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Europe

Norway

9 guides across 2 destinations — where to go, when, what it costs and what to eat.

Where to go

Destinations in Norway

The gabled timber merchant houses of Bryggen mirrored in Bergen's harbour, mountains behind
Bergen
Best summer
A Norwegian quayside fish-market stall banked with crushed ice, displaying king crab legs, langoustines, whole crabs and peeled shrimp as a vendor works behind the counter
Oslo
Best summer
Before you go

Practical essentials for Norway

Money

Norwegian krone (NOK)

Language

Norwegian; English is spoken almost universally

Power

Type C/F, 230V 50Hz

Getting around

Oslo's metro, trams, buses and ferries run on tickets bought in the Ruter app, Bergen uses Skyss, and cards are accepted virtually everywhere.

Tipping

Not expected — service is included, and although card terminals prompt for 5–20%, declining causes no offence.

Tap water

Tap water is safe to drink across the country and is usually excellent.

Driving

Right-hand side; a UK or EU photocard licence is valid for up to 90 days, with no International Driving Permit required.

Emergency

112 police, 113 ambulance, 110 fire

Country-level guidance, checked against official sources. Currency, fares and entry rules change — confirm anything time-critical before you travel.

Latest

Recent stories from Norway

A cobbled lane of white and cream timber houses in Bergen's Nordnes quarter, strung with small flags and lined with potted plants, dropping towards the city and its wooded mountain at the end of the street.
Destinations

Is Bergen Worth It, Rain and All? A First-Timer's Briefing

Bergen is one of Europe's wettest cities and still one of Scandinavia's most rewarding stops — here is how to build two or three days around the weather, the fjords and the funiculars.

Bergen · 11 min
A white public fjord ferry crossing Oslo harbour in front of Akershus Fortress, the medieval ramparts and green-spired castle standing on their wooded bluff above the quays under a clear blue sky.
Destinations

Oslo Without the Sticker Shock: A Smart Budget Playbook

Norway's capital has a fearsome price reputation and a surprising number of free pleasures. Here is how to spend three days in Oslo well, without spending like a Norwegian oil executive.

Oslo · 2 min
A grey, damp afternoon on a Bergen street, people walking the wet cobbles past tall wooden houses in ochre, rust and white beneath a low pale sky.
Itineraries

A Rainy Day in Bergen: The All-Indoor Route

When the famous Bergen rain settles in, this museum-to-market route keeps you dry from morning coffee to evening seafood — with one cheat that is worth getting wet for.

Bergen · 2 min
The glass-roofed hall of Mathallen food market in Oslo at dusk, lit stalls and counters running down both sides of the aisle beneath iron roof trusses while diners eat at long tables.
Food

Oslo from Breakfast to Midnight: A Full Day of Eating

Cinnamon buns and brown cheese, world-class coffee, shrimp bought off a boat, New Nordic tasting menus and a hot dog in a potato flatbread — Oslo's day, eaten in order.

Oslo · 2 min
Fresh snow on the painted timber houses of Bergen's Årstad quarter, street after street of pink, blue, yellow and white gables packed below the white flank of Mount Ulriken and its summit mast.
Stays

A First-Timer's Guide to Basing Yourself in Bergen

Bergen is small enough that every central hotel is walkable, but the neighbourhood you pick changes the trip entirely — here is how the harbourfront, the main square, the station quarter and the wooden lanes actually compare.

Bergen · 10 min
An old brick mill building on the Akerselva river in Oslo, its riverside terrace strung with festoon lights and set with tables, framed by overhanging trees in full summer leaf above the running water.
Hidden Gems

Oslo's Backstreets, Islands and Weekend Markets

Wooden lanes the city forgot to demolish, a river walk past waterfalls and old mills, a Sunday flea market in Grunerlokka and fjord islands reachable on a tram ticket.

Oslo · 2 min
A Norwegian seafood stew of mussels and prawns with bread
Food

The Fish Market Is a Photograph, Not a Dinner: A Bergen Eating Map

Bergen's best tables sit a few minutes inland from the wharf where the cruise crowds turn around, and this is the walk between them.

Bergen · 9 min
The white marble slopes of the Oslo Opera House on the waterfront, with sailboats on the fjord and the city skyline behind.
Itineraries

48 Hours in Oslo: The Perfect Weekend, Hour by Hour

Walk on an opera house, sail past Viking waters and end in a floating sauna — a precise two-day plan for Scandinavia's most underrated capital.

Oslo · 2 min
The colourful pointed wooden facades of Bryggen wharf in Bergen glowing at dusk, reflected in the harbour beneath mist-covered mountains.
The List

The 7 Unmissable Bergen Experiences, Ranked

Wooden wharves, funicular summits and the doorway to Norway's mightiest fjords — the essential Bergen, ranked from great to unmissable... in reverse.

Bergen · 2 min