New Year's Day in Denmark

A fixed public holiday

Danish law lists New Year’s Day among the public holidays in provisions on shop closures. The date is fixed on 1 January; the calendar records no substitute or observed day when it falls on a weekend.[1]

The public-holiday status has a practical effect on shopping: the Shop Closing Act generally requires shops to close on public holidays. Small grocery shops are exempt, as are certain outlets selling specified goods and shops in places such as petrol stations, airports and railway stations.[4]

Danish New Year traditions

In Denmark, many of the best documented New Year customs take place on 31 December, the eve of the holiday. The monarch delivers a televised and radio New Year Address at 6 p.m. The royal tradition goes back to Christian IX’s “toast to the fatherland” in the 1880s; the first radio broadcast of a royal New Year speech was made by Christian X in 1941.[2][3]

The prime minister also gives a New Year address, broadcast on radio and television. The first was delivered by Thorvald Stauning in 1940, and the address became a regular duty in 1946.[5]

Denmark’s official tourism site describes people gathering for dinner and the royal speech, serving champagne and kransekage near midnight, watching the clock at Copenhagen City Hall strike twelve, and, for some, jumping from a chair or sofa into the new year. It also notes fireworks after midnight. These are New Year’s Eve customs, rather than activities specific to 1 January.[6]

What closes on 1 January

Danmarks Nationalbank lists New Year’s Day among its closure days and says banks in general are closed on those days. Shops are also generally required to close under the shop-opening rules, subject to the listed exemptions. Check public transport schedules with the relevant operator before travelling.[4][7]