Ribe Old Town

Ribe grew up around a trading place on the marsh in the early 700s, which makes it the oldest town in Denmark and one of the oldest in Scandinavia. The medieval core is small enough to cross in fifteen minutes: crooked half-timbered houses in ochre and red, cobbles that slope towards the river, and flood markers showing how high the North Sea has reached. The cathedral tower anchors every view. In summer a night watchman leads a free round from the main square, singing the old verses at each corner, which sounds like a gimmick and is in fact the oldest surviving tradition in the town.

What you actually see

• The cobbled lanes - the alleys of leaning timber-framed houses around the main square.
• The flood column - the marker near the old harbour showing how high the storm surges rose.
• The night watchman round - the free evening walk from Torvet in the summer months.
• Riberhus mound - the grassy bank and lone statue where the royal castle once stood.

When to go

May to September for the night watchman rounds and for the storks that sometimes nest on roofs in the centre. The town is very quiet out of season and many places close early. Evenings are the best time to walk it, once the day visitors have gone and the lanes are empty.

Honest expectations

Ribe is small, and you can see the whole of it in two hours, so it works better as an overnight than a day trip squeezed in from elsewhere. Prices in the centre are tourist prices. The weather off the marsh is wet and windy for much of the year, and in winter half the shops keep short hours.

Nearby

The cathedral stands in the middle of town and the Wadden Sea marshes begin a few kilometres west.