking, kayaking, food & culture. Here's all information
By the way, something brand new: Since April, the South Funen Archipelago has been a UNESCO Geopark!
The water level rose dramatically 10,000 years ago due to climate change (luckily this was not man-made). What remained were 55 islands and islets that protrude from the Baltic Sea off the Danish island of Fyn. The best conditions for outdoor adventures - here are my tips for Fyn/Funen in Denmark:
1. Outdoor tip: Riding in Siberia - with Iceland ponys through the forests of Fyn/Funen in Denmark
No joke, the forest around the Naturkompagniet accommodation/riding center is called that. When I was there, however, it wasn't cold... On the contrary: pink foxgloves provided a splash of color in the lush green beech and pine forest.
Hector is the perfect camera horse. I can dismount and take photos as often as I want. The others can trot, tölt and gallop past me and he doesn't even bat an eyelid. He stands quietly next to me and I just have to make sure that he doesn't nibble on foxgloves out of boredom.
Speaking of tölt: Iceland ponys are famous for their tölt. Hector's gait between trot and gallop is so smooth that I can photograph him without any problem. You can tell that the horses have never experienced anything bad, they have complete trust and are very easy to ride - no wonder: Kristian used to be in the Guard Hussar Regiment.
Even those who come with their own horse can keep it with the Naturkompagniet.
2 hours of riding costs 70 €, 3 hours 90 €.
More information at https://naturkompagniet.com/
Unfortunately, the website is only in Danish. Brit and Kristian speak very good English. The best thing to do is call or email ( mail@naturkompagniet.com , +45 29 84 62 65 / +45 29 44 73 87).
For overnight stays at the horse farm see my blog entry: Denmark: The 3 most unusual places to stay on Funen/Fyn online from 27.6
Various riding stables have joined forces in South Funen. Anyone who is interested and has their own horse can ride from accommodation to accommodation on the 75 km long riding trails.
More about trail riding at https://riderutesydfyn.dk/?lang=en
2. Outdoor tip Hiking - Øhavsstien
If you don't want to walk the entire 220-kilometer-long Øhavsstien long-distance hiking trail - also called the "Archipelago Trail" - you will find many exciting day trips, too.
Ditte Tvede Arentoft from "Undervejs" offers four two- to three-day hikes in a package and organizes everything from accommodation to transport. Her idea is to do these tours without a hiking app. For this purpose, she puts together individual little booklets that she gives to her guests. In them you will find analog hiking maps, loving descriptions of the route and the sights along the way, as well as practical tips. She finds:
The best conversations usually happen when you're hiking. And that's why I think it's important not to have your phone to distract you.
Unfortunately, her website is only available in Danish (https://undervejs.com ), but Ditte speaks English very well. The best way to contact her is to call her or send her an email: hello@undervejs.com , +45 20 47 24 44
While hiking on Fyn, I admired the ancient beech and oak trees that stand right by the sea. It's also great that you keep passing beautiful castles.
GPS DATA: If you're a hiking app nerd like me, you can also view a beautiful 13km hike, which I did on Outdooractive and download the GPS data.
3. Outdoor tip: Explore the coast by SUP or kayak
Fyn/Funen and the offshore islands and islets, with their approximately 1100 km of coastline, are the perfect destination for an active holiday on the sea: whether by kayak or SUP board.
The area is ideal for kayaking because there are sheltered bays and creeks, shallow water and beaches where the boat can be easily pulled ashore.
The South Funen archipelago is a Mecca for sea kayakers from home and abroad
You can order the sea kayak guide (in English) including map book and travel guide here . You can download the archipelago map here . On this page you will find a list of kayak rental companies .
If you stay at Villa Skovly (See my blog entry: Denmark: The 3 most unusual places to stay on Funen/Fyn online from 27.6 ), you can rent kayaks and SUPs for free.
Unfortunately, I only had time to paddle from the beach in front of the villa to Lundeborg. But next time I want to explore the islands more intensively.
4. Outdoor tip: Survival training/nature safari with Thomas
Thomas Frederiksen was an expedition leader and survival guide for the US Army in Greenland. He came to the Arctic island and didn't like the service provided. So he returned the next summer and wanted to do better.
He learned most of it from his mother. "In the Middle Ages, she would probably have been burned as a witch," he smiles. When he was sick as a child, she would go into the garden and collect camomile and other herbs. He thinks:
Once you have a feeling and interest for plants, it is only natural to look for things to eat in nature.
We walk along the beach and he digs up a wild plant (sorry, forgot the name 🙃 ) that tastes like cucumber. We collect dandelion leaves and rose hip and elderberry flowers grow on the bushes. In the dense beech and oak forest with ancient trees up to 400 years old, which stretches to the sea, we find a summer mushroom that tastes wonderfully nutty.
His company name is "Over ild", which translates as "Over the fire" , and that is exactly where he prepares our dinner. A cast-iron pot has been standing in the embers for a long time so that the bread is baked quickly, there are fried mushrooms with fried dandelion leaves and wild garlic. There is also a mixture of elderberry and rose tea.
Nature can taste so good.
Thomas is an extremely cool guy. He is now a biology teacher. He tells us that he recently found a deer that had been hit by a car on the road and took it to school. He uses it to show his students what happens when you collide with a car. "They want to be cool and drive without helmets," he says. When they saw the deer's broken jaw and shattered legs, they were shocked. In Germany, such a blatant object lesson would be unthinkable. I find it very descriptive. At the moment, his students think that life after death, after the funeral, is simply over. He would have loved to put a deer in the school garden to show them what happens when a body decomposes. Thomas laughs and tells us that the only time his headmaster said was: "Oh no, Thomas, we won't do that."
Thomas can be booked for a campfire event with herb gathering and fishing. Best to contact him directly: +45 51368111
5. Outdoor tip Øhavsmuseet - Discover the magic of nature!
Admittedly, a museum visit is not exactly an outdoor experience - usually. But the exhibition at Øhavsmuseet is as interactive and visionary as I would expect in a big city and not a small town like Faarborg.
Test result: I am 60 percent a forest person. I almost thought so, although I also love the sea...
The exhibition is about experiencing nature. There is hardly any text to read, but there is an audio guide that brings old legends and customs to life with different voices. The rooms are organized according to different themes and designed accordingly. Elves dance, waves break over us, we lie in a megalithic tomb and crawl barefoot under roots. After each theme, such as forest, darkness or sea, there is a self-test. Here you have to match smells and touches to a picture, for example. The whole thing is playful, but not childish.
6. Outdoor tip: Theatre with nature as a stage - The Silence of the Sound (Sundets Stilhed)
At first I couldn't imagine what theatre in nature meant, not even when Jakob Engmann, the artistic director of the BaggårdTeatret, explained the concept to me:
“We call it invisible theatre”
he said. To do this, you have to download the BaggaardTeatret app , where you can then choose between four different audio walks (also in German and English), each costing 12€.
I took part" in the "performance" of Sundets Stilhed
The visitor does not sit still in a theater seat, but walks 6 kilometers from the Maritime Center at the harbor in Svendborg to the Brecht House at Skovsbostrand 8. Small red signs show the way. As soon as you approach one of the signs, the app starts an audio contribution. In it you hear the stories of six authors who all live or have lived in Svendborg. It is about South Funen as a place of refuge. Why did the writers come here? What did they do here, what did they see?
I see through their eyes, picking up stones and throwing them into the water in the same place. I sit on a swing and look at a spot they looked at in the sea.
Click on the first picture to start the photo gallery
At first I find it difficult to get involved in the stories, but the longer I listen to them, the more they touch me.
Is happiness or unhappiness hereditary?
"What is your path in life, which decisions have you made yourself and which have you inherited? Are you ready to take the first step? Come on, let's go," Tom Wlaschiha (known as an actor from Game of Thrones) asks me and virtually takes me by the hand …
INFO
General information about the destination Fyn as well as accommodation, restaurants and activities also in German and English (language selection below) on the website https://www.visitfyn.de/
In Denmark, you pay with Danish kroner. One euro is equivalent to about 7.50 DKK
GETTING THERE
By train it is (normally) easy to get directly from Hamburg to Odense. If you are travelling by plane, you should fly to Copenhagen. From there, continue by rental car or public transport. The most important transport hub on Funen is the city of Odense.
GETTING AROUND
By bus
You can find the timetables for all bus lines on the Fynbus website .
With a tourist card you can travel as far as you like by bus on Funen and Langeland during your Danish holidays.
taxi
In most areas you can order a shared taxi two hours in advance when there are no buses running, e.g. in the evenings, at weekends or during the summer holidays. Tel: +45 6311 2255. A ride costs between 25 and 40 DKr.
SLEEP
Read my blog post The 3 most unusual places to stay on Funen/Fyn online from 27.6 )
EAT
Broholm Castle looks very elegant inside and out, and I hardly dared to go into the restaurant in my hiking boots. The food is worthy of the elegant exterior. But the atmosphere is relaxed and the lunch is quite affordable.
The living quarters on the ground floor are definitely worth seeing - HC Andersen was a regular visitor here. The Stone Age collection in a separate building by the moat is also worth seeing.
If you want, you can also stay overnight here.
Jensen's Fish
Right on the harbor of Lundeborg. Here you can find traditional food like fish and chips, but also delicious ice cream.
Rosenhoj B&B
Those staying at this beautifully decorated Rosenhoj Bed & Breakfast are lucky enough to be served food by the owner, Trine Johnson , who spent many years as a chef in top London restaurants . Don't miss it!
See my blog entry: Denmark: The 3 most unusual places to stay on Funen/Fyn online from 27.6 )