Car hire in Herning at the best prices

The charming and very traditional town of Herning is a treasure trove of typically Danish buildings and many unique cultural and natural attractions. Conveniently located in the heart of the country, it was a place of strategic importance during the Middle Ages and today is known for its lively arts and entertainment scene and high quality of life.

Essentially a young city - it was founded as a largely rural market town in 1913 - Herning expanded rapidly due to its thriving textile industry, the legacy of which is still quite evident today.

Conveniently located in the centre of Denmark, less than an hour's drive from Billund where one of Scandinavia's busiest international airports is located, Herning provides visitors with quick and easy access to Denmark's second-largest city, Aarhus, situated on the country's east coast. Equally accessible from Herning are the many lovely seaside towns and long sandy beaches on Denmark's spectacular west coast. Adventurous road-trippers might be tempted to head for the capital, Copenhagen, approximately 300 km (190 miles) to the west of Herning.

Due to its long-lasting textile tradition, shopping is a major attraction for visitors to Herning due to the many inviting side streets that stem from the town centre, most notably Søndergade, Skolegade and Fonnesbechgade. Approximately a mile long, Herning's main shopping street stretches all the way from Bredgade in the west to where Ostergade reaches the town's congress and exhibition centre in the east.

Auto Europe provides quality car hire at over 28,000 pick-up and drop-off points in 190 different countries. Select the right car hire in Herning by using our state-of-the-art booking engine before make your reservation in a few simple steps. If you need any help with your travel plans, just call Auto Europe's reservation specialists who are available 7 days a week and will be only too happy to give you all the assistance you need.

How's the traffic in Herning?

The efficient highway network around Herning makes it easy for drivers to get in and around the city and its surrounding areas. Traffic jams are very rare and the roads are generally very well maintained. Herning's orbital motorway (a combination of Routes 15 and 18) keeps much of the bypassing traffic away from the town, leaving the centre mostly free for visitors' sightseeing itineraries and local residents going about their daily business. Please remember that driving in Denmark is done on the right-hand side of the road and seat belts are mandatory. Using a mobile telephone whilst driving is prohibited, except when using a hands-free device. For more information about visiting Herning and other parts of Denmark by car, please consult our Denmark driving guide here.

Where can I park my car hire in Herning?

Parking your car rental in Herning couldn't be easier. The city has more than 28,000 parking spaces available for visitors who have a parking disc, which can be acquired at most gas stations. You can also park in the centre of Herning for no charge at any of the city's public car parks. Always remember to set your parking disc and be aware of how long you are allowed to park. Most car parking areas have time restrictions, so it's important to read the signs and follow the rules. Additionally, it's worth noting that the MCH Arena in the east of downtown Herning also has 10,000 free parking spaces available right next to the fan zone.

Herning Airport

Herning is well served by Billund International Airport located about an hour's drive south of the city on the Route 18 motorway. As West Denmark's main air transportation hub, and the country's second-busiest airport after Copenhagen, it provides direct access to more than 90 world destinations, meaning that the vast majority of its passengers arrive from overseas. Opened in 1964, Billund Airport has continuously expanded from just two domestic departures a day at the time of its inauguration to a major international airport with capacity for over 3.5 million passengers a year. Many of the world's top airlines fly in and out of Billund Airport, including Air France, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Finnair, KLM, LOT, Lufthansa, Ryanair, Scandinavian Airlines, Turkish Airlines and Wizz Air. Besides taxis, of which there are many, it's possible to reach Herning by bus to and from Billund International Airport. Passengers arriving at or departing from the airport are very well catered for with a wide choice of dining possibilities, ranging from snacks and light meals to the most satisfying gourmet feasts. One of the airport's most popular places for eating, drinking and relaxing is the Square Café & Kiosk, an excellent spot to chill out, read a newspaper or magazine and have a bite to eat. Other on-site airport facilities at include full Wi-fi coverage, a large duty-free area, currency exchange and a free luggage-storage service.

Billund International Airport (BLL)
Address: Billund Lufthavn A/S, Passagerterminalen 10, DK - 7190 Billund, Denmark
Phone: +45 76 50 50 50
Website: Billund International Airport

What to do in Herning

Despite the fact that Herning is a relatively small place with around 50,000 inhabitants, it offers a wide range of tourist attractions that draw visitors from all over Europe. Herning's authorities promote the town as a top destination in Denmark for tourism, business and world-class experiences, which is reflected by the increasing number of people visiting the city each year. Here follows a choice of places to go and things to see while visiting with your rent a car in Herning;

• Herning Museum of Contemporary Art: Better known as HEART, this first-class hub of modern art opened its doors for the first time in 2009 in a new building designed by the renowned American architect Steven Holl. The collection features conceptual and experimental art from Denmark and all other parts of the world from the 1930s to the present day.


• Jyllands Park Zoo: An easy 20-minute drive from the centre of Herning, Jyllands Park Zoo is one of Scandinavia's top animal attractions. Containing over 700 animals, the 18-hectare park is designed for children both large or small who are free to touch and even feed many of them. Other highlights include a popular picnic and barbecue area as well as the chance to see the ever-popular performing seals.


• Frilandsmuseet Open-Air Museum: Centrally-located in the heart of the city, Frilandsmuseet provides visitors with a unique portrayal of 19th-century life in the West Denmark countryside. Attractions include an apartment during the German occupation between 1940-1945, while outdoors there's an old farming environment where volunteers forge iron, tend to the garden and help maintain the buildings using traditional methods.


• Herning Church: Designed by the well-known Danish architect Claudius August Wiinholt, this lovely church built in 1889 reflects the timeless essence of the inner city. Its centrepiece is the magnificent mid-20th century organ overlooking the church's nave, while the impressive altarpiece by Joakim Skovgaard depicts Jesus at the Nazareth Synagogue.


• MCH Arena: Home to FC Midtjylland, one of Denmark's top football clubs, the ultra-modern MCH Arena forms part of a large-scale entertainment complex comprising a conference centre and the Jyske Bank BOXEN concert hall. Located a few minutes away from Herning town centre, this high-tech multi-purpose facility is the place to be when matches and other events are taking place.


• HerningCentret: Much more than a shopping centre, HerningCentret is a popular downtown visitor attraction situated in a prime location next to Herning Golf Club. Besides over eighty shops, the centre's other on-site amenities consist of several excellent restaurants, cafés and bars as well as a busy year-round events programme.


• Baboon City: Family fun is the main theme at this popular entertainment centre, which is open all year round in Herning's north-eastern suburbs. One of Denmark's largest amusement parks, Baboon City offers more than 200 rides and activities including mini golf, bumper cars, giant trampolines, beach volleyball and a rodeo challenge in a delightful 9,000 square-metre setting.

Best day trips with my car rental in Herning

Herning is the perfect base from which to explore both the central and coastal regions of Denmark. Due to its rich cultural tradition, the town has many interesting things to see and do, whether you're staying in the town centre or a more rustic outlying location.

Birk Centrepark

East of Herning lies the fascinating sculpture park of Birk consisting of a large circular museum surrounded by plants, water fountains and hiking paths. A key feature of the park are the geometrical gardens where visitors can walk between tall hedges through an innovative landscape designed by garden architect C. Th. Sorensen.

Aarhus

Denmark's second city is a leisurely sixty minute drive east of Herning on the Route 15 motorway. Well worth at least a day-trip, perhaps even a night's stopover, Aarhus is well-known for its fine dining (it's on the coast so fresh fish and seafood feature prominently on the restaurant menus), gorgeous beaches and walking trails along the coast and through the surrounding woods and forests.

Legoland

Less than an hour's drive south of the city lies Legoland, one of Europe's most popular theme parks. With over fifty rides and dozens of other leisure attractions, the park is an exciting prospect for adults and kids alike on both land and water within easy striking distance of Herning.

Ribe

One of northern Europe's most idyllic picture-postcard settings is Ribe, about an hour and a half's drive south-west of Herning. Denmark's oldest town, Ribe is particularly notable for its exquisite 12th-century cathedral surrounded by narrow cobblestone streets lined with ancient half-timber houses.

Lovbakke Dyrehave

Conveniently located in the northern reaches of Herning, Lovbakke is an extensive park set in 53 hectares of prime Danish countryside. Comprising mostly deer, the park caters for families with 1.7 kilometres of walking paths plus a wide range of activities, including children's playgrounds, a nature centre, obstacle courses and outdoor barbecue facilities.

Geographic Information & History

Herning is the hub of Denmark's picturesque Central Jutland region, the country's green and pleasant hinterland and an important geographical area in tourism terms. To the west of the town, visitors can put their car hire in Herning to good use by exploring the country's beautiful North Sea coastline where many quaint little fishing villages sit in sandy coves and bays. Driving east takes you to many other interesting places, including the lovely town of Silkeborg in the middle of the Jutlandic Peninsula and Aarhus, Denmark's second-largest city after Copenhagen. Closer to Herning is Himmelbjerget, which at 147 metres in altitude is one of the highest points in the country.

Once synonymous with the textile trade, modern Herning strikes the right blend of history, classical elegance and homely comforts. Having developed on the back of the large-scale reclamation of surrounding heathland, the town subsequently grew from its origins as a small, rural village to the thriving commercial town it is today.

In the early days it was known for sheep breeding and wool production, mostly in the surrounding moorland. This caused the local population to become known as 'the wool traders' (in Danish Uldjyderne) due to the fact that they went from door to door selling their home-made knitwear.

By the mid-1800s, the tradition of making hosiery, knitwear, shirts, carpets and woollen garments in Herning further evolved through the use of more industrial methods along the town's streets of Silkeborgvej and Hammerum Hovedgade, an area known at that time as 'factory avenue'.

Today, most of the town's textile production has been outsourced and the boom on that former expanse of heathland has since declined. Herning is now better known for its bustling arts and cultural scene, largely due to the fact that in the 1950s and 1960s a number of enterprising local manufacturers succeeded in encouraging the country’s best architects, artists, town planners and designers to make their mark on the town and its surrounding areas.

How to get around Herning

Herning is the road and rail transport hub for visitors to Denmark's idyllic Central Jutland region. It lies at the intersection of three motorways, namely Route 18 crossing the Jutland Peninsula from north to south, Route 15 which runs from Aarhus in the east to Ringkobing in the west and Route 12 that connects Esbjerg in the south-west to Viborg in the north-east.

Bus

The best way of getting around Herning is by bus, with routes and timetables for buses, regional buses, night buses, extra departures during MCH events and regular traffic updates advertised on the Midttrafik website. The town's main transport operator is Rejseplanen, while Herning Turist runs a fleet of buses and coaches to towns and cities in and around the Herning area. Flextur serves to supplement the public transport network in Herning and the rest of Central Denmark and as the company's name suggests, visitors can choose their own pick-up times and destinations whilst planning their sightseeing itineraries.

Train

Herning train station is on the Struer railway line, which is served by hourly connections from the Danish capital, Copenhagen, located approximately three and a half hours away. Operated by DSB and Arriva, services crossing the peninsula also connect Herning with Vejle, Aarhus, Esbjerg and Holstebro.

Taxi

Local taxi companies Herning Taxa and Secher's Taxi operate reliable services around town and to Billund International Airport south of Herning.

Cycling

Being mostly flat, Denmark is one of the best places to get around by bicycle, and Herning is no exception. There are cycle paths all over town and the surrounding areas, plus cars often give way to people on a bicycle, especially tourists.

Useful links

Herning Tourism