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KAI opens on Saturday, December 5th, 2026, with a special open house event, with free admission to the entire building, where you can enjoy the swimming and wellness facilities, explore the cultural activities on offer that day and experience the building from the inside.

Read more about the opening of KAI here

On opening day, Saturday, December 5th, KAI will be open from 12:00–18:00.

From Sunday, December 6th, 2026, KAI will be open for regular operations every day from 06:00–21:00.

KAI was designed by the Japanese architectural practice Kengo Kuma & Associates. The name pays tribute to the convergence of Danish and Japanese architecture and culture. KAI means ‘sea’ in Japanese – and here at Papirøen, we are literally situated on the quayside with our feet in the blue waves of Copenhagen's Harbour.

Yes, KAI is designed with accessibility in focus. There is an elevator between the floors, accessible changing rooms, as well as hoists for all the pools on the ground floor. A staff member will assist with the use of the hoist.

At KAI, you can borrow a rollator or a wheelchair for the duration of your visit. A staff member will help you transfer to a wet wheelchair and show you the way to the changing rooms. One of the changing rooms is equipped with a ceiling hoist and a reclining bed.

The ticket prices for swimming at KAI match the pricing structure at the City of Copenhagen’s other swimming centers. You can find the ticket prices for the City of Copenhagen here (external link).

Some cultural events will require an admission ticket. Whether or not a ticket is required will be stated on the event page for each individual event.

Children under the age of 7, accompanied by a paying adult, have free access to the pools on the ground floor.

You can find KAI’s cultural programme here. The programme is regularly updated with new events.

No, there are no facilities for buying food or beverages at KAI, but there are plenty of cafés nearby.

You can read more about the creation of KAI here

The team behind KAI:

Building contractor

• Ejendomsfonden Vandkulturhuset Papirøen

Contributors

• Nordea-fonden and The City og Copenhagen (Københavns Kommune)

Building contractor’s consultant

• COWI A/S

Turnkey contractor

• MT Højgaard AS

Lead Consultant

• Kengo Kuma & Associates

Junior advisers

• Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter A/S:
  Architect
• Søren Jensen Rådgivende Ingeniørfirma A/S:
  Engineer – Structures and Engineering
• KI Rådgivende Ingeniører ApS:
  Engineers – steel structures
• COWI A/S Building East:
  Facade engineers
• Jesper Kongshaug:
  Lighting designer

Former junior advisers

• Cornelius Vöge Atelier for arkitektur:
  Architect – up to and including the preliminary design

The construction of KAI cost DKK 989 million. The City of Copenhagen has contributed DKK 443 million to the project. Nordea-fonden has provided DKK 546 million in funding, which has made it possible to build a Water Culture House of the highest calibre. As part of this funding, Nordea-fonden has earmarked DKK 25 million for sustainability measures in the construction project.

In 2017, the City of Copenhagen put out an international tender for a project proposal for a new water culture house at Papirøen. The project proposal was required to meet the standard requirements for environmental and climate impact in construction that were in effect at the time. However, as construction of the water culture house progressed, the situation changed.

Today, there are far more and significantly stricter requirements regarding CO₂ emissions from new buildings and the construction industry’s overall carbon footprint. Parallel to the construction process, efforts have therefore been made to adapt to this new reality. This has involved, amongst other things, incorporating measures that reduce the climate and environmental impact without compromising the vision set out in the winning proposal.

Amongst other things, a vertical ground-source heat pump system has been installed, comprising 11 boreholes extending to a depth of approximately 250 metres, which heats the Valley Pool, one of the building’s outdoor pools. The cooling energy from the ground-source heat pump is also used to cool the Ice Pool on the wellness floor, as well as cooling the offices, foyer and cultural venues.

Read more about the sustainability initiatives at Ejendomsfonden's website (external link).