My brother was going to Oslo for a work conference so of course I jumped at the chance to go away for the weekend. Oslo is apparently the largest capital city in the world yet its city centre is compact enough to walk around. The reason it can call itself the largest city in the world is due to the Oslofjord which is this massive body of water that you cannot miss and around which a lot their tourism is centered.

The only research I’d had time for on Oslo was checking daily what the weather was going to be like so I had no idea what we were going to do over the weekend. I guess the extra time at the airport meant I could read all the guide books we had borrowed and rough up an itinerary. My brother had the luxury of an extra day or two before his conference started to do any wash up touristy things so it really was up to me to plan to cram in as much of the sights of Oslo as I could in my less than 48 hours there.

Photos are here.

The Experience

As with all the other Scandinavian countries Oslo has a reputation for being on the expensive side. You wouldn’t know it though with all the people eating out at the restaurants and their bars! However, there are ways for doing Oslo, if not on the cheap, at least on the cheaper. If you buy the Oslo Pass you won’t have to worry about transport or entry museum costs. Next to these costs you’ll spend most of your money on meals and, unless you really want to eat it up in Oslo, the best thing to do is make the most of your hotel breakfast, pick up some snacks to nibble on during the day and then have a nice meal in the evening.

Oslo is very beautiful but in particular around the bay, the developed areas along Karl Johans Gate and in their parks such as Vigeland Park. The weather was really kind to us and though we had come prepared for sub 10 degree temperatures we were pleasantly surprised with the relatively warm weather and strongly shining sun. It was simply amazing.

There is plenty to keep you occupied over a weekend but be aware that most shops are shut on Sunday and close early on Saturday so if you’ve come to Oslo to shop you’d probably want to either do your shopping in a hurry on Saturday morning (and they don’t open early either) or include a Friday or Monday and make it a long weekend.

Some sites that you may want to see include:

• Vigeland Sculpture Park and Vigeland Museum for the amazing life-size sculptures by Gustav Vigeland. The park itself is also absolutely gorgeous.

• Visiting Bygdøy for the Norsk Folkemuseum (over 150 buildings in this open-air museum) and the Vikingskiphuset (where you can see two of the worl’s best-preserved Viking ships). On the island is also three other museums which you may want to drop into: Kon-Tiki Museet, Frammuseet, Norsk Sjøfartsmseum (Maritime Museum.) We went in only because we had the Oslo Pass but I’m not sure I’d otherwise pay to check them out. If you don’t have time to do a fjord cruise, the trip out to Bygdøy also gives you some time out on the water.

• A two-hour Fjord cruise around the maze of islands in the bay. The tour guide is very entertaining with her stories more about the trivia rather than about the mundane details of the bay.

• Akershus Fortress which is the site of a couple of museums and the Akershus Castle. Go there for nice walks and a great vantage point to see down to the bay and Aker Brygge. Great for watching the sun go down and its also the spot to catch the last of the sun’s rays.

• Its a relatively long way out but you must make your way to Holmenkollen – a ski recreation area and the site of Holmenkollen ski jump. The tower has been there since 1939 and has been steadily upgraded over the years. It has been upgraded so much that now the International Ski Federation has stated its too steep! So, this ski jump is on the way out with a plans for a new one to replace it. See it while you can but note that the walk up from the T-bane is not easy!

• For contemporary art lovers a visit to the Museet for Samtidkunst is a must. There were some very interesting exhibits but the most entertaining was The Rubbish Man – a room full of rubbish dedicated to the Man Who never Threw Anything Away. Its all catalogued and named. Even the lint from the couch has been catalogued and filed!

• Finally a visit to the newly opened Nobel Peace Center where you can literally experience and learn about the various Peace Prize Laureates and their activities as well as the remarkable history of Alfred Nobel. How this information is presented is pretty cool. Also, there will normally be some sort of exhibit in relation to war, peace and conflict resolution which can be an emotional journey depending on how much you invest. A striking exhibit was a photo essay on the children used in the wars around the world. Very moving.

Oslo is a great city to spend a weekend though I’m not sure how much the great weather contributed to my experience. Most people will probably find themselves spending a lot of their time around the bay, perhaps having a nice meal at Aker Brygge, or taking in some of the museums around town. Cafe sitting seemed to also be a very popular past time.