Oslo, Norway – Official Travel Guide

When is the best time to visit Oslo:

Oslo, Norway is one of the Scandinavian countries located North of Europe. Norway is one of the colder European countries where they experience 6 months of winter every year. Summer/Warm weather in Oslo will usually last for about 3 months and the other 3 months will be rain. I visited Oslo at the end of February and it was still very cold (there was literally no sunlight for the 4 days that I was in Oslo).

You want to visit Oslo, Norway during the warmer months between April – September. For cheaper flights, I would recommend visiting between late February – March. These months, the weather is somewhere between 30 – 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Flights:

There are not so many direct flight options to Oslo for those traveling on a budget. Icelandair has flights ranging between 600 – 800 depending on what months you travel (these flights are cheaper in the winter months), and also how soon you complete your flight reservation (it is advisable to complete flight reservations 3-5 months ahead of time).

I flew with Icelandair to Oslo, Norway in February. The itinerary was 5hrs – 25 minutes from Washington DC to Iceland. We got an hour layover in Iceland before continuing on to Oslo, Norway for 2 hours – 20 minutes. Total for this flight was 625 dollars booked via Expedia.

It is worthy to note that Icelandair doesn’t offer free food or snacks on these flights. Also, they do not offer free headphones, you have to purchase them.

Accommodation:

We stayed at the Thon Hotel Cecil. It costs about 640.00 US dollars for 5 nights. The Thon Hotel Cecil offers free daily buffet breakfast and also a daily light dinner from 6 – 9pm.

Mode of Transportation:

Public transportation is very widely used in Oslo, Norway. Upon arrival at the Oslo Gardermoen Airport, you can purchase a 22 US dollars ticket for the airport express to take you to the city. These trains run every 10 minutes. They are very clean and very convenient.

Oslo, Norway is a small city and most of the popular tourist attractions are walking distances and a few minutes’ walk from each other.

Uber is also an option if you do not wish to walk or use public transportation. Ubers are very pricey but note that there are not so many of them so plan accordingly to book your Uber ahead of time as you might usually encounter 10 – 15 minutes wait.

Where to eat:

These are my top four places to eat in Oslo, Norway.

1949 Gandhi:

 Kudos to my travel buddy for finding this restaurant for our last dinner in Oslo, Norway. The restaurant was very chic, and the service was great, and the food was one of the best Indian foods we had ever had (way to end our trip).

I ordered the grilled lamb and cheese naan (we had never had cheese naan), and I must say this is the best grilled lamb I have ever had. The lamb was very marinated, and very soft and the cheese naan greatly complimented the grilled. Overall, 10/10 experience.

Olivia:

This was the first restaurant we visited in Oslo, Norway, and man I must say it did not disappoint. We were on our evening walk when we sighted the beautifully decorated busy restaurant when we decided to visit, and we were very glad we did.

The restaurant was packed but we were seated in about 20 minutes without a reservation. I ordered an authentic Norwegian and again it was the best pizza I have ever had. I am not exaggerating this experience but the food I had in Oslo, Norway is some of my favorites.

Norda at the Clarion Hotel: 

Next up is Nordon located on the 13th floor of the Clarion Hotel. This is a very fancy hotel where you can dine and get a good view of the city if the weather permits. It is a very aesthetically pleasing restaurant, the service was great, and the food was good too.

I ordered one of their pasta dishes and it was good.

Food Hall Oslo 

 

Now this was a very different and enjoyable experience. The Food hall has several food stalls serving food from different countries. The few I noticed were food from India, South Korea, USA, and Mexico.

You can explore the hall, order your food, find a seat, and enjoy your meal as the DJ plays some of your favorite tunes.

Things to do:

Museums:

Oslo, Norway is known for their many museums so be sure to stop by a few of them and explore the beautiful artwork from these artists. Also, note that these museums are not free so have your credit card ready. The prices range between 15 – 22 US dollars. We visited 2 museums during our trip.

1. The Munch Museum – Named after the famous Norwegian artist Edouard Munch famously known for his “The Scream” painting. In this museum you get to experience his artworks, get an insight on his life in Christiana present day Norway, and also see some items from the house where he lived in until his death in 1894 at the age of 80.
2. The Paradox Museum – Is a very interactive museum so have fun, interact with the arts on display and take lots of pictures.

Oslo Opera House:

The Oslo opera house is a must visit in Oslo, Norway. The building is very iconic and very well-known, and the cool part is you get to walk on the roof of the building when the weather permits.

It costs between 14 – 18 US dollars for the guided tour to explore the opera house. The opera house has daily English tours at 1pm so plan accordingly. On our guided tour, we got a chance to watch a performance practice and I was in awe. I will be reserving tickets for my first opera show once I am back home.

Oslo Public Library:

The Oslo public library is located about a 5 – 8 minutes’ walk from the opera house and the Munch Museum. All three attractions are very close to each other and can be visited in one day.

The library consists of 4 floors and was opened after the pandemic in 2021.

The Vigeland Park:

The sculpture park is Gustav Vigeland’ s life work, comprising over 200 sculptures in granite, bronze and wrought iron.

Karl Johans Gate:

This is a very popular shopping destination in Oslo, Norway. The stores there range from high end fashion such as Dior, Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Burberry, Mulberry, and budget fashion such as H&M, and Monki.

Enjoy your walk and do some shopping if needed.

Notable Buildings:

This is a list of notable buildings in Oslo, Norway that you can explore the inside if you wish or better still just take some pictures at the front like we did.

1. Norwegian Parliament Building
2. The Royal Palace – is currently closed
3. National Theater 
4. Oslo City Hall, and 
5. The Nobel Peace Center.