visiting Oslo | top five things to do

Ski Jump in Oslo (c) 2017 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

Olso is a most interesting city. I just got back from Norway last Monday and will be publishing a series of posts, sharing my favorite moments of the trip.

We began our tour in Oslo, the capital of Norway. Our first morning featured a three-hour driving tour of the city. Because this was a whirlwind see-as-much-as-we-possibly-could-in-five-days tour for travel advisors, our visit could not be in depth. We did drive-byes of a lot of attractions; I would have loved to have gotten out at many points along the way! Oslo has more than enough to see and do to profitably occupy at least two full days of touring. These were the highlights of our morning drive.

1. Holmenkollen National Ski Arena is pictured in the photograph above. Used for ski jumping since 1892, it has been developed over the years and totally rebuilt as pictured above for the 2011 Nordic World Championships. A stunning piece of contemporary architecture, the ski jump is constructed of 1,000 tons of steel (2 million pounds) and rises 60 meters in the air. Just bare steel in the summer and fall months, the jump is covered with ice and manmade snow in the winter. Ski jumpers begin their run a terrifying 150 meters above the landing area. It's well worth the visit for the ski museum and its panoramic views of Oslo. Free entrance with the Oslo Pass.

2. Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, though not as iconic as the Sydney Opera House, this very interesting building was designed to resemble a huge glacier descending into the harbour. Visitors can climb on the building's roof to enjoy the panoramic views of Oslo and the Oslofjord. 20% discount on tours and most gift shop merchandise with the Oslo Pass.

3. Fram Museum - The Polar Ship Fram — we didn't have enough time to tour the museum, but we were able to go inside the front door and at least see the Fram, claimed to be the strongest wooden ship ever built. The ship holds records of having sailed farther north into the Arctic and farther south into the Antarctic than any other wooden boat. Museum visitors are able to board the ship and imagine what it must have been like for crew members living onboard. Free entrance with the Oslo Pass.

4. Viking Ship Museum. Just a drive-by, we didn't get a chance to go inside, but the museum contains well-preserved Viking ships and objects recovered from Viking tombs. Free entrance with the Oslo Pass.

5. Vigeland Sculpture Park, according to our guide, is one of Oslo's most popular attractions with more than a million annual visitors. The park contains more than 200 sculptures by Gustav Vigeland. We were able to get off our bus and step inside the beautiful park ... and it would have been fun to spend an hour or more, especially on a sunny summer day. Free admission at all times.

Where to stay in Oslo? I enjoyed a site inspection of The Thief, a stunning contemporary-elegant hotel in the Tjuvholmen district of Oslo, once a shady neighborhood with thieves ... thus the hotel's name. Totally gentrified and located right on the fjord, The Thief has beautiful rooms and incredible food (we enjoyed dinner in the hotel's restaurant). I recommend either a Superior or Deluxe room (a bit compact at 30 sqm) or a more spacious Junior Suite. Our clients benefit from Preferred Platinum Partner amenities.

copyright (c) 2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.