In May I ventured for my second solo trip to….Oslo!
This was also very much booked on a whim and pretty much the day after my return from my first trip. I was itching to have something booked and so here we are.
My flight into Olso landed in Torp Sandefjord Airport which is an hour and a bit away from Oslo, it’s a small airport but there is a coach right outside the airport which takes you to the nearest station, where you can catch a direct train to Oslo. Now I do want to say that the views on this train ride were great, but truthfully I used this travel time to try and have a nap as I was working on maybe 3 hrs sleep so I didn’t see very much.
Oslo itself felt like a small city, I walked everywhere, managing around 30,000 steps a day – my poor feet! There isn’t really a need to take public transport, everything is very accessible but for those of you that don’t like walking, there are scooters and e-bikes literally everywhere available for hire, plus lots of buses and trams – so you’re covered 😉
The first thing I did was have lunch by the Oslo Opera House located right by the harbour, this really is a beautiful building, you can climb up the entire building all the way to the rooftop, it’s a great place for a stunning panoramic view of Oslo and its definitely worth visiting both during the sunset and at night as the views are breath-taking. Around here you will also find saunas, I saw lots of people dipping into the water and then jumping into the little sauna houses – I wasn’t really feeling this particular activity – definitely not brave enough- but maybe next time.
After checking into my hotel I hit the streets of Oslo to start my sight-seeing, one of the places I wanted to visit was Oslo Street Food, it was on my list of recommened places and it was kind of what you expect. Fun venure, nice vibe, food from around the world and co*cktails. Further down the street, I managed to find a little polish restaurant called Polka Shots & Bites – cute little place – you know I had to pop in for some pierogis!
Day Two consisted of more walking and a boat ride along the Olso Fjord – weather wasn’t fantastic but it was warm enough and the views were great. The boat also had a tour available so each location we passed we got an insight into the history of it – would recommend it! Very easy app you can just download on your phone (Get Your Guide app). I took the Oslo Fjord Cruise by Silent Electric Catamaran – the first time I was on an electric boat and it’s such an interesting experience, you’re just gliding through the water and it’s silent! All you can hear is the waves gentley making a sound. Following this I popped into the Akershurs Fortress, a medieval castle (can you tell I like visiting castles?) I bought the audio tour guide for this (would also recommend) and took my time walking around the castle listening to all the history and all the ghost stories (which were a little creepy, to be honest).
As if I didn’t do enough walking, I then trekked it to Frogner Park to see all the cool statues – there was a very cool fountain which I would have loved to see in action but unfortuantley it was undergoing some kind of refurbishement while I was there so bits of it was covered and the fountain itself was switched off. There is a really cool bridge filled with statues of lovers, friends, babies, people fighting etc- I took some photos! At the, I guess top of the park, there are more statues and the detail on this is amazing. You can feel the emotions of the statues, it’s kind of hard to describe, I hope my photos can kind of get what I mean across. But if you’re in Oslo, give this park a visit!
I also got to see the Angry Boy statue which is apparently quite famous, one of his fists is gold and it seems that many tourists believe that touching the statue’s hand brings good luck. (Yeah I also touched it coz …you never know!!)
The final location on my list was a place called Syverkiosken which is one of the last hotdog kiosks in Oslo – when I tell this was a TREK! I climbed multiple hills to get here, it is in an awkward location and not anywhere near a main attraction. Yes fully aware I could have possibly cycled here but like I wanted to earn my hotdog – you know what I mean? Was it worth the hike? Yes, 100% yes please give this place a visit if you’re in Oslo. It’s such a simple thing to eat but it was so delicious that I would definitely do this hike again.
My last day in Oslo, I just roamed around the city, sort of killing time before my flight back home. I did also try a Norweigen delicacy – recommended by a friend! It’s these waffles with butter and brown cheese (did anyone else know that brown cheese is a thing?) It was great when it was warm not so great the colder it got – but definitely give this a try if you’re in Norway!
I actually didn’t pop into any restaurants during my time in Oslo, the days were long and I just wanted to use all my time to see as much as I could – so sitting in a restaurant felt a little like waste of time.
Overall, the trip was great, nice little city break. I really wanted to see the Viking Museum but sadly, it’s closed for refurbs until 2025 – so I see that as more of a reason to come back and visit again. Everyone in Oslo was super friendly and it’s a really easy city to get around, it is on the pricer side so do bear that in mind. I did find a pretty decent hotel – it was super simple – it was literally a bed and a bathroom and it was tiny but seeing as I only needed a place to sleep and shower in, I thought it was pretty perfect. I would definitely recommend visiting Oslo!
Would love to hear any places you guys would recommend for as a great destination for solo travel 🙂
Be kind to one another,
Kamila🙂
My First Solo Trip: Palma
by pagesandmoments
Reflecting on 2023
by pagesandmoments
by pagesandmoments
Published by pagesandmoments
A collection of words pottering around in my mind ...View all posts by pagesandmoments
