Things to Do in Oslo

Norway’s stylish, innovative new arts center opened in 2008 at Bjørvika, with views stretching out over Oslo Fjord. It is home to the national ballet, opera and orchestral companies but audiences probably come as much for the sublime waterside setting of this gleaming white auditorium as they do for the performances. Designed by Norwegian architect Tarald Lundevall, who also built the National September 11 Memorial Museum & Pavilion in New York, the opera house is constructed of marble, granite and glass and won the prestigious Mies van der Rohe Award for Contemporary Architecture in 2009. Inside there are three main stages, combined able to seat audiences of up to 2,000; all this is supported by a staff of 620 led by artistic director Tom Remlov in a labyrinth of more than 1,000 studios and workshops.

The Oslo National Gallery houses a proud collection of works comprised mainly by works of Norwegian painters from the 19th century until about 1945. These are including but not limited to famous landscape painter J. C. Dahl, T. Fearnley, H. F. Gude, naturalist painter and illustrator C. Krohg, and G. P. Munthe. There is also a special separate exhibit devoted to the much beloved Edvard Munch and his world renowned painting ‘The Scream,’ back in action after its theft in 2006.

There are also works by other Scandinavian artists including pictures by El Greco, Rubens and Rembrandt, as well as a collection of modern works and a room containing replicas of antique sculptures.

In 2003 the National Gallery joined with three other Norwegian museums to become the National Museum of Art, Architecture, and Design, making them all in effect the cultural and historical hub of Norwegian culture and art.

With such an array of collected art, The National Gallery contains the largest collection of domestic and international art in the country and simply cannot be looked over by any visitor. 

Jutting out into Oslo Fjord, the Bygdøy Peninsula is a one-stop leisure destination just west side of the city center. A clutch of Norway's most popular museums are found here along with hiking and cycling trails, beautiful "“ if small "“ beaches at Huk and Paradisbukta, plus several cafes and seafood restaurants. Come sunny days, the peninsula is full to bursting with Oslo families enjoying the peninsula's laid-back vibe and the organic farm at the Royal Manor, which is the summer residence of King Harald V.

Home to the Oslo City Council and numerous galleries and studios, the Oslo City Hall (or Radhus) showcases the city’s political and cultural sides. It is widely considered one of Oslo’s architectural gems, winning the 2005 vote for Oslo’s "Structure of the Century."

Planning for City Hall began in 1915 and served a dual purpose: not only establishing an Oslo City Hall, but also replacing the old Oslo harbor slums. The building exemplifies a changing mentality in Norwegian architecture at the time, combining native romanticism, functionalism, and classicism.

Once inside, the building contains the Festival Gallery, complete with a stunning view of the harbor side, the East Gallery, with Petr Krohg’s stunning mid 20th century frescoes, “The town and its surroundings,” Banquet Hall, and Central Hall, with a mural of Oslo’s patron saint, St. Hallvard.

The Kon-Tiki Museum is home to a variety of boats and other artifacts from the famous Thor Heyerdahl’s expeditions. Thor Heyerdahl is a Norwegian expeditionary and ethnographer who famously sailed by raft from South America to the Tuamotu Islands. The museum includes the very raft used during that expedition.

The museum also houses permanent exhibits on Ra, Tigris, Kon-Tiki, Fatu-Hiva, and Easter Island and even has a cave tour (that is 100 feet/30 meters in length) and an underwater exhibition with a life-size whale shark. For those who are not well acquainted with Norway’s topographical landscape, there is a recommended widescreen film that takes the viewer on an aerial tour of the country’s coastline and settlements.

Once you’ve soaked in all the exhibits the museum has to offer, the restaurant offers a lunch menu which includes authentic Norwegian cuisine, including the highly recommend Kon-Tiki Fish Casserole and Tapas buffet.

Located in central Oslo, Slottsparken (or the Royal Palace Park) is the city central park that surrounds the Royal Palace. Construction began in the 1820s by Hans Linstow, the same architect who built the palace, although because of financial restrictions it took more than 30 years to put together. Altogether more than 2,000 trees were planted, most of which are still standing.

The main feature of the park is The Royal Palace, which is the main residence of Norwegian royalty, currently Herald V. If you happen to be in Oslo during the summer months, the palace opens for guided tours, including some of the most beautiful state rooms, upper vestibule, dining room, bird room, mirror hall, and Palace Chapel.

In 1911, the trend of adding monuments and statues to the park began, amongst the first were Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland, and author Camilla Collett. Years later, statues of Queen Maud, mathematician Nils Henrik Abel, and Kronprinssesse Martha were added.

Named and built after the Norwegian symbolist painter Edvard Munch, the Munch Museum (or Munchmuseet) first opened its doors in 1963 to commemorate what would have been the painters 100th birthday. It contains 1,200 paintings, 4,500 drawings, 18,000 prints, and 6 sculptures, watercolors, and graphic art, all bequeathed to the city of Oslo upon Munch's death.

The museum also contains less conventional pieces of Munch's artwork, including lithographic stones, etchings, and woodcut plates, as well as newspaper cutouts, books, and other information about the artist, further encapsulating the full career of the adored artist.

Whether you're a fanatic or just interested in Munch's work, you can take the experience home with you at the museums souvenir shop, complete with books, posters, shirts, and catalogs.

Holmenkollen is an Oslo landmark hill north-west of the city center; there has been a ski jump here since 1892 but the present-day ‘S’-shaped jump at Kongeveien was constructed in 2010. The jump is 394 ft (120 m) long and it is 197 ft (60 m) high and it’s one of Norway’s best-loved visitor attractions.

Along with the Kon-Tiki and Norwegian Folk museums, the Fram is another of the crowd-pullers on the Bygdøy peninsula. It’s found in a new and extraordinary pyramidal structure with a vast portrait of Roald Amundsen projected on to the façade, which houses the most famous Norwegian polar-exploration boat of all time, the icebreaker Fram.