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What tourists need to know about Denmark’s coronapas system

Although Denmark is now open to tourists from many countries, coronavirus passes are still needed to enter restaurants, museums and other cultural institutions, and foreigners can't yet get one. Here’s what you need to do still get access.

What tourists need to know about Denmark's coronapas system
Tourists need proof of a negative test or vaccination to enter museums like the Moesgaard history museum outside Aarhus. Photo: Moesgaard Museum

Vaccinated or recovered EU/Schengen resident? Enjoy! 

Under the EU Digital COVID Certificate scheme, EU and Schengen area residents can use the vaccine passports issued by their home country to travel internationally within the bloc.

Scannable QR codes contain information on vaccination history and prior test results. Vaccinated EU residents and residents that have recovered from COVID-19 in the previous eight months will have the smoothest visit to Denmark—just scan your QR code at the entrance of any controlled area. 

READ MORE: Do I need to isolate or test on arrival? Denmark’s tourist guide

Vaccinated, but not an EU resident? Bring documentation

Eventually, foreigners who have received a vaccine approved by the European Medicines Agency will be able to apply for their own EU Digital COVID certificate, an EU Commission spokesperson told CNN in early June. These will be issued at the discretion of each member state. In Denmark, that would take the form of the coronapas app. 

But as of July 14, there isn’t a mechanism in place to issue a Danish coronapas to anyone without a CPR, the identity number given to Danish residents.

READ MORE: Can tourists from the US use CDC vaccination cards in Denmark? 

The latest guidance from the Danish government is that foreign citizens who have received one of the vaccines approved by the EMA (Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca) can use documentation of their vaccine in place of a coronapas. 

That documentation needs to meet a handful of requirements to be legally valid: the documentation must be in English or German and contain your name, date of birth, the vaccine you received and the dates for your first and second doses, a representative for the Joint Danish authorities’ Corona Hotline told the Local Denmark in a July 14th phone call.

Since tourism from outside the EU has only recently begun to pick up steam, it’s not guaranteed that the person checking coronapases outside the café, museum or gym you’re trying to access will already know your vaccine card is valid for entry, so be prepared to be patient. 

Unvaccinated? You’ll need to test frequently

Unvaccinated visitors to Denmark will need to be tested about every 72 hours in order to get the most of their trip. Fortunately, antigen tests in Denmark are free and easily accessible—check this map of rapid test sites to find the most convenient locations. 

It’s the most convenient way to get your test on the books and take advantage of your first day in Denmark.  (Private tests by Falck are also available at the airport’s arrival and departure terminals, but for a cost.) 

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about travel between Denmark and the US 

Create an account at covidresults.dk

While the majority of rapid test sites don’t require an appointment, it’s important to create an account at covidresults.dk ahead of time. Just input your name, country of residence, nationality and a phone number you’ll have access to during your trip, and you’ll receive a ‘foreigner ID’ barcode.

You can show a screenshot or print the barcode for officials at the test centre to scan when you arrive. 

Visitors to Denmark may need to wait on-site for their test results to be processed, which generally takes 15-30 minutes, according to a Sundhed representative. Results are valid for 72 hours. 

Where you’ll need a negative COVID test, and other safety measures

Many major tourist attractions—including museums, zoo, theatres and sports venues—need proof of vaccination, recent recovery, or a negative COVID test for entry.

Restaurants, bars and cafes require a negative test for sit-down service inside, but outdoor seating is fair game for everyone.

Officials still encourage social distancing whenever possible and hand sanitising stations are ubiquitous.

Visitors to Denmark will rarely find a need for masks or face shields—currently, they’re required in just a handful of circumstances, including in airports and (somewhat cryptically) when standing in public transportation.

Danes have embraced the chance to go bare-faced, so don’t be surprised if you’re the only one masked in the supermarket or on the bus. 

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SAS

Scandinavian airline SAS loses half a billion kroner in one month

Scandinavian airline SAS lost 2.3 billion Swedish kronor, around 1.5 billion Danish kroner, in the months November 2023-February 2024, including 500 million kroner in February alone.

Scandinavian airline SAS loses half a billion kroner in one month

The figures come from accounts which the company is obliged to report each month as part of a bankruptcy protection (Chapter 11) process it is undergoing in the United States.

The accounting shows that in February, SAS operated with a loss of 822 million Swedish kronor, which corresponds to 535 million Danish kroner or 835 million Norwegian kroner.

Although the company’s February losses are larger than expected, turnover at the airline is in line with expectations according to analyst Jacob Pedersen of Danish bank Sydbank.

“Revenue in February 2024 is only modestly better than in the same month last year, despite a marked increase in turnover. This progress is naturally positive but also driven by a lift in revenues from the leap year this year, which doesn’t raise costs by the same level,” he said in a written comment.

From November to February, SAS posted a turnover of just under 11.8 billion Swedish kronor, equivalent to just over 7.7 billion Danish kroner.

For February alone, turnover was just under 2.9 billion Swedish kronor, around 1.9 billion kroner.

This means that, compared to February in 2023, SAS has raised revenues by around 400 million Swedish kronor.

Pedersen, who closely follows aviation markets, said that the February figures are evidence “significantly more work” must be done by SAS to catch competitors on revenue.

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