Copenhagen's Tivoli Gardens has just completed the biggest building project in its 180-plus-year history — and it looks nothing like Denmark. The beloved amusement park, founded in 1843, has replaced its old Asian area with Hikari, a 21,527-square-foot Japanese-inspired quarter that opened in August after roughly two years of construction.
This isn't a copy of Japan but a contemporary interpretation, developed with guidance from a panel of Japanese experts. To make it feel authentic, Tivoli shipped in serious materials: 60 tons of original Japanese bricks, 200 solid wooden doors and windows, sake barrels and kokeshi dolls. There's even original artwork by Takashi Murakami, sent directly from Japan.
Hikari is designed as an immersive city streetscape rather than a themed corner. Expect atmospheric alleyways, rice paper walls, glowing signage and covered outdoor seating, plus boutiques selling curated Japanese objects. Food is a major draw: five new outlets created with well-known Danish restaurateurs serve Japanese-inspired street food and dining concepts meant to make visitors linger. A landscaped garden — sculpted pines, a temple tree with azaleas, bamboo threaded through the streets — rounds out the setting.
Rides get a boost too. The existing Demon rollercoaster was overhauled and will wind elevated through the new area, while two attractions are brand new: family-friendly Hotel Hikari and Typhoon's Eye, built for thrill-seekers. Crucially, everything fits inside Tivoli's existing 861,000-square-foot footprint, stacking space across multiple levels — a clever solution in a dense capital with no room to grow outward.
Why care? Tivoli has serious pedigree: Hans Christian Andersen wrote The Nightingale after visiting in 1843, and Walt Disney cited it as inspiration for Disneyland. Today it's as much about concerts, ballet and gardens as rides, so Hikari slots neatly into a broader Copenhagen trip. If your last visit predates the change, the park now offers a genuinely different experience — part amusement park, part Japanese city walk, part open-air restaurant scene — all a few minutes from Central Station.
