About Oslo, Norway

Oslo, the capital of Norway, sits on the country’s southern coast at the head of the Oslofjord. It’s known for its green spaces and museums. Many of these are on the Bygdoy Peninsula, including the waterside Norwegian Maritime Museum and the Viking Ship Museum, with Viking ships from the 9th century. The Holmenkollbakken is a ski-jumping hill with panoramic views of the fjord. It also has a ski museum.

Norway is a country, which has nature that has accumulated over thousands of years and is enchantingly unique. This is a country with incredible fjords, towering mountains, Northern Lights (Northern Lights are caused by charged particles from the sun that get caught in the earth’s magnetic field resulting in the particles lighting up), and in the north “the land of the Midnight Sun”. A line of offshore islands called the skerry guard shields the coastline and forms a protected inland waterway. Norway’s name, which means “northern way,” shows the significance of this waterway to link the many small fjord and valley communities that would be separated by the extremely rugged terrain.

The northern part of Norway is also called “the land of the Midnight Sun” because during the summer the sun never really sets in the north (which is above the Arctic circle), and even in the south there is daylight as late as 11 pm. Sunrise is usually at around 3 a.m. during this time. The beauty of the land inspired the music of Edvard Grieg (Norway’s most famous composer) who tried to capture the changing mood created by the alternately light and dark seasons. Norway is a peninsula, which is almost entirely surrounded by water. The eastern side borders with Sweden, Finland and Russia.

Norway extends far north across the Arctic Circle. It is well known for its fjord-indented coastline, mountains, ski resorts, lakes, and woods. Some of the most famous cities in Norway include the capital of Oslo with its castle, its cathedral, its picturesque landscape, and interesting architecture or on the west coast there are the cities of Bergen and Trondheim, each of them set alongside a fjord. Then there is Preikestolen which is on a cliff hanging 604 meters directly above the water.

The tourists travel to far off places like Narvik and Tromsa, in the far north because of the special features of the region such as the Midnight Sun, sport fishing, the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights), and the rugged ocean to mountain landscape. They also come to see the beautiful cities and landscape of the south. Norway is a wonderful and unique place to visit.

Plan and Book:

Overview

Oslo is an important centre of maritime knowledge in Europe and is home to approximately 1980 companies and 8,500 employees within the maritime sector. Some of which are the world’s largest shipping companies, shipbrokers, and insurance brokers. Det Norske Veritas, headquartered at Hovik outside Oslo, is one of the three major maritime classification societies in the world. The city’s port is the largest general cargo port in the country and its leading passenger gateway. Close to 6,000 ships dock at the Port of Oslo annually with a total of 6 million tonnes of cargo and over five million passengers.



Oslo is a compact city. It is easy to move around by public transportation and you can access rentable city bikes all over the city centre. In 2003, Oslo received The European Sustainable City Award and in 2007 Reader’s Digest ranked Oslo as number two on a list of the world’s greenest, most liveable cities. Oslo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. As of 2006, it is ranked tenth according to the Worldwide Cost of Living Survey provided by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.

Oslo (with neighbouring Sandvika-Asker) is built in a horseshoe shape on the shores of the Oslofjord and limited in most directions by hills and forests. As a result, any point within the city is relatively close to the forest. There are two major forests bordering the city: Ostmarka (literally “Eastern Forest”, on the eastern perimeter of the city), and the very large Nordmarka (literally “Northern Forest”, stretching from the northern perimeter of the city deep into the hinterland).

Attractions and Activities

Hop-on, Hop-off Tour of Oslo: From a medieval fortress and preserved Viking ships to an open-air museum and tranquil parks, Oslo boasts numerous treasures. Whether you’re a first-time tourist or seasoned visitor, there’s always something new to discover with this 48-hour pass.

Oslo houses several major museums and galleries. The Munch Museum contains The Scream and other works by Edvard Munch, who donated all his work to the city after his death. The city council is currently planning a new Munch Museum which is most likely to be built in Bjørvika, in the southeast of the city. The museum will be named Munch/Stenersen. 50 different museums are located around the city.

Folkemuseet is located on the Bygdøy peninsula and is dedicated to Folk art, Folk Dress, Sami culture and the viking culture. The outdoor museum contains 155 authentic old buildings from all parts of Norway, including a Stave Church.

The Vigeland Museum located in the large Frogner Park, is free to access and contains over 212 sculptures by Gustav Vigeland including an obelisk and the Wheel of Life. Another popular sculpture is Sinnataggen, a baby boy stamping his foot in fury. This statue is very well known as an icon in the city. There is also a newer landscaped sculpture park, Ekebergparken Sculpture Park, with works by Norwegian and international artists such as Salvador Dali.

The Viking Ship Museum features three Viking ships found at Oseberg, Gokstad and Tune and several other unique items from the Viking age.

The Oslo City Museum holds a permanent exhibition about the people in Oslo and the history of the city.

The Kon-Tiki Museum houses Thor Heyerdahl’s Kontiki and Ra2.

The National Museum holds and preserves, exhibits and promotes public knowledge about Norway’s most extensive collection of art. The Museum shows permanent exhibitions of works from its own collections but also temporary exhibitions that incorporate work loaned from elsewhere. The National Museums exhibition avenues are the National Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the National Museum, the Museum of Decorative Arts and the National Museum of Architecture. A new National Museum in Oslo will be built in the next 10 years and the building will be located at Vestbanen behind the Nobel Peace Center.

The Nobel Peace Centre is an independent organisation opened on 11 June 2005 by the King Harald V as part of the celebrations to mark Norway’s centenary as an independent country. The building houses a permanent exhibition, expanding every year when a new Nobel Peace Prize winner is announced, containing information of every winner in history. The building is mainly used as a communication centre.