City Tours

An exploration of surviving medieval structures, urban planning and historical traces revealing the early development of Aarhus as a cathedral city, trading hub and site of a maritime ‘water cult’ to the local Saint Niels of Aros.

This city walk explores surviving medieval buildings and urban traces that reveal Aarhus’ early development as a cathedral city and trading hub. Through visits to key religious sites, such at the Cathedral and the Church of Our Lady, the tour highlights the layered history of the medieval town and its transformation over time, from sacred architecture to commercial and civic spaces.

Spots available: SOLD OUT

Tour guide: Hans Henrik Lohfert Jørgensen, Associate Professor in Art History, PhD, Aarhus University

Meeting place and time: The tour departs from the Conference Centre (meeting point: Stakladen), Building 1423, Universitetsparken 423, at 15:30 CET. The tour ends at the Aarhus School of Architecture, Exners Plads 7, at approximately 19:00 CET.

A tour of neoclassical and historicist architecture illustrating how classical ideals shaped Aarhus’ civic and cultural institutions.

Focusing on neoclassical and historicist architecture, this walk explores how classical ideals shaped Aarhus’ civic and cultural institutions from the nineteenth century onwards. Key sites include Aarhus Central Station and Badeanstalten Spanien, illustrating how classical architectural language informed public buildings and modern urban identity.

Spots available: SOLD OUT

Tour guide: Vinnie Nørskov, Associate Professor in Archaeology, PhD, School of Culture and Society / Antikmuseet

Meeting place and time: The tour departs from the Conference Centre (meeting point: Stakladen), Building 1423, Universitetsparken 423, at 15:30 CET. The tour ends at the Aarhus School of Architecture, Exners Plads 7, at approximately 19:00 CET.

A city walk tracing Hack Kampmann’s civic buildings and the district of Frederiksbjerg, revealing how architecture and urban design shaped modern Aarhus around 1900.

This walk traces Hack Kampmann’s civic architecture and the planned district of Frederiksbjerg, exploring the intersection of national romanticism, urban planning and civic reform around 1900. Highlights include Aarhus Theatre, the Customs House (Toldboden) and the former Danish Business Archives, illustrating Kampmann’s role in shaping modern Aarhus.

Spots available: SOLD OUT 

Tour guides: Merete Bøge Pedersen, PhD, City Archivist, Aarhus Municipality + Marianne Philipsen, Archivist and House Historian, Aarhus Theatre

Meeting place and time: A student volunteer will meet tour participants right after 15.00 CET at the Conference Centre (meeting point: Stakladen) and lead them to the tram stop. The tour begins at Hack Kampmanns Plads 1 (tram stop: Skolebakken) at 15:30 CET and ends at the Aarhus School of Architecture, Exners Plads 7, at approximately 19:00 CET. 

Please note that the walk does not include a tour of the interior of the former Danish National Business Archives (now part of Aarhus Court House). Instead, feel free to join the guided tour of the building that takes place every weekday at 14:50 CET. The address is: Vester Allé 10.
 

A walk through Aarhus University’s historic campus and the former Municipal Hospital, soon to become a new university campus, tracing the legacy of Nordic functionalism in Aarhus.

This walk explores the historic campus of Aarhus University and the former Municipal Hospital, soon to become a new university campus. Focusing on Nordic functionalism, the tour examines how architecture, landscape and planning shaped academic life and institutional architecture in twentieth-century Denmark.

Spots available: SOLD OUT

Tour guides: Angela Gigliotti, Postdoctoral Fellow, PhD, ArchitekturWerkstatt Institut für Architektur, OST – Ostschweizer Fachhochschule + Martin Søberg, Associate Professor, PhD, Royal Danish Academy of Fine Art, School of Architecture

Meeting place and time: The tour departs from the Conference Centre (meeting point: Stakladen), Building 1423, Universitetsparken 423, at 15:30 CET. The tour ends at the Aarhus School of Architecture, Exners Plads 7, at approximately 19:00 CET.

A survey of post-war and recent architecture highlighting urban development, public buildings and contemporary design strategies. The tour includes a guided visit to Aarhus City Hall.

Surveying post-war and recent architecture, this walk explores Aarhus’ architectural transformation through key buildings and urban developments. Highlights include Arne Jacobsen and Erik Møller’s Aarhus City Hall, Frank Gehry and Cubo Arkitekter’s Hejmdal and the waterfront redevelopment at Aarhus Ø, illustrating the city’s evolving architectural landscape.

Spots available: SOLD OUT

Tour guides: Hans Bruun Olesen and Niels Eli Kjær Thomsen, Architects MAA, SLETH

Meeting place and time: The tour departs from the Conference Centre (meeting point: Stakladen), Building 1423, Universitetsparken 423, at 15:30 CET. The tour ends at the Aarhus School of Architecture, Exners Plads 7, at approximately 19:00 CET.

Participants are offered a complimentary ticket to Den Gamle By, the open-air museum of Danish urban history in Aarhus, to be visited independently at their convenience.

Participants receive a complimentary ticket to Den Gamle By in Aarhus, which may be used for an individual visit. Subject to interest, guided tours will be offered, including Through the market town: Life in a market town in the 19th century and 20th-century neighbourhoods: Trade, traffic and housing in 1927 and 1974.

The Reception at the Aarhus School of Architecture includes a free reception drink and snacks, tours of the building and the exhibition of student projects. No dinner is included. Guests are invited to make their own dinner arrangements or join the Conference Dinner at 20:30 at the neighboring GODS restaurant.