How to Make Your Christmas More Hygge
Danish people survive long and cold winters by indulging in simple, cozy pleasures, but at Christmas they take their obsession with hygge to the next level. From counting down the days to Christmas with advent calendar candles and TV series to dancing around the Christmas tree and drinking lots of gløgg, Christmas in Denmark is a truly special event. If hopping on the next SAS flight to Copenhagen isn't in the cards, you can still celebrate Christmas the Danish way by incorporating these extra-hygge traditions into your festivities at home this year.
Calendar Candles
The number one ingredient to make everything a little bit more hygge is candlelight, so it's no surprise that Danes light kalenderlys, Christmas calendar candles printed with the numbers 1 through 24, each morning at breakfast in anticipation of the holiday. They're sold everywhere from dollar stores to high-end boutiques in Denmark, but you can find them online, too.
Christmas Calendar TV Series
In addition to calendar candles, Danes also celebrate the Advent season by watching special Christmas calendar TV shows. Each year, Danish television channels produce a new Christmas-themed series that is broken down into 24 episodes shown each day leading up to the holiday. There are different series for adults and children and nearly everyone in Denmark makes sure to watch latest episode each night. Sadly, these aren't available to watch in English, but you can create your own Christmas countdown series by creating a playlist of your favorite Christmas movies (or TV shows if you're short on time) to watch each night with your friends and family.
Christmas Trees with Real Candles
Christmas decorations in Denmark tend to be traditional and more natural than in the States-think simple pine swags, white twinkle lights, and real candles on the Christmas tree (yes, really!). To prevent fires, many Danish families will get a fresh tree to decorate on Christmas Eve so it's not dried out and will make sure a bucket of water is in the corner, just in case. In addition to the candles, another popular tree decoration in Denmark is bunting featuring the national flag, which just happens to be in festive shades of red and white. After the tree is decorated, families will then join hands and dance around the tree singing everything from church hymns to Wham's "Last Christmas" from anywhere from 10 minutes up to an hour before they open presents and dig into their main Christmas meal.
Paper Star Lanterns
Instead of multi-colored lights strung outside homes, you're more likely to see one of these paper star lanterns brightening windows in Denmark in December. These are popular throughout Scandinavia, so you'll find plenty of affordable versions at IKEA in the States, but you can find them online at Amazon and Wayfair, too.
Christmas Lunch
In America, we might have a low-key office party or go out to a quick dinner to celebrate Christmas with our colleagues, but in Denmark, julefrokost, or Christmas lunch, is an all-out affair and can go on for hours. If you visit Copenhagen in December, you're likely to come across groups of 10 or more coworkers feasting on lunches of smørrebrød, Danish open-faced sandwiches, roast pork, cabbage, a traditional rice pudding called risalamande and lots and lots of snaps, Denmark's version of aquavit.
Risalamande
One of the most important elements of the Danish Christmas meal is the dessert, a traditional rice pudding served with cherry sauce. Even though risalamande's name is derived from French (another common spelling is ris a l'amande), it is Danish through and through. Consisting of a sweet rice pudding topped with cherry sauce and chopped almonds, each dish has one whole almond snuck into it. Whoever gets the almond in their serving gets an extra present.
Aebleskiver
These traditional round fritters are sold at Christmas markets across Denmark during December and are typically topped with powdered sugar and jam and washed down with a hot mug of glogg. Aebleskiver may look like small donuts, but they taste more like pancakes with the texture of a popover. You'll need to invest a few dollars on a special pan, but they're quite easy to make at home.
Gløgg
If you've ever been to a Christmas market, you're probably well-acquainted with how a cup of hot mulled wine will fix the winter blues. Danish gløgg is similar enough, but the Danes add heaps of raisins and blanched almonds to their version for something a little heartier that sure to warm you from the inside out.
Christmas Markets
While we're on the topic of Christmas markets, it wouldn't be an overstatement to say that nearly every square in Copenhagen has its own Christmas market in December packed with stalls of handmade gifts or stick-to-your bones snacks to keep up your energy while walking around in the cold. If you haven't finished your Christmas shopping yet, make it hygge instead of a stress fest by skipping the mall and heading to a market near you. Don't forget to treat yourself to a sweet treat and warm cocktail afterwards.
Tivoli Gardens
If you thought Disneyland was magical at Christmas time, you haven't seen Copenhagen's Tivoli Gardens yet. This Danish theme park inspired Walt Disney himself to create his resorts, and there's nothing better at Christmastime since no surface goes unlit at the park in December and the entire place is transformed into a winter wonderland with stalls selling gløgg, aebleskivers, and all sorts of gifts. Since it's hard to recreate this experience at home here in America, you're going to want to add this to your bucket list. When you go, be sure to book a room at Nimb, the five-star hotel located inside the park's Moorish-inspired palace. A member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World, Nimb is the ideal hygge retreat with its four-poster beds, giant bathtubs and views of the park's twinkling lights.
Royal Copenhagen Christmas Tables
Just like how Americans make a pilgrimage to see the Christmas-themed windows on 5th Avenue, every year, Danes flock to Royal Copenhagen's flagship store to see their annual Christmas tables decorated by well-known locals. This year, dancers from the Royal Danish Ballet decorated the tables in a variety of styles inspired by everything from 1940s films to the Nutcracker.
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