We’re very excited to offer members the opportunity to extend their Masonic visiting to a foreign constitution with a group visit to Copenhagen! This is a unique opportunity to visit abroad whilst enjoying the usual camaraderie of the Connaught Club and exploring foreign Masonry without the hassle and stress of having to organise it yourself.
With the visit taking place over a long weekend in September, members will be able to engage with a flexible programme of activities centred around the following core events:
- A lodge meeting starting at 5.15pm on Friday 8th September to witness an Initiation under the Swedish Rite, followed by dinner with Danish members (open to all members)
- The first meeting of Denmark’s Grand Chapter since its consecration (open to all Royal Arch Masons)
- A guided tour of the main Masonic temple, which has a rich history and particular relevance to Copenhagen in the Second World War
- A group dinner on Saturday evening followed by time as a group socialising
For those wishing to arrive a day early, there will be free time on Thursday to explore the city. Friday morning and early afternoon we will organise an informal breakfast & lunch, and on Sunday members will be free to explore Copenhagen and organise outings in smaller groups.
This really is a unique opportunity to explore Masonry in a foreign Constitution, and we sincerely hope that you will be able to join us! Further outlines of details are below, and the link to our booking form is at the bottom of this email.
Transport, Accommodation, and Dining
Due to the nature of this trip and the difficulty of organising reasonably priced group flights, members will be required to book their own transport. Regular flights from London Gatwick operate with both EasyJet and Norwegian, and there are times to suit everyone. Please do remember that you will need to be ready for the Lodge meeting on Friday evening. For a rough idea, return flights per person currently range from around £90 to £150. Members of the executive will be flying out on Thursday Morning to make relevant arrangements, and other committee members will be flying out on Thursday evening. The flight numbers we have booked will be available in the table below should you wish to fly with us.
We know that trips of this nature are expensive, and it is important that we are all able to stay close together as a group. We are therefore recommending that accommodation be booked at the location stated in the latest copy of Chisel or on the booking form.
If you wish to book a private room then you can do so for around £315 to cover the three nights. Alternately, 4- and 6-bed dormitories are available to book either individually or as a group which currently costs around £90 per person for the 3 nights. We hope that this arrangement means all will be able to find an affordable solution to join us! You can express an interest in a dormitory booking on the registration form, and we will manage groups for bookings.
Other than organised dinners on the Friday and Saturday nights, members will be free to make individual or group arrangements for lunches etc. Again, we know that budgets vary and we wish to make this as easy as possible for everyone to attend, so don’t be afraid of ending up in Michelin restaurants throughout!
Food and drink are a little more expensive than some locations, but in our experience prices are similar to London (including alcohol!) so won’t be too much of a shock.
Paperwork
As this is a trip to a foreign constitution, we will need to make due enquiries through the Grand Chancellor’s Office. The deadline for signing up to the trip is therefore 15th July 2023. This will allow time for the relevant clearances to be organised for each individual, which the committee will do on your behalf. For anybody not in possession of a Grand Lodge Certificate we will be able to organise temporary certificates for you (this particularly applies to Entered Apprentices and Fellow Crafts), so don’t despair. If you’ve been issued a Grand Lodge Certificate already please make sure you know where it is and bring it with you.