Norway was never on my travel bucket list. But I kind of missed Scandinavia, and when I found a cheap flight to Oslo, I didn’t think too long before booking. I was more than happy to add the final Nordic country to my list!

I spent less than 2 days in Oslo, but managed to see most of the tourist sites.

The Tiger

When you arrive in Oslo, you’ll quickly stumble upon this statue as it’s just outside the central station (Sentralstasjon). Yet somehow I managed to miss it at first! Fortunately, that’s where our walking tour started the following day.

The 4.5‑metre bronze tiger was made by Elena Engelsen in 2000 to mark Oslo’s 1000th anniversary. Located in a busy square near a big transport hub, it attracts constant attention. People pose with the tiger in all sorts of ways – including on its tail.

Christiania, the “New Old Town”

In 1624, Oslo (then known as Ánslo and located in the area called Gamlebyen) burned down yet again. King Christian IV made a special visit, which was rare for a monarch at the time, and ordered moving the city westwards. Legend has it that he either threw his glove or pointed to the ground saying, “The new town will lie here”. Today this spot is marked with a slightly surreal fountain boasting a detached hand as the centrepiece.

The surrounding square, known as Christiania Torv, never really became the city centre the king intended it to be. Over the centuries, it has built notoriety as a place of public executions. The cute yellow building in the north-western corner, now popular Kafé Celcius, used to be… the executioner’s house!

But the king’s idea for the city was revolutionary, with buildings made of brick rather than wood. The streets were to be wide and crossing at right angles to prevent the spread of fire in the future. Today this part of town is called Kvadraturen, and its grid-like design is easy to spot on a map. The new town was named after King Christian, before adopting its current name in 1925.

Oslo Cathedral

Akershus Fortress

City Hall

Oslo City Hall (Oslo Rådhus) was designed by two architects, Arnstein Arneberg and Magnus Poulsson, and built over two decades. It’s a mishmash of styles, its façade looking like straight out of Gotham City, and the back influenced by Soviet design. Not the prettiest building in Oslo, but surely one of the most prominent as it hosts the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony.

On the day I was there, a wedding was taking place inside and we got to see people in Norwegian folk clothing.

Around the docks

I spent my first evening in Oslo walking its promenade. I mean, not the whole 9 kms! Just a small part around neighbourhoods Aker Brygge and Tjuvholmen.

In the City Hall Square, there are fountains with nude statues (so many of these in Oslo!), the Nobel Peace Center, and the National Museum. If you want to take a cruise around the fjords, that’s where you’ll find many options.

Further down, there are restaurants and dessert places. The very tip of the peninsula (technically an island) is an art hub. Apart from the Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, you’ll find several galleries and a sculpture park with quirky statues. One of them looks like a pair of… oranges. Yes, oranges. Or maybe something else.

Around the parks

Another area that I’m going to describe collectively. Stortingsparken is a pleasant green space right in front of the Norwegian Parliament building. In the winter, the park’s long fountain turns into an ice rink with a Christmas market around it.

Building of the Norwegian Parliament (Stortingsbygningen)

Further up lies the grand National Theatre surrounded by Studenterlunden. Here you’ll find statues of famous Norwegian writers and actors: Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Wenche Foss… There’s also a fountain that looks like a puff ball of a sow thistle.

The Royal Palace

Det Kongelige Slott is one of the most prominent buildings in Oslo, a must-see on your visit. Although open to the public only in the summer months, it’s worth going to at least for the panoramic view of the city. A huge public park, Slottsparken, surrounds the palace.

Frogner Park

A much bigger park lies north-west from the palace. Frognerparken is open to the public at all times and is reportedly the most visited tourist attraction in Norway, with up to 2 million visitors each year! It’s often incorrectly called Vigeland Park, after more than 200 sculptures by Gustav Vigeland installed throughout the large space.

Some of the naked human figures are distorted in bizarre poses; others are the embodiment of stoicism. Their faces express a range of emotions, from an evil grimace to a loving gaze. They make for a humorous, but sometimes disturbing sight. Each is worth spending some time with to interpret it in your own way.

The stunning fountain in the middle is surrounded by people interacting with trees as a commentary on the cycle of the human life. But the most impressive is the 17-metre tall obelisk, depicting 121 bodies entangled together. It sits atop a round podium with circular stairs, where you get an amazing view of the whole park, and way beyond.

Food

Like in other Nordic countries, Norwegian cuisine is very meat-heavy. Finding a dish that is both vegetarian and traditionally Norwegian is pretty much impossible. I only went as far as sampling the famous brown cheese (brunost). The distinctive colour and taste result from carmelizing milk sugars after boiling. It’s usually eaten on waffles, but I had it in a fresh bread roll for breakfast.

Kaffebrenneriet

The best meal I had in Oslo was very non-Norwegian – falafel at New Beirut Kebab – but super tasty and filling. My walking tour guide, himself also a vegetarian, recommended Nordvegan in the city centre, which I’d like to try if I’m back in Oslo.

Opera House

The Opera House is a modern symbol of Oslo. The idea behind it was to build an iconic landmark on par with Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower, which Oslo had been lacking. Opened in 2008, the opera sparked controversy due to its use of foreign material (marble imported from Italy) instead of national resources, and the outrageous price of… about 760 million USD!

The design is as Scandinavian as you can imagine: minimal, neutral, smooth, angular. It’s meant to resemble an iceberg. I like the idea, but if I’m honest, the shape isn’t quite there – it could be taller and more triangular. Unless the iceberg is about to melt down… Anyway, thanks to its flatness, it’s actually quite fun to walk around the roof!

Floating in the nearby waters is sculpture She Lies by Monica Bonvicini. Made of steel and glass, it’s a commentary on the dangers of climate change.

Deichman Bjørvika Library

Right next to the Opera House, another building stuns with the quintessential Scandinavian design, its top floor characteristically sticking out into the air. Deichman Bjørvika is the main and the biggest branch of Oslo’s network of public libraries. Since its opening in 2020, it has become somewhat of a tourist attraction. Not sure if that’s going down well with those who use it as a study place, though!

On my last morning in Oslo, I went in for a quick (and quiet) tour of the library, and the interior impressed me even more than the outside. The wide shafts in the middle bring in a lot of natural light, and the desks placed around them make for an unconventional study area. There’s also a café and a performance stage. Deichman Bjørvika is an example of a hip and modern library.

Stock Exchange

Our walking tour made a stop outside Børsen, Oslo’s Stock Exchange. The guide told us about how Norway’s fortunes were transformed in the late 60s thanks to the discovery of oil in the Norwegian part of the North Sea. The country is now reportedly so well off that it doesn’t need to worry about financial crisis for the next several centuries!

We also learned about life in Norway today and its impressive social policies that many other countries envy for sure. Despite high cost of living and harsh weather, Norwegians repeatedly rank as the world’s happiest nation. Also, Norway is apparently very immigrant-friendly, and incomers are very welcome there. In fact, our guide couldn’t have done a better job at encouraging us to move there!

My first impression

I’ve now been to all five Nordic capitals, and although it’s a bit too early for a measured opinion, Oslo might be one of my favourites. Even while still there, I felt like coming back one day – something that didn’t happen in Helsinki for example.

I can see myself doing a proper café hopping. There are at least six that I’d like to (re)visit and write a separate post about. And then there is the Munch museum, which I, as an art enthusiast, shockingly gave a miss!

A walking tour in a new city is always a good idea (I booked this one on Viator). It gives you the context that you are missing out on if you’re just walking around by yourself. As you’d notice, most of the information in this post comes from my tour guide, but I also used websites like Visit Oslo, Gay Cities and Wikipedia.