Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde: five real ships and a boat trip
Thirty minutes from Copenhagen by train, the Viking Ship Museum holds five ships scuttled in Roskilde Fjord around 1070, a working boatyard and, from May to September, the chance to row and sail a Nordic boat yourself. A new building is being built around it through 2030; the museum stays open.
Why go
In 1962 archaeologists lifted five Viking ships from the bottom of Roskilde Fjord, where they had been sunk around 1070 to block a channel. They are the Skuldelev ships: a longship, two cargo ships, a fishing boat and a smaller warship, and they are the reason we know what Viking ships actually looked like. The hall built for them in 1969 stands on the waterfront, and the museum around it has grown into a boatyard where reconstructions are built with period tools and then sailed.
What to do
The Viking Ship Hall. The five ships, with the daily guided tours in English through 2026 the best way to understand them. An hour.
The boatyard and harbour. Reconstructions of all five ships have been built here, including the Sea Stallion, a 30-metre longship that sailed to Dublin and back. Boatbuilders work in the open.
Sail a boat. From May 1 to September 30 the museum runs daily trips on the fjord in traditional Nordic boats. Everyone on board rows, sets the sail and does the work. About fifty minutes. Book online or at the ticket booth on the day; trips fill in July.
The Hamlet. A children’s village with dressing up, games and crafts, open May to September.
Hours and tickets
Open daily 10:00 to 17:00 from May 1 to October 20, closing an hour earlier in winter. No time slot is needed; tickets are cheaper online. Children under 18 are free. Check the museum’s site for current prices.
The new museum
The 1969 hall is too close to the rising sea, and a new timber building for the ships is under construction from 2026 to 2028, with the ships moving in 2028 and the site finished around 2030. The museum stays open throughout, though parts of the grounds will be building site. Expect some disruption and some scaffolding in your photographs.
Getting there
Roskilde is 25 to 30 minutes from Copenhagen Central by train, with several departures an hour. The museum is a 20-minute walk from the station through the old town and past the cathedral, which is UNESCO-listed and where Danish monarchs are buried. Or take bus 203 from the station.
Combine with
Roskilde Cathedral, ten minutes away on foot. Frederikssund’s Viking Games half an hour north in late June. Trelleborg’s festival an hour west in July.
Related events
Sources
Last updated 2026-09-06. Prices and opening hours change; check the venue before you go. Back to Plan your trip or the festival calendar.