I had always wanted to visit Scandinavia, so when I was searching for flights for the last weekend in August and saw that I could go to Oslo for just £42 return, I quickly booked them. I knew that Scandinavia is expensive, so I found a budget hostel in the city centre and saved a fair bit of money before I went. Before my trip, I didn’t know much about Oslo. Apart from it being the capital city of Norway and being right on the coast, it was all a mystery to me. I didn’t know anyone who had been before, so I didn’t get any personal recommendations. After spending 3 days in Oslo, here are five reasons why I think you should visit.
Reasons to visit Oslo
The architecture
Oslo has a great mixture of historical and contemporary architecture. The Royal Palace, Akershus Fortress, Stortinget and the National Theatre are great examples of Historical buildings in the city. One of the most famous modern buildings is the Opera House. This stunning building is free to visit and you can also walk up to the roof and admire the view over the fjord and the rest of the city. There’s also a lot of new, exciting developments particularly Tjuvholmen right by the fjord.
It’s the European Green Capital
One great reason to visit Oslo is that it is currently the European Green Capital. In Oslo they really encourage car-free living. The city centre is easy to get around on foot but they also have great public transport in the form of trams, a metro and buses. They offer incentives for those who choose electric cars and they have closed down street parking and made way for bicycles.
Its rich history
Although Oslo has a lot of contemporary architecture surrounding the fjord, it has a rich history dating back to 1000 AD. I took a walking tour around the city which taught me a lot about Oslo (or Kristiania as it was once called) and its history. If you are interested in the Vikings, then the Viking Ship Museum is worth a visit. It’s not very big, so expect to only need 45 mins – an hour here. There’s also Aksershus Fortress which is worth a wander around. The Royal Palace is spectacular and you can witness the changing of the guard every day at 1:30pm.
There’s so much nature to enjoy
Although Oslo is quite a built up city, there’s plenty of parks and green spaces. My favourite place was Vigeland Sculpture Park which I visited twice in my short trip. This was such a beautiful place to sit and enjoy the nature. I spent a couple of hours each time sitting here, reading a book. It was so relaxing despite being so popular with tourists. This park is definitely one of my top reasons to visit Oslo. The Oslo Fjord is in the heart of the city centre, next to Central Station. A walk alongside it does wonders for your mental health and wellbeing. I enjoyed sitting on a bench next to the fjord and breathing in the fresh air.
It’s a safe city
As a solo female traveller, feeling safe in a city is so important. I honestly felt really safe in Oslo, so safe that I set up my camera to take a few self portraits in a busy area. I had no reservations about wandering around the city centre and back to Grønland where I was staying.
There was one incident in McDonald’s which terrified me, however that’s a reflection on the individual and not the city. I felt safe in the hostel I stayed in, even though I stayed in a mixed dorm. I was only once approached by someone begging for money when I was sat on a bench on Karl Johan’s St. However, I didn’t feel unsafe at any point on the street.
