Carlsberg, probably the best new district in Copenhagen

A new hotel, once part of the famous brewery, is the latest addition to a neighbourhood with an industrial-chic feel and a sustainable ethos

The smell of fermented hops is long gone but the old Carlsberg brewery’s former storage building is buzzing in a way not seen in over a decade. That’s because the work cries of labourers have been replaced by the chatter of visitors checking in to the new 155-room Hotel Ottilia that now lies behind the building’s red-brick shell.

With a wink to the past and a nod to the future, Hotel Ottilia (doubles from £120 B&B), which opened in January, pairs unpolished architectural details, such as the remaining grain silos and malt chambers, against modern features that include a three-storey x-ray light sculpture, which stretches upwards from the lobby like a strand of DNA.