A QUICK GUIDE TO OSLO

Oslo, the capital of Norway, is located on the country’s southern coast at the head of the Oslofjord. This beautiful port city is known for its green spaces, great waterfront restaurants and unique museums. Oslo is one of Europe’s fastest-growing cities (population 700,000), with eye-catching architecture popping up everywhere. Last weekend, my husband and I took his mom and aunt to Norway to visit their homeland, and we fell in love with Oslo in the two short days we were there. Here are some of the highlights from our trip.

WHERE TO STAY IN OSLO

There are tons of great hotels in Oslo but we chose Radisson Blu Plaza for its convenience to the city center. We arrived late on a Friday night to the pleasant surprise of being upgraded to the Polar Suite, which features a large living room with harbor views, two bathrooms, and a dinning room with a real polar bear on the wall! Our suite was clean and quiet, the bed was incredibly comfortable, and Radisson Blu Plaza is in a great location, walking distance to the train station and bus stops. Breakfast was included in our stay and I loved that we could have it delivered to our room at no extra charge.

WHERE TO EAT IN OSLO

Norway, and Oslo in particular, is known for its amazing seafood. There are tons of great restaurants in Oslo but we loved Louise Restaurant & Bar for traditional Norwegian seafood right on the waterfront. For a little more upscale dinning, try The Edge, just a few minutes walk down the waterfront from Louise Restaurant. The seafood at both places was excellent!

WHAT TO DO IN OSLO

There is so much to do and see in Oslo! If you have the time, I suggest spending at least 3 days in Oslo. We only had one full day there so we bought the Oslo Pass (which I recommend) and took the ferry across the Oslofjord to explore some of the museums. I am not a huge fan of museums but these did not disappoint! As a travel girl, my favorite was the Kon-Tiki Museum, which houses the balsawood raft, “Kon-Tiki,” that Thor Heyerdahl used to cross the Pacific Ocean in 1947! I also loved the Folk Museum, one of Europe’s largest open-air museums with 155 traditional houses, from all parts of Norway, and a stave church from 1200! The Fram Museum, highlighting the stories of Norwegian polar expeditions, is also really cool. However, no trip to Oslo would be complete without a visit to the Viking Ship Museum.

If you are visiting Norway for the first time, I highly recommend continuing your trip on to Bergen. We did a “Norway In A Nutshell” tour, taking 3 trains, a bus and a ferry from Oslo to Bergen, but it was well worth the full day of travel to see the incredible landscape and the breathtaking Sognefjord along the way. Read Norway In A Nutshell to see the photos and watch the video of our incredible trek across one of the most beautiful countries on the planet!

Have you been to Oslo? Please share your experience in the comments section below!