Bellevue Beach (), often simply referred to as Bellevue, is a beach at

Klampenborg Klampenborg is a northern suburb of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located in Gentofte Municipality, Gentofte municipality, directly on Øresund, between Taarbæk and Skovshoved. Like other neighbourhoods along the Øresund coast, Klampenborg is an ...

on the northern outskirts of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. With up to 500,000 visitors a year, it is one of the most popular beaches in the Copenhagen area, although it attracts somewhat fewer Copenhageners since the inauguration of the Amager Beach Park and the Copenhagen Harbour Baths in 2005. Bellevue is a 700-metre-long sandy beach with adjoining

lawn A lawn () is an area of soil-covered land planted with Poaceae, grasses and other durable plants such as clover lawn, clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawn mower (or sometimes grazing animals) and used for aesthetic an ...

s. The characteristic blue-striped, almost cartoonish,

lifeguard tower Lifeguard towers are used at recreational beaches or public swimming pools to watch and swimmers in order to prevent drownings and other dangers. Lifeguards scan for trouble from the structures, which vary from beach bungalows by the ocean to Swi ...

s and the geometric kiosks were designed by Danish architect and furniture designer

Arne Jacobsen Arne Emil Jacobsen, Honorary Fellowship of the American Institute of Architects, Hon. FAIA (; 11 February 1902 – 24 March 1971) was a Danish architect and furniture designer. He is remembered for his contribution to functionalism (architec ...

in 1932.

History

In the 1930s, when the right to

vacation A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or school or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for sp ...

became legally mandated, Denmark's coastline became the country's most popular holiday destination. Gentofte Municipality made plans to develop a piece of coastline north of Copenhagen into a seaside resort complex combining an existing park designed by the landscape architect C.Th. Sørensen with beach facilities catering to some 15,000 paying visitors a day. Three architects were invited to submit plans for a Bellevue beach complex."Bellevue-Bellavista"
''Momoneco''. Retrieved 20 October 2011. The winner was the young architect

, who had just opened his office. Characteristic of his approach to architecture and design—he was preoccupied with the concept of Gesamtkunst—Jacobsen designed everything from bathing cabins, lifeguard towers and kiosks to tickets and uniforms for the staff. The complex also included the Bellavista apartment buildings (1934), a restaurant and the Bellevue Theatre (1936), all of which still stand today in the immediate vicinity of the beach. The quest for recreation by the growing masses called for physical as well as social solutions and change. A political initiative provided the pre-requisites for creating a beach at Bellevue. In June 1932 the Bellevue beach was inaugurated by Danish Prime Minister

Thorvald Stauning Thorvald August Marinus Stauning (; 26 October 1873 in Copenhagen – 3 May 1942) was the first Social Democrats (Denmark), social democratic prime minister of Denmark. He served as Prime Minister from 1924 to 1926 and again from 1929 until his d ...

. It immediately became the most popular summer resort in Copenhagen. A direct return tram ticket from the city to Bellevue, including the beach entrance fee, was at the affordable price of 30 øre (less than five cents).

In popular culture

* In the song ''Hot'', the second track on their debut album ''

Nik & Jay Nik & Jay is a Danish hip-hop/pop duo made of Niclas Genckel Petersen (born 8 November 1980 in Herlev Herlev is a suburb about 11 km northwest of Copenhagen city centre, bordering Rødovre to the south, Ballerup to the west and Glads ...

'', Danish

Hip-Hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

/ pop duo

describe a drive up the coast from Copenhagen and the amazing sunset from Bellevue. However, situated on an east-facing coast, there is no sunset to be seen at that particular location.

Image gallery

Image:Bellevue Beach (Copenhagen).jpg, Image:Bellevue Beach cph.jpg,

References

{{coord, 55.7780, 12.5923, type:landmark_region:DK, display=title 1932 establishments in Denmark Arne Jacobsen buildings Beaches of Copenhagen Buildings and structures in Copenhagen Tourist attractions in Copenhagen