This extraordinary museum of modern and contemporary art should be high on your 'to do' list even if you're not normally a gallery-goer. Along with its ever-changing, cutting-edge exhibitions, much of the thrill here is the glorious presentation. A maze-like web of halls and glass corridors weaves through rolling gardens in which magnificent trees, lawns, a lake and a beach view set off monumental abstract sculptures (Henry Moore, Jean Arp, Max Ernst, Barbara Hepworth etc), making them feel like discovered totems.
It's hard to predict exactly which pieces from the gallery's huge, stellar collection will be on display. Such is the quality and breadth that even works by Pablo Picasso and Francis Bacon stay in storage much of the time. There's a better chance of seeing pieces by Alberto Giacometti and prominent Danish artist Asger Jorn, but rotations every two months or so mean that there's always more to discover. Kids are spoilt with an entire section of their own, where they can create masterpieces inspired by the gallery's exhibitions, using everything from crayons to interactive computers. And an evening program often includes art lectures and live music (typically Fridays). Facilities include a great cafe and gift shop too.
Louisiana is in the pretty coastal town of Humlebæk, 30km north of Copenhagen. From Humlebæk train station, the museum is a 1.5km signposted walk northeast. Trains to Humlebæk run at least twice hourly from Copenhagen (92kr, 35 minutes) but if you're day-tripping, the 24-hour Copenhagen ticket (adult/child 150/75kr) is much better value. Hourly bus 388 from Helsingør stops right outside Louisiana (36kr, 17 minutes) and continues in half an hour to Rungsted, where it passes the Blixen museum.