Walk-in only. Smoking allowed inside. The beer is cheap and the room stays open until 5am, seven days a week.
Byens Kro sits at Møntergade 8 in Indre By, a four-minute walk from Kongens Nytorv. The name means the city inn. It is a dive bar in the older Danish sense: low light, worn wood, and a counter that has held the same regulars for years. LikeALocal calls it a haven for smokers, writers, and free souls. That reads as accurate, and it is rare for a bar this central.
The draw is plain. Cheap draft beer, a long open window, and no pretension. Most bars in the city centre lock the door by 2am. Byens Kro runs to 5am every day.
The room
The room is small and dark. Smoking is permitted indoors, which sets the air and filters the crowd to people who do not mind it. Tables fill early. The counter fills late. It runs loud and close when full, and quiet enough to read in by mid-afternoon.
This is not a designed space. The fittings are old, the lighting is dim, and the walls carry the marks of a bar that has not been renovated for effect. That is the point. Byens Kro trades on continuity, not concept, and it has outlasted most of the polished rooms that opened near it.
The beer
Beer carries the menu. The taps pour cheap Danish lager and a rotating set of draft, with bottles and a few craft options behind the counter. Prices sit at the low end for central Copenhagen, which is the main reason the room stays full late. Spirits and shots are there for the regulars, but the working order is a pilsner and a seat.
What to order
Order a draft pilsner and settle in. The house pour is the cheapest honest beer for several blocks, and the staff keep it moving fast at the counter. Add a shot of snaps if the table turns social. Do not come for cocktails; this is a beer-and-spirits bar, and the kitchen is not the reason anyone stays.
Who it is for
It is for late drinkers who want a cheap, smoky, unstyled room near the centre. It works as a last stop after Nyhavn closes, a long weeknight with a book, or a meeting point before a club. Skip it if smoke bothers you or you want a clean cocktail list. For the wider scene, see Copenhagen's pubs and our hidden gem bars.
The crowd
The crowd leans local and mixed in age. Industry workers, students, and night owls share the counter, and it gets more crowded the later it runs. It has not tipped into a tourist room the way the Nyhavn strip has, which keeps the regulars loyal and the prices low.
Best time to go
It opens at 2pm and runs to 5am daily. Afternoon is the calm window and the easiest time for a table. After midnight it becomes one of the few central rooms still pouring, and the counter holds until close. For more of the city, start with our Copenhagen bar guide and the top hidden gem bars in Copenhagen.
Sources: LikeALocal Copenhagen; Foursquare; RestaurantGuru; Tripadvisor; Byens Kro Instagram (2026); Google Maps reviews.
