Oslo

[BluenoseCaper]

We recently visited Oslo on the HAL Zuiderdam. We decided to purchase the Oslo Pass. If you buy it online, you have to go the Visitor Centre to redeem your coupon, so we opted to buy it when we got there. When you exit the ship, there is a little shopping arcade there. One of the stores in the arcade sells them. They did not ask for ID for those purchasing a senior's pass, so some of my friends paid about half price. That was a pretty good deal.

 

Our first stop was to be the island across the harbour (Bygdoy) to see the Viking Ship Museum and the Norwegian Folk Museum. You can use your pass on the ferry. You do not have to stop at the ferry ticket booth, just go directly to where the ferry lands. Once you get to the island, it is a fair hike to the Viking Ship Museum, and it is all uphill. For those with mobility issues, it might be a problem. There are buses on the island, but I'm not sure if you can catch one to go to the Museum. The museum is worth the walk.

 

The Norwegian Folk Museum is not too far from the Viking Ship Museum (maybe 5-7 minutes). It is massive with many different buildings and displays. You really have to pick and choose if you have limited time. The map they give you does highlight the must sees. One of those is the Old Stave Church. It is an uphill walk to reach it - seems like a lot of Oslo is uphill. After visiting the museum, I inquired and we got a bus back to the ferry. The bus stop was just outside the entrance to the left of the museum. It took you to the Fram and Kon-Tiki museums. The ferry also stops there.

 

Downtown Oslo is very accessible by foot. we went back to the ship for lunch then walked up to City Hall (which is right on the harbour) and on to the National Gallery to see "The Scream". There isn't much else noteworthy in that museum.

[HarR]

Oslo pass is now also available via a smartphone app. You can purchase passes via the app upfront, and you can load passes for more than one person on a single phone. You need to activate the pass prior to using it. Your phone must have Internet access for the activation. The activation will start the validity countdown eg. 24 hours.

 

 

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[lcumpire]

Oslo pass is now also available via a smartphone app. You can purchase passes via the app upfront, and you can load passes for more than one person on a single phone. You need to activate the pass prior to using it. Your phone must have Internet access for the activation. The activation will start the validity countdown eg. 24 hours.

 

 

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Which app do I use to get the pass?

 

 

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[HarR]

Guess what...... Oslo Pass :)

 

 

Also of interest can be the Ruter Reise app from the Oslo public transport company.

 

 

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[kaisatsu]

Also of interest can be the Ruter Reise app from the Oslo public transport company.

Ruter Reise is very useful for route planning and checking departure times.

 

(This shouldn't be confused with the Ruter Billett app, which allows mobile purchase of transit tickets but unfortunately only works with Scandinavian bank cards.)

[linpt]

Thank you for the great info about the Oslo Pass. I see that the Pass needs to be activated on the day that we would want to use it. We are not sure if we want o get Wi-Fi on the ship. Does anyone know if there is a free (or low cost) Wi-Fi site near the dock where we could log in to activate the APP. Any info would be appreciated.

[kaisatsu]

Thank you for the great info about the Oslo Pass. I see that the Pass needs to be activated on the day that we would want to use it. We are not sure if we want o get Wi-Fi on the ship. Does anyone know if there is a free (or low cost) Wi-Fi site near the dock where we could log in to activate the APP. Any info would be appreciated.

If you're docking at the normal Akershuskaia pier ('SAK' or 'VIP' on the port schedule), Coffee & People is quite close by and has free WiFi. https://goo.gl/maps/nhf6jnbi8s12 I think Fragrance of the Heart does as well, but I'm not 100% certain. https://goo.gl/maps/88Xz6rfEecE2

Edited June 14, 2016 by kaisatsu

[lcumpire]

Thanks for the info - will buy pass on their app

 

 

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[kelsea823]

We recently visited Oslo on the HAL Zuiderdam. We decided to purchase the Oslo Pass. If you buy it online, you have to go the Visitor Centre to redeem your coupon, so we opted to buy it when we got there. When you exit the ship, there is a little shopping arcade there. One of the stores in the arcade sells them. They did not ask for ID for those purchasing a senior's pass, so some of my friends paid about half price. That was a pretty good deal.

 

Our first stop was to be the island across the harbour (Bygdoy) to see the Viking Ship Museum and the Norwegian Folk Museum. You can use your pass on the ferry. You do not have to stop at the ferry ticket booth, just go directly to where the ferry lands. Once you get to the island, it is a fair hike to the Viking Ship Museum, and it is all uphill. For those with mobility issues, it might be a problem. There are buses on the island, but I'm not sure if you can catch one to go to the Museum. The museum is worth the walk.

 

The Norwegian Folk Museum is not too far from the Viking Ship Museum (maybe 5-7 minutes). It is massive with many different buildings and displays. You really have to pick and choose if you have limited time. The map they give you does highlight the must sees. One of those is the Old Stave Church. It is an uphill walk to reach it - seems like a lot of Oslo is uphill. After visiting the museum, I inquired and we got a bus back to the ferry. The bus stop was just outside the entrance to the left of the museum. It took you to the Fram and Kon-Tiki museums. The ferry also stops there.

 

Downtown Oslo is very accessible by foot. we went back to the ship for lunch then walked up to City Hall (which is right on the harbour) and on to the National Gallery to see "The Scream". There isn't much else noteworthy in that museum.

 

Thank you for your info!

 

Was there a long line to buy tickets for the ferry?

 

Did you notice if there were taxis outside of the Viking Museum?

 

Thank You!

[HarR]

Used Oslo pass app today. Don't forget to download the QR-code in the app after activation, before you go offline.

At the folk museum I had to present the QR-code at the ticket counter. They then provided the entry tickets for the 4 of us.

 

 

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[lcumpire]

Used Oslo pass app today. Don't forget to download the QR-code in the app after activation, before you go offline.

At the folk museum I had to present the QR-code at the ticket counter. They then provided the entry tickets for the 4 of us.

 

 

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Where were you able to download the QR-code? Thanx

 

 

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[HarR]

Sure no problem.

 

 

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[Desert Cruizers]

We will be visiting Oslo during our TA but neither my husband nor I have an iphone. How will the Oslo Pass work if you don't have the iphone.

[kaisatsu]

We will be visiting Oslo during our TA but neither my husband nor I have an iphone. How will the Oslo Pass work if you don't have the iphone.

The app is fairly new. You can buy the original physical pass from a number of places in the city:

http://www.visitoslo.com/en/activities-and-attractions/oslo-pass/sales-points/

[KyOh]

We'll be arriving on the Viking Star in late July. We want to visit the VASA museum during our time in port. Is the Oslo Pass worth it for the entry and transportation to get there? What else is close that we might enjoy during our day in Oslo?

[Desert Cruizers]

Kaisatu, thank you this will be our first trip to Copenhagen, Noway, Kristainsand, Reyjkavik & Akureyri and can't wait. It is part of our 15 day TA. We plan to spend two days pre cruise in Copenhagen

[Splinter]

We'll be arriving on the Viking Star in late July. We want to visit the VASA museum during our time in port. Is the Oslo Pass worth it for the entry and transportation to get there? What else is close that we might enjoy during our day in Oslo?

 

Probably not worth it if you will only visit that one museum, but if you plan to go to multiple museums, and take lots of public transportation (buses, trolleys, ferries, etc.) it can really save you some money. The fort right next to the cruise ship pier is included, as is the WWII Resistance Museum, and of course all the museums out in the bay (Fram/Gjoa, Viking Ship, Norwegian Heritage, Kon Tiki, etc.).

[screwcork]

We'll be arriving on the Viking Star in late July. We want to visit the VASA museum during our time in port. Is the Oslo Pass worth it for the entry and transportation to get there? What else is close that we might enjoy during our day in Oslo?

 

I believe the Vasa museum is in Stockholm!

 

Screwcork

[Piggeldy]

We'll be arriving on the Viking Star in late July. We want to visit the VASA museum during our time in port. Is the Oslo Pass worth it for the entry and transportation to get there? What else is close that we might enjoy during our day in Oslo?

 

The Vasa Museum is in Stockholm...

For the first visit to Oslo I suggest doing Bygdøy (buss 30, from Rådhuset) - starting with the Norsk Folkemuseum (125 NOK), then walking around the corner to the Vikingskipshuset (80 NOK). From there either take the bus all the way to the last stop or walk (approx. 15 minutes) for the Fram Museum (100 NOK), the Kon-Tiki Museum (100 NOK) and the Norsk Maritimt Museum (100 NOK) - or all three for 270 NOK. We usually skip the Maritime Museum, the movie is nice but other than that... You can then take the ferry 91 back into town.

The bus (30) goes every 10 minutes and takes approximately 15 (for Folkemuseum) to 20 (for Fram/Kon-Tiki) minutes, the ferry (91) goes every 20-30 minutes and is a quick 10 minute ride back into town.

 

Can be done the other way round (if the weather is bad in the morning, as the Folkemuseum is open air) but we usually prefer to do it starting with the Folkemuseum and then working down to the Fram.

 

The Oslo pass is 335 NOK (2016) so you will break even or come out ahead, depending on what you do. We have done all five museums in a day easily (Folkemuseum will take a couple of hours, Viking Ship can easily be done in 30/45 minutes, same as the Fram and Kon-Tiki - you can spend more time at each if you want to), they are all included with Oslo Pass and if you don't have enough time it's quite easy to just skip one as the last three are all next to each other. A 24-hour ticket for public transport is 90 NOK.

 

Personally I love the Kunstindustrimuseet (St. Olavsgate 1) - love their café - but we also always enjoy the Naturhistorisk Museum (Sars' gate 1) and The Historical Museum (Frederiks Gate 2)

[wheezedr]

We'll be arriving on the Viking Star in late July. We want to visit the VASA museum during our time in port. Is the Oslo Pass worth it for the entry and transportation to get there? What else is close that we might enjoy during our day in Oslo?

 

Might be a tough trip as the Vasa is in Stockholm. Do however visit it if you go there. Do not buy the Stockholm pass, it is not as good a deal as the Oslo pass.