Your Weekend in Oslo: What to Do!
A few years ago I booked £30 flights for a weekend in Oslo. Bargain! I thought. Little did I know just how expensive Oslo would be when I got there…
D’ya know what though? We still had a great time because there’s so much to do in the city for free – Oslo is beautiful, and cool too.
The Princess cruise I recently did, through Scandinavia and Russia, ended in Oslo. Unfortunately I had to get home so didn’t have much time to explore again, but if you fancy spending the weekend in Oslo – or your cruise ends or starts there and you have a few days to play with – then here’s an idea of what you could do in 48 hours in Oslo.
Your Weekend in Oslo: What to Do!
With mountains, sea, parks and forests, Oslo is a little different to your usual European capital. The Nordic landscape made it a shoo-in for Europe’s Green Capital for 2019. It’s definitely one for lovers of the outdoors, but has also got you covered when it comes to shopping, cuisine and culture too.
What to do in Oslo: day one
Start your Oslo trip by embracing your inner museum geek at The Viking Ship Museum. For just £10, you can have a look around and then go across town to the Historical Museum where that same ticket will grant you free access. If two museums aren’t enough, add the nearby Nobel Peace Centre and National Gallery to the list – also both less than a tenner.
Finish the day picking up some souvenirs in Karl Johans Gate just a ten minute walk away or, for a bargain, try Birkelunden flea market in the hipster Grunerlokka district. Grunerlokka is great – filled with bars, boutique restaurants and little shops to keep you repeating ‘How much?!’ in that high-pitched voice.
READ MORE: Grünerløkka in Oslo: Where the Hipsters Hang Out
And if you like a museum, how about checking out the best sex museums in the world?
Weekend in Oslo: day two
Make day two all about Oslo’s outdoor spaces. Vigeland Sculpture Park is free to enter and has over 200 sculptures for you to check out. ‘Man attacked by babies’ is a particular favourite.
We spent about three hours checking out the Vigeland Sculpture Park talent, all 212 naked let-it-all-out sculptures carved from bronze, granite and wrought iron of it.
Way back in 1939 Mr Gustav Vigeland carefully modelled every single life-size statue himself before a team of carvers and casters stepped in to finish off his visions. I decided that although we obviously never met, this one with crazy hair is based on me.
It took good old Gustav 10 years to craft and place the sculptures along the main gate, the fountain, the monolith plateau and the wheel of life – not sure how he managed to stay out of the war effort, but after 40 years of hard graft he created a lovely park, so let’s not worry about the details.
Now the Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo is the largest sculpture park in the world.
The Fountain
The fountain shows the circle of life, from cradle to grave and to cradle again. See the clusters of trees? Each one represents a different stage of life. After the group with skeletons there’s a tree full of children and you go back around again.
The Bridge
The bridge leading into it 100m long and 15m wide with 58 sculptures flanking it.
As you get on the bridge you’ll also see the four tall granite columns with humans fighting lizards on top. They’re a real contrast to the carefree naked fun of the rest of the park. The demons are overpowering the humans.
The famous Sinnataggen is here. Better known in English as ‘the little Angry Boy’ the left hand is gold polished from people rubbing it for luck as they go by. In 1992 the Sinnataggen went missing – sliced clean from his marker. At that time no one used to visit the park, but of course, everyone was outraged that someone would take what belonged to the city.
It was returned, but the coverage reminded Oslo that the park was there and that they should make the most of it.
