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The Draw
• Cutting-edge museums featuring everything from bona fide Viking ships to the recently recovered painting "The Scream."
• A wide array of outdoor sports, from sailing to snowboarding.
• Summers bring outdoor cafés and endless nights.
The Scene
Oslo has been around for a thousand years but hardly looks the part—it's an immaculate city that blends dramatic modern architecture and Classical revival gems. Thirty years ago, this city was one of the more dreary burgs in northern Europe, but the North Sea oil boom helped transform Oslo into a lively hub for shopping, nightlife, the arts and outdoor sports. With only half a million people and a renowned standard of living, Oslo is one of the world's most livable cities, a place made even more pleasant by excellent public transportation and affable citizens who are proud to lend directions and tips on their hometown. Nature always seems close at hand—witness the Norwegian woods and farmland that surround the capital, or the beautiful expanse of Oslo Fjord. Recent immigrants from the Mediterranean and Middle East have added a touch of color to the city's traditionally pale patina, especially in lively neighborhoods like Grǿnland, where you can find food, song and threads from many different lands.
To Be Seen
• Viking Ship Museum. The most remarkable thing about the three 1,100-year-old ships in this collection—all of them salvaged from Norwegian peat bogs—is their simple elegance, making them ancient forerunners to modern Scandinavian design.
• Holmenkollen. The world's most famous ski jump, built for the 1952 Winter Games, offers awesome views of Oslo, a winter sports museum, and a high-tech ski simulator that takes you on a virtual race down the world's top downhill runs.
• Vigeland Park. Gustav Vigeland created the strange and wonderful sculptures that grace Oslo's most famous green space. In total, more than 200 works in bronze, stone and cast iron, including his stunning "Monolith Plateau."
For the VIP
• Oslo Guidebureau can arrange customized private tours based on any local theme, from Edvard Munch or Henrik Ibsen to World War II or Jewish Oslo.
• Hire the elegant motor yacht Grace (built in 1927) for an intimate evening on the Oslo Fjord, including candlelight dinner and sundowners on the teak deck.
• Get your hotel concierge to snag you a pair of tickets to the Noble Peace Prize ceremony every Dec. 10.
Overrated
Aker Brygge. The sleek, new waterfront restaurant and retail complex is overpriced, over-hyped, decidedly un-Norwegian—and something of an architectural monstrosity when compared to the nearby Rådhuset (City Hall).
Underrated
Oslo Pass. This fixed-price tourist card gives free entrance to museums and other major sights, free rides on public transport (including ferries), free parking at municipal parking lots and various other perks.
Don't Miss
Tryvann Winter Park. Located just 20 minutes from downtown Oslo, this eclectic snow zone includes both alpine runs and cross-country pistes, as well as an international half-pipe for snowboarders and a terrain park for moguls and jumps.
When to Go
January through March for winter sports; June through August for endless evenings and sunbathing in the parks.
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