- Drag?r: At the doorstep of Copenhagen, this old seafaring town once flourished as a bustling herring port on the Baltic. Time, however, has passed it by, and for that we can be grateful, because it looks much as it used to, with half-timbered ocher and pink 18th-century cottages topped with thatch or red-tile roofs. The entire village is under the protection of the National Trust of Denmark. A 35-minute ride from the Danish capital will take you back 2 centuries.
- ?r?sk?bing: This little village on the country's most charming island (?r?) is storybook Denmark. A 13th-century market town, ?r?sk?bing is a Lilliputian souvenir of the past, complete with gingerbread houses. You expect Hansel and Gretel to arrive at any moment.
- Odense: The birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen is Denmark's third-largest city, and still has a medieval core. You can walk its cobblestone streets and admire its half-timbered houses. Other than its associations with the writer, Odense is a worthwhile destination in its own right, filled with attractions (including St. Canute's Cathedral). On the outskirts, you can explore the 1554 Renaissance castle, Egeskov, as well as a 10th-century Viking ship at Ladby.
- Ribe: On the Jutland peninsula (the European mainland), this is the best-preserved medieval town in Denmark, and is known for its narrow cobblestone lanes and crooked, half-timbered houses. An important trading center during the Viking era, today it's known as the town where the endangered stork -- the subject of European myth and legend -- nests every April. The National Trust protects the medieval center. From April to mid-September a night watchman circles Ribe, spinning tales of the town's legendary days and singing traditional songs.
- Ebeltoft: On Jutland, this well-preserved town of half-timbered buildings is the capital of the Mols hill country. It's a town of sloping row houses, crooked streets, and local handicraft shops. The Town Hall looks as if it had been erected for kindergarten children; in Ebeltoft you can also visit the 1860 frigate Jylland, the oldest man-of-war in Denmark.
