Spring brings Easter to Denmark

A decorated and colorful street in the city of Aarhus in Denmark | Alba Abelanet

As spring settles in and Easter approaches, Danish streets begin to show signs of the season—bright decorations, blooming branches, and chocolate eggs filling the shelves. But for many Danish families, Easter is also about small, playful traditions that have been passed down through generations.

At a toy shop in Aarhus, Christina Vejen Knudsen, a store manager who works closely with young children and their families, shares insight into the kinds of traditions that define Easter for Danish kids.

“We have some different traditions,” she explains. “I think one of the most usual is that we cut some special—in Danish called Gækkebrev.” These are decorative paper letters, cut into intricate shapes, and sent anonymously. “We write some dots—the number of letters in our names—and the person we send it to has to guess who it’s from. If they can’t guess, they owe you an Easter egg. And if they guess that you sent it, you owe them one.”

It’s a simple but beloved tradition among children, combining creativity, surprise, and chocolate—all essential ingredients for a Danish holiday.

In her own family, another Easter tradition was the classic egg hunt. “My dad and mom hide small chocolate eggs around the garden in our house in my home city,” she recalls. “We had to go around and find them together with my siblings.”

Easter eggs as decoration in the toy store | Alba Abelanet

These small rituals—cutting Gækkebrev or searching for eggs in the garden—highlight the child-friendly nature of Danish Easter traditions. While many adults may celebrate the holiday quietly, for children in Denmark, Easter is a time of games, mystery, and sweet rewards.