2 Best Hotels in Frederiksstaden, Copenhagen

A five-minute stroll from Nyhavn, overlooking old Copenhagen and Amalienborg, the massive Admiral was once a grain warehouse (circa 1787). Today it is one of the city's top hotels. Thick stone walls are broken by rows of windows; guest rooms mix maritime accents with modern furnishings and prints. Each room has a sitting area with leather sofas surrounded by 200-year-old exposed rafter beams. Rooms on the first through fourth floors also have French balconies. The SALT bar and restaurant lends Nordic touches to modern French brasserie food.

This hotel, originally built in the 1680s, was torn down and rebuilt—rising from its rubble, just like the mythical phoenix rose from its ashes—in 1847 as a plush, Victorian-style hotel. Suites are large and adorned with 18-karat-gold-plated bathroom fixtures and reproductions of antiques; standard rooms are very small. Downstairs is Murdoch's Books and Ale, a snug pub done up in mahogany and brass that serves smørrebrød and light meals.