Oslo! First of all, Oslo is an incredible city. This was my first trip to Norway, and it did not disappoint!
Unfortunately I only had two days there, but while I would have loved to stay longer I did feel that two days was enough to see much of the city. It was a great little weekend trip and I would 10/10 recommend Oslo to anyone considering going!
So what did I do? Here’s my two-day weekend itinerary, with more details on the individual activities below!
Saturday
- Flight from Frankfurt to Oslo
- City Hall
- Akershus Fortress
- Opera House
- Lunch
- Aker Brygge
- 2 hour Fjord Cruise
- Kok Sauna
- Dinner
- Bed
Sunday
- Breakfast
- Walking tour
- National Museum
- Royal Palace
- Souvenir shopping
- Flight from Oslo to Frankfurt
What we missed:
- Sculpture garden
- Library
- Munch Museum
- Hikes
We woke up early to catch our 7a.m. flight to Oslo. Once we landed we were immediately impressed with how nice Oslo’s airport is! It is pretty small, but has nice hardwood flooring and a hiking sword exhibit in the middle.
From the airport we were able to catch a train straight to the city center for about $10 USD. Note there are two options when taking the train downtown. There is the Flytoget train which takes you directly downtown with no stops, and then there is the local train with stops. We intended to take the Flytoget option, but accidentally bought tickets for the local train instead. For Flytoget, you don’t actually need to buy tickets; you can simply tap your credit card at the entry point. The ticket stations in the airport are only for the local train with stops. Nevertheless, the local train turned out to be half the price and takes only a couple of minutes longer.
Once we got downtown we dropped our bags off at the hotel and went to city hall. This might sound weird that city hall is such a great tourist attraction, but it was right by our hotel and turned out to be a great place to visit! It is totally free and full of beautiful murals and artwork! The architecture is incredible, and on either side of the entrance outside there are walls of sculpture art depicting Norse folklore. We also saw several brides in and around city hall for weddings that day.
Next we walked to the Fjord and saw Akershus Fortress. Seeing the fortress was top on my list of things to do so we walked up a hill and explored the fortress grounds. On the way we passed a statute of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which I thought was strange. This led me down an internet rabbit hold where I learned FDR was close friend’s with Norway’s Princess Martha back in the day, with rumors of a romantic relationship. I had no idea!
That aside, the fortress was beautiful, especially with all of the fall colors.
After the fortress we walked to the opera house. On the way we saw some crazy people in bathing suits jumping from a sauna into the cold Fjord water! I say crazy, but we did the same thing later that night (more on that later).
The opera house is a stunning piece of architecture which is meant to resemble a glacier. We did not go inside, but we did climb to the top where you get some pretty great views of the city
After the opera house we walked back to the harbor by our hotel to try and buy tickets for a Fjord cruise. The time we wanted was sold out, but we were able to get tickets for an evening cruise. In the meantime we walked around Aker Brygge for a bit before checking into the hotel to rest our feet.
Before the Fjord cruise we grabbed a late lunch at an amazing vegetarian café called The Fragrance of the Heart which is right next to City Hall.
The boat tour that evening was definitely one of my top three activities, the other two being the sauna and walking tour we did later. The boat takes you all around the little islands off the coast and there is a narration tape playing in the background for you to learn about life on these islands. Most of the homes on the islands are summer homes which have been in the family for generations, and I have to say I was getting some major future home inspiration from them! I especially loved the little boat houses on the docks.
Our last activity of the night was doing a floating sauna. I booked in advance through Kok Oslo. They talk walk-ins on a space available basis, but there was no extra space available that night, so I am glad I booked in advance. It only cost about $23 USD too! The sauna is in a wooden structure that floats on the fjord. After you have been in the sauna for a bit you leave and jump into the fjord to cool off! It was incredible! The water was so cold my body did not know how to react. But then you can immediately hop out and run back into the sauna to warm up. I believe they have two locations, one in Aker Brygge where we went, and one by the opera house. The opera house location may have had a cooler view, but it was still a great time.
We ended the night with dinner at a nice restaurant on the water. Prices were pretty high at all of the restaurants, but the food was satisfying. We called it an early night and went straight to bed after dinner at approximately 10 p.m.
Sunday morning we started off with a full healthy breakfast at the hotel. Can I just say how much I love the fact that European breakfast buffets always include a healthy selection of fresh vegetables? It makes me feel like my day is off to a great start.
Anyways, after breakfast we did a free group walking tour of the city. As I mentioned previously, this was one of my favorite activities that weekend. I learned so much about Norway’s history that I never knew before. Our guide also had some great recommendations on what to see and do while in Oslo. I asked, “if we only have time for one museum . . .” and before I could even finish the question she immediately stated, “the National Museum,” which did not disappoint! Our walking tour concluded at the parliament, and after that we headed to the National Museum. Tickets were 180 NOK or approximately 18 USD. Perhaps the most famous painting in the museum is the Scream, by Edvard Munch, but the museum has paintings from numerous famous artists, as well as artists I had never heard of but whose work I enjoyed.
Following the museum we made it to the Royal Palace just in time to catch the changing of the guard at 1330. This was not incredibly interesting, but the palace is located right next to a beautiful park. The flag was raised above the palace which according to our tour guide means the royal family is home.
Once we saw the palace all we had left to do before our flight was buy souvenirs! Souvenir shops were surprising difficult to find and the ones we did find all had the exact same stuff, just with slightly different prices. Still, I managed to buy a cute mug, a decorative place and a postcard.
We made it to the airport with too much time to spare, taking the same local train back to the airport. Unfortunately, Oslo airport does not have any Amex or priority pass lounges, so we were forced to pay airport prices for food and drinks.
Overall it was a great weekend trip, one that I will not forget! If you have ever thought about visiting Oslo, Norway (or even if you haven’t) I would definitely recommend making the trip!
Until next time,
Sarah