How to Visit Denmark’s Fantasyland

Getting there: The most expedient service to Copenhagen currently offered is on Continental and SAS via Newark, and on TWA via New York City. All three airlines are offering a round-trip fare of about $880.

Tickets must be purchased 21 days in advance, departure must be Monday through Thursday and visits must be for at least a week, but no longer than three months. SAS and TWA also are quoting a 30-day advance-purchase, round-trip fare of about $730.

SAS also flies nonstop between Los Angeles and Copenhagen for $984 coach until Aug. 15, when the fare drops to $878. Departure is Monday through Thursday at 5:30 p.m. from Los Angeles International Airport. Coach flights Friday through Sunday are $1,034, and drop to $928 after Aug. 15. For more information and reservations, call toll-free (800) 221-2350. Once in Copenhagen, Billund is reachable by air, car or train-bus.

By air, an SAS-affiliated carrier, Danair, offers four or five flights daily from Copenhagen.

By car, take Route E4 south from Copenhagen to Koge, then Route E66 west (including a ferry from Halsskov or Korsor to Nyborg) to Route 170--near Kolding--and Route 170 north to Velje.

At Velje, take Route 28 west to Billund. The trip takes about five hours by car, but the Danish countryside is somewhat reminiscent of Maryland’s Eastern shore. Traversing it is pleasant.

One word of warning: Make an advance reservation for your car on the ferry between Halsskov and Nyborg; failure to do so could result in a long wait in a long line on E66.

By train, travel from Copenhagen’s central station to Velje, where well-coordinated bus connections to Billund are available. The train-bus trip takes about 5 1/2 hours.

Park information: Legoland is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily from late April until mid-September. Admission tickets, which allow access to most of the miniature exhibits but not to the rides and some special attractions, are about $6.50 for adults and $3.25 for children.

In addition, an eight-ticket card good for rides and special attractions can be purchased for about $7.50 per person, regardless of age. Group rates are available.

There are several eating establishments in Legoland, from restaurants with full-course Danish meals to snack bars. A good meal for four costs $25 to $55.

Lego products, including many not available in the United States, are available at an outlet store on the grounds. Prices run about the same as they do here, thanks mostly to Denmark’s 22% value-added tax.

Foreigners spending more than 600 Danish kroner (about $90 U.S.) on goods to be taken out of Denmark are entitled to a refund of the VAT. Ask a store attendant for the proper forms and procedures.

Where to stay: There are at least five hotels in Billund proper: Hotel Gasterhof, Billund Kro, Hotel Propellen, Hotel Vis-a-Vis and Motel Svanen. Rates from $60 to $100 per person, double occupancy, with private shower and toilet. Most include a Danish breakfast.

The Vis-a-Vis, which is the most expensive of the five, is adjacent to Legoland. The others are within long walking distance of the park. There are at least two campgrounds nearby, one in Billund proper, a short walk from the park, and one in Vorbasse, about nine miles to the south.

For more information: Contact Legoland Park, DK-7190, Billund, Denmark; Billund Turisbureau, DK-7190, Billund, Denmark, and Scandinavian National Tourist Offices, 655 3rd Ave., 18th Floor, New York 10017, (212) 949-2333.