City centre Karl Johans gate, Oslo’s part-pedestrianised main thoroughfare, is the spine of the city centre. It begins in down-at-heel fashion near Oslo S with a string of bars and shops, then becomes wider and more elegant as it reaches the 19th-century Stortinget (parliament), the Domkirke (cathedral), the university and the neoclassical Nationaltheatret. Journey’s end is at the Royal Palace, surrounded by park land.

Aker Brygge/The Harbour Converted from a shipyard, Aker Brygge is a huge harbour-front development beside the Rådhus City Hall and south of the Nationaltheatret.

It contains enough restaurants to seat 5,000 people, as well as bars, shops, galleries, an IMAX cinema and theatres. It’s hugely popular with locals and tourists, particularly in summer, and prices are consequently high. Further east, the harbour is dominated by 13th-century Akershus Fortress and castle.

The West End Wonderful traditional architecture and excellent, if rather expensive, shopping opportunities along the streets of Bogstadveien and Skovveien define the West End. It also contains the green stretches of Frognerparken and the astonishing Vigeland Sculpture Park. Grünerløkka Having evolved over the past 10 years from run-down East End dive to funky creative quarter, Grünerløkka is now Oslo’s most fashionable district. Delis, boho bars and buzzy restaurants pack its main street Thorvald Meyers Gate, and prices are noticeably more affordable than in the city centre and the West End. Bygdøy Sometimes referred to as Oslo’s Hamptons, this southwestern peninsula is home not only to many of the city’s well-heeled, but also to five of its museums: the Folk, Viking Ships, Kon-Tiki, Fram and Maritime Museums.

Grønland Tipped as the next Grünerløkka, Grønland is tucked behind Oslo S station and still rather rough. Its large immigrant population, however, makes it a good place to find inexpensive restaurants—

Vietnamese, Indian and Thai—and, perhaps less enticingly, kebab shops.

GETTING AROUND

Oslo has five to 10-minute frequency on public transport due to the increased downtown population (www.trafikanten. no for details). A single journey costs NOK 20 on all forms of transport. Various passes are available, including a flexikort, NOK 150, which permits up to eight trips, and a dagskort, NOK 55, which allows unlimited travel for 24 hours.

There are taxi ranks throughout the city centre, with a minimum charge of NOK 65. The Oslo Pass gives free transport and access to museums and other attractions. It costs NOK 195 for 24 hours, NOK 285 for 48 hours and NOK 375 for 72 hours.

SHOPPING

Oslo is known for its high prices, so forget about bargain-hunting and concentrate on seeking out high-quality designer wares and unique foodstuffs. For gifts, including Scandinavian silver jewellery, ceramics and glassware, try Norway Says design shop (Thorvald Meyers gate 15, Tel: 2 38 25 75). Woollen throws with reindeer and snowflake motifs (from NOK 870), chunky hand-made sweaters (from NOK 1,500) and children’s hats (from NOK 230) can be found at Heimen Husflid (Rosenkrantz 8, Tel: 3 21 42 00).

If you’re in search of Arctic liqueurs like lakka (distilled from cloudberries, best mixed half and half with whiskey) and polar (distilled from cranberries, mix with vodka), you’ll find the best deals at the airport (from NOK 100).

Smoked wild salmon, marinated herrings and caviar can be purchased from Fjelberg Fisk Og Vilt (Bygdoøy Allé 56, Frogner, Tel: 2 44 60 41).

Pick up a cuddly penguin or polar bear toy (around NOK 120 each) from the Fram Museum (see Things to do).

The main shopping street, Karl Johans gate, is fairly unprepossessing, although the homeware sections of department stores such as Oslo City and Steen & Strøm are worth browsing. For chic boutiques, concentrate on the West End. Majorstuen (particularly Bogstadveien and Hegdehaugsveien) is packed with designers and delis, bookshops and boutiques. Look out for mid-20th-century collectibles, such as chunky glass vases— Euklides (Pilestredet 75c) is a good source. There’s also a Saturday antiques/ flea market at Amaldus Nielsen plass. Intriguing deli buys include Arctic berry jams, brunost (sweet goat’s milk cheese) and marinated herring in a dozen flavours. Aker Brygge has costly high-quality craftshops. Galleri Format (Munkedamsveien 57, Tel: 2 83 84 35) features work by 800 Norwegian artists in ceramics, textiles, metal, leather and wood. The museum shops are worth browsing for unusual children’s presents. Just before Christmas, you’ll find beautifully designed decorations in all the interiors shops, although you may find it hard to avoid the omnipresent trolls.

THINGS TO DO

HMK Sightseeing (www. hmk.no) offers a three-hour tour that includes the Holmenkollen ski jump, Vigeland Sculpture Park and the Viking Ship Museum for NOK 260.

Oslo’s museums and galleries—many of them free—are a must for visitors. Most accessible are the University Aula (or hall), with its murals by artist Edvard Munch, and the Historisk Museum, around the corner, which has a raggletaggle collection including Viking drinking horns and an exhibition on the Sami people.

If museums are your thing, take a trip to the Bygdøy peninsula (by ferry from pier 3 behind the Rådhus or by number 30 bus from Nationaltheatret). The Fram Museum (www.fram.museum.no), built around the ice-breaking boat the Fram, tells the story of Norway’s polar explorers, including Roald Amundsen’s famous race against Scott to the South Pole. It makes rueful reading for Brits—Amundsen trained for years in Norway’s mountains and forests while the doomed Scott neglected to wear waterproof clothing and used ponies to drag sleds across the snow. Nearby, the Kon-Tiki Museum (www.kon-tiki.no) has the craft Thor Heyerdayl used for his trip across the Pacific, while the Viking Ships Museum (www.ukm.uio.no) has three fierce-looking 9th-century vessels beautifully displayed.

Away from the maritime theme, the Norwegian Folk Museum (www. norskfolkmuseum.no) offers an open-air display of 17th to 19th century houses, post offices and chemists, along with some unavoidable folk dancing. But you can stroll among some of Oslo’s oldest wooden houses for yourself in the streets of Rodeløkka (tram 17 to Carl Berners plass).

In summer, Aker Brygge’s harbourside walkway is filled with promenaders and buskers. Buy a bag of boiled prawns direct from the fishing boats (ignore cynical locals who whisper that most come frozen from Greenland). Further along the harbour, Akershus castle and fortress stands next to the Resistance Museum (www.nhm.mil.no), which tells the story of Norway’s stoic role in the Second World War.

A stroll away, the Contemporary Art Museum has a huge collection of Norwegian artists.

The Vigeland Sculpture Park in Frogner Park is a must-see. Its collection of 212 granite and bronze statues by local artist Gustav Vigeland depicting life, love, lust and loss are sometimes beautiful, sometimes grotesque, but always astonishing.

EXCURSIONS

In summer, join the partying locals on one of Oslo fjord’s islands. The closest, Hovedøya, has an 11th-century Cistercian monastery and is accessible on ferry 93 from Vippetangen, behind Akershus.

Be sure to take a swimsuit. Take an evening trip on the fjords with Båtservise Sightseeing AS (Tel: 3 35 68 90, www. boatsightseeing.com) from NOK 105, or rent a canoe at the Wilderness Centre by Akerselva river (Tel: 2 05 05 22). Holmenkollen ski jump (www. skiforeningen.no), to the west, has a special place in Oslo’s heart. Try the ski simulator to experience a virtual jump. Or you could hop on a boat to Drøbak village, one hour away (ferries depart from Aker Brygge and cost NOK 120), which has traditional whitewashed wooden houses and is the home of the Norwegian Father Christmas, meaning you can send post home with the official Santa stamp.

TOURIST TRAPS

The abundant crafts shops and theme pubs of Karl Johans gate apart, Oslo has too much taste to trap its tourists wittingly.

CONVENTION CENTRES

The following hotels will work best for conventions: both Radisson SAS hotels and the Rica Victoria - see opposite.