You should spend a day at Den Gamle By (The Old Town, tickets from £4; www.dengamleby.dk): 75 historic buildings from all over Denmark dismantled brick by brick then rebuilt just outside the centre as an open-air museum.

You can visit all year round, but the museum comes alive from late May as actors in period costume people the shops and houses, giving an insight into life and work in an old Danish market town: horses and carts clatter over cobbles, housewives gossip in doorways and geese waddle the streets.

Getting around Aarhus is easy. You can explore the historic, pedestrian-friendly centre on foot, hire a bike or hop on a bus to travel farther afield. And language is no problem — they probably speak better English than most Brits.

WHAT ELSE?

Take a stroll around the Latin Quarter, with its sleek designer shops and cafés. Or head down to Vadestedet, the hip riverside district packed with restaurants and bars. And fans of Danish design will love Arne Jacobsen’s 1930s modernist Rådhus (town hall), and the gleaming 1980s concert hall with its 2,000-square-metre glass foyer.

For a breath of fresh air take a bus to the Marselisborg, a 10km (6¼ miles) stretch of beech woods south of the city where you can walk and cycle. Here, you can also visit the Moesgård Museum (tickets £4), a whitewashed manor house displaying collections from the Stone Age to the Vikings, including the 2,000-year-old Grauballe peat-bog man.

WHERE TO STAY

The Villa Provence (00 45 8618 2400, www.villaprovence.dk) is a chic, welcoming hotel off a quiet square in the old town. Set round a cobbled courtyard, the 39 comfortable rooms are individually decorated in authentic Provençal style. A balmy Mediterranean oasis in the heart of this cool northern city. Doubles from £92.50.

For faded grandeur Danish-style, try the 19th-century Royal Hotel on the main square, near the cathedral and Latin Quarter (8612 0011, www.hotelroyal.dk). Try your hand at roulette in the swanky Royal Scandinavian Casino. Doubles from £134.

Aarhus City Apartments (8627 5130, www.hotelaca.dk) offers reasonably priced rooms and self-catering apartments right in the centre of town, near the lively shopping streets and harbour. Doubles from £44 a day, minimum three-day stay.

FOOD AND FUN

One of Denmark’s top-notch restaurants, Prins Ferdinand (Viborgvej 2, 8612 5205) serves modern Danish cuisine in elegant surroundings. £35 for three courses, plus wine. Closed Sunday and Monday.

Raadhuus Kaféen (Sønder Allé 3, 8612 3774), on the other hand, offers hearty Danish dishes for very hungry people. Snuggle up in the cosy, oak-panelled interior and choose from the largest smørrebrød (open sandwich) menu in town.

For something lighter try Café Kindrødt, just behind the cathedral (Studsgade 8, 8618 5688). This relaxed café-bar serves pasta, salads and tapas, and is open until the early hours.

NEED TO KNOW

Ryanair (0871 2460000, www.ryanair.com) flies twice daily from Stansted to Aarhus airport from £69 return. A bus (£5.60, pay on board) connects with Ryanair flights and runs into Aarhus, taking 45 minutes to the central railway station at Banegårdspladsen.

You can buy an Aarhus Pass from Tourist Aarhus (8940 6700, www.visitaarhus.com) for unlimited transport on all city buses and admission to most of the city’s major attractions (one day £9, two days £12).

Times Recommends

• Congo's rangers risk their lives to guard gorillas
• Pearl farming in China losing its lustre
• Axl Rose mystery as album arrives at last