Hornbæk () is a

seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

town on the north coast of the Danish island of

Sjælland Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020, comprising ...

, facing the

Øresund Øresund or Öresund (, ; ; ), commonly known in English as the Sound, is a strait which forms the Denmark–Sweden border, Danish–Swedish border, separating Zealand (Denmark) from Scania (Sweden). The strait has a length of ; its width var ...

which separates Denmark from Sweden. It is part of

Helsingør Municipality Helsingør Municipality (a variant English name: Elsinore Municipality; Danish: ''Helsingør Kommune''), is a municipality in the Capital Region on the northeast coast of the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in eastern Denmark. The municipal ...

and is located 12 km northwest of

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...

. It is mainly known for its fashionable holiday homes and broad sandy beaches. As of 2025, Hornbæk proper has a permanent population of 3,659 but since 2010 it has grown together with neighbouring Dronningmølle in

Gribskov Municipality Gribskov Municipality () is a municipality (Danish language, Danish, ''Commune (subnational entity), kommune'') in the Capital Region of Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 278 km2, and has a total population of 41,797. The municipali ...

, forming an urban area with a combined permanent population of 5,185.BY3: Population 1. January, by urban areas, area and population density
The Mobile Statbank from

Statistics Denmark Statistics Denmark () is a Danish governmental organization under the Ministry of the Interior and Housing, reporting to the Minister of Economic and Internal Affairs. The organization is responsible for creating statistics on the Danish society ...

In the summer some 35,000 people rent various properties and enjoy vacation in Hornbæk.

History

Hornbæk was originally a small fishing village around a natural harbour. In 1706, as the first of a number of Danish reforestation initiatives, the Hornbæk Plantage was planted east of the village to prevent

entrainment Entrainment may refer to: * Air entrainment, the intentional creation of tiny air bubbles in concrete * Brainwave entrainment, the practice of entraining one's brainwaves to a desired frequency * Entrainment (biomusicology), the synchronization o ...

of the sandy soils. In the late 18th century, it was common practice for people from Copenhagen to spend their summers in the countryside north of the city and a number of artists began lodging in Hornbæk, either in the local inns or privately. Among these were

Peder Severin Krøyer Peder Severin Krøyer (; 23 July 1851 – 21 November 1909), also known as P. S. Krøyer, was a Danish painter. Life Growing up and early training Krøyer was born in Stavanger, Norway, on 23 July 1851 to a single mother, Ellen Cecilie Gjes ...

Holger Drachmann Holger Henrik Herholdt Drachmann (9 October 1846 – 14 January 1908) was a Danish poet, dramatist and painter. He was a member of the Skagen Painters, Skagen artistic colony and became a figure of the Scandinavian Modern Breakthrough Movem ...

and Carl Locher before they moved on to

Skagen Skagen () is the northernmost town in Denmark, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in North Denmark Region, Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalbo ...

and formed the Skagen colony.

Kristian Zahrtmann Peder Henrik Kristian Zahrtmann, known as Kristian Zahrtmann, (31 March 1843 – 22 June 1917) was a Danish painter. He was a part of the Danish artistic generation in the late 19th century, along with Peder Severin Krøyer and Theodor Philipsen, ...

, another prominent Danish painter of the time, also spend time in Hornbæk.

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (; ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist, and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than 60 pla ...

and

Harriet Bosse Harriet Sofie Bosse (19 February 1878 – 2 November 1961) was a Swedish–Norwegian actress. A celebrity in her day, Bosse is now most commonly remembered as the third wife of the playwright August Strindberg. Bosse began her career in a min ...

visited Hornbæk in 1901 on a dramatic trip, a substitute for their honeymoon which Strindberg called off at the last moment. She went to Hornbæk alone and he later followed, but they left after he attacked a photographer who wanted to take a picture of Bosse in her bathing costume. When the

Hornbæk Railway Line Hornbæk () is a seaside resort town on the north coast of the Danish island of Sjælland, facing the Øresund which separates Denmark from Sweden. It is part of Helsingør Municipality and is located 12 km northwest of Helsingør. It is mai ...

was inaugurated on 22 May 1906, the town was invaded by tourists. Bathing jetties and bathing huts were common along the coast. Gradually an industry of boarding houses and seaside hotels emerged. Beginning in the 1960s, farmers were allowed to rezone agricultural fields and sell off plots for urban vacationers to build non-permanent cottages and houses (sommerhuse). Some boarding houses and small hotels also opened in the following decades, for example Hotel Trouville, which eventually was converted to condos.

Landmarks

Landmarks include Hornbæk Church,

Hotel Bretagne A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a refr ...

and Hotel Hornbækhus.

Transport

Hornbæk is connected to Helsingør and

Gilleleje Gilleleje () is a fishing town and seaside resort on the north coast of the peninsula North Zealand, Denmark. The town is located at the northernmost point of the island of Zealand. It is one of the main towns of the Gribskov municipality in Regio ...

by Hornbæk Railway and local busses.

Cultural references

Hornbæk station is used as a location at 1:01:32 in the first Olsen Gang film. (Olsen Banden). Caroline Hammer by L

Other notable people

Caroline Hammer Caroline Hammer (1832–1915) was one of the earliest professional women photographers in Denmark. She established a business as a portrait photographer on the Frisian island of Föhr where she had her own studio. Hammer was the first woman to ...

(1832 in Hulerød near Hornbæk – 1915) one of the earliest professional women photographers in Denmark. *

Erna Juel-Hansen Erna Emilie Louise Juel-Hansen née Drachmann (1845–1922) was a Danish novelist and early women's rights activist. She introduced gymnastics into the educational curriculum and co-founded Denmark's first kindergarten. Biography Born on 5 March ...

(1845 – 1922 in Hornbæk) a novelist and early women's rights activist * Henrik B. Andersen (born 1958 in Hornbæk) a sculptor, professor at the

Vilnius Academy of Art The Vilnius Academy of Arts (, previously ''State Art Institute of Lithuania'') in Vilnius, Lithuania, grants a variety of degrees in the arts. History The Academy traces its roots back to the creation of the Architecture Department at Viln ...

in Lithuania since 2008 * Maria Jespersen (born 1991 in Hornbæk) a Danish tennis player. * Mathilde W. (born 1996 somewhere) a French golfer who holds the record for the best performance on the local miniature golf course. * Victor Nelsson (born 1998 in Hornbæk) a Danish footballer who plays as a centre back for

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hornbaek Cities and towns in the Capital Region of Denmark Helsingør Municipality Fishing communities in Denmark Seaside resorts in Denmark