World City Guide

Key Attractions

Akershus Slott and Festning (Akerhus Palace and Fortress)
King Haakon V Magnusson ordered the building of Akershus Slott on a commanding headland, in 1299. Although damaged, repaired, fortified and renovated over the centuries, the ancient walls and central medieval tower of this imposing fortified palace still dominate the sea front. The town was rebuilt within the fortress walls after the great fire of 1624 (the fortress was originally outside the city). The 17th-century renovations of the castle, with magnificent banqueting halls and reception rooms, stand above dank medieval dungeons and underground passageways. The grounds also house Norges Hjemmefrontsmuseum (Resistance Museum), with poignant displays related to the Nazi occupation of Norway.

Akershuskaien
Tel: 23 09 35 53 (palace) or 23 09 31 38 (museum).
Website: www.visitoslo.com
Opening hours: Festning open Mon-Fri 0900-1700, Sat-Sun 1100-1700 (Jun-Aug), Mon-Fri 0900-1600, Sat-Sun 100-1600 (Sep-May); Slott open Mon-Sat 1000-1600, Sun 1230-1600 (May-Sep); guided tours of the Festning available daily (Jun-Aug).
Admission: Free (fortress); Charge (palace and museum).

Oslo Rdhus (Oslo City Hall)
On the waterfront overlooking the fjord, this modern twin-towered building, opened in 1950 to celebrate the city’s 900th anniversary, dominates but does not particularly enhance the landscape. However, the colourful frescos and murals of the interior, designed by Norwegian artists, redeem the solid exterior. Themes of Norwegian history and culture predominate, depicting daily life and Viking mythology, although references to conflict are inescapable in a building long delayed but finally built in the aftermath of World War II. This is where the Nobel Peace Prize is presented each December.

Fridtjof Nansens Plass
Tel: 23 46 16 00.
Website: www.visitoslo.com
Opening hours: Daily 0830-1600 (Sep-Apr); Daily 0830-1700 (May-Sep).
Admission charge May-Sep, free with Oslo Pass.

Nasjonalgalleriet (National Gallery)
Norway’s National Gallery houses a respectable pre-1945 international art collection, including Gauguin, Picasso, Cezanne and El Greco. But the Norwegian collection, with its emphasis on works from the ‘National Romantic Period’, is undoubtedly the main interest. Several rooms are given over to the work of Edvard Munch, including a version of Skrik (The Scream). The 19th-century Romantic paintings of Dahl, Tidemand and Gude, such as Bridal Voyage in the Hardanger Fjord, depict the spectacular Norwegian landscapes of forest and fjord, while the museum continues to collect modern Norwegian artists.

Universitetsgata 13
Tel: 22 20 04 04.
Website: www.nasjonalgalleriet.no
Opening hours: Mon, Wed and Fri 1000-1800, Thurs 1000-2000, Sat 1000-1600, Sun 1100-1600.
Admission free.

Oslo Domkirke (Cathedral)
Consecrated in 1697, the cathedral has been subject of several renovations over the centuries. The current baroque style interior dates from 1950, when the city was celebrating its 900th anniversary. It does, however, incorporate several original features including the altar screen, pulpit and font, which had hitherto been on display at the Museum of Applied Art. Regular evening concerts and a bookshop also feature.

Stortorget
Tel: 23 31 46 00.
Website: www.oslodomkirke.no
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1600 (May-Sep); Daily except Tue 1200-1800; Tue 1000-1600 (Sep-May).
Admission free.

Kunstindustrimuseet (Museum of Applied Art)
Founded in 1876, the Kunstindustrimuseet boasts collections of Norwegian and foreign handicrafts, fashion and design dating from as early as the seventh century. Highlights include 16th and 17th century tapestries, silver, ceramics and furniture. There are galleries dedicated to royal costumes, Asian items and design.

St Olavs Gate 1
Tel: 22 03 65 40.
Website: www.kunstindustrimuseet.no
Opening hours: Tue-Fri 1100-1500; Sat-Sun 1200-1600.
Admission free.

Bygdy
A short ferry crossing from central Oslo to the peninsula of Bygdy transports visitors into Norway’s varied maritime past. All the attractions on Bygdy are within 10 or 15 minutes’ walking distance of one another.

One of Europe’s biggest open-air museums, the Norsk Folkemuseum (Norwegian Folk Museum) is a walk through Norway’s geography and history, featuring a variety of period buildings that have been transported from all over the country. Turf-roofed farms and barns in one section give way to the streets of the Old Town, complete with shop, houses and early petrol station. A five-minute walk away, the elegant Oseberg, excavated in 1904 and dating from about 800, is the finest of the ships at the Vikingskipshuset (Viking Ship Museum). The museum also contains finds from burial chambers, where two skeletons once lay amid their riches and jewels. The biggest of the ships, the Gokstad, is the best preserved. However, the burial chamber had been looted. The intricate patterns (which scroll and twist all over the ships, the jewellery and the artefacts) all testify to the links with the Celtic nations where the Vikings traded and raided.

The Norsk Sjfartsmuseum (Norwegian Maritime Museum) portrays the pivotal role played by the sea in Norway’s history, from Vikings to fishing to oil tankers, with magnificent model boats, film footage, artefacts and paintings. Outside, a war memorial recalls the Norwegian sailors who perished in World War II, beside a replica of the Gja, the first ship to sail through the North West Passage. Fjord tours aboard a veteran steamship are offered in summer. Nearby, at the Frammuseet, is the 1892 polar vessel, Fram, in which Fridtjof Nansen sailed toward the North Pole, and Roald Amundsen to the Antarctic. The Kon-Tiki Museum houses Thor Heyerdahl’s famous balsa raft, Kon-Tiki, and reed raft, Ra II, as well as other items, including Easter island statues (Moais) and a stuffed whale shark.

Norsk Folkemuseum (Norwegian Folk Museum)
Museumsveien 10
Tel: 22 12 37 00.
Website: www.norskfolke.museum.no
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1800 (May-Sep); Mon-Fri 1100-1500, Sat-Sun 1100-1600 (Sep-May).
Admission charge, free with Oslo Pass.

Vikingskipshuset (Viking Ship Museum)
Huk Aveny 35
Tel: 22 13 52 80.
Website: www.ukm.uio.no/vikingskipshuset
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1800 (May-Sep); daily 1100-1600 (Oct-Apr), closed public holidays.
Admission charge.

Norsk Sjfartsmuseum (Norwegian Maritime Museum)
Bygdynesveien 37
Tel: 24 11 41 50.
Website: www.norsk-sjofartsmuseum.no
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1800 (mid-May-Sep); Sun-Wed 1030-1600, Thurs 1030-18 (Oct-mid-May).
Admission charge, free with Oslo Pass.

Frammuseet (Fram Museum)
Bygdynesveien 36
Tel: 23 28 29 50.
Website: www.fram.museum.no
Opening hours: Vary between daily 0900-1845 and 1100-1445, according to time of year.
Admission charge, free with Oslo Pass.

Kon-Tiki Museum
Bygdynesveien 36
Tel: 23 08 67 67.
Website: www.kon-tiki.no
Opening hours: Daily 0930-1745 (Jun-Aug); daily 1030-1600 (Oct-Mar); daily 1030-1700 (Sep and May).
Admission charge, free with Oslo Pass.