Indian Chief Travel Guides

Museums of Oslo

Oslo is the cultural center of Norway and, despite its relatively small size, has a surprisingly large number of really good museums. The museums in Oslo are all within easy reach of the city center and generally not expensive; with the Oslo Pass, most of them are free. You will not have time to visit all cultural attractions the city has to offer so choose wisely and plan ahead. If you plan to go to Trondheim, for example (or if you have already been), don’t bother visiting the cathedral in Oslo, which doesn’t come close to the Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim.

At Bygdøy, the peninsula west of the city center, you can spend the entire day visiting a variety of the city’s most famous museums. If the weather is good, it’s also a really fine area to just go for a stroll. The beaches here are some of the most popular in the city and are always appreciated on hot summer days.

Norsk Folkemuseum

This open-air museum is on Bygdøy next to some of the other famous museums in Oslo. If you want to learn about Norwegian culture and traditions, this is the best place to go. The stave church here was bought by the union king, Oskar II, in 1885 and transported from its original place in Hallingsdal. Much of the foundation is from the Middle Ages, while the roof has been renovated to make it look like Borgund Stave Church, one of the most famous in Norway. Like most open-air museums, this one is well suited for kids but there are many other exhibits and events to be enjoyed by all age groups.

Oseberg Viking Ship Museum

This is another attraction at the museum-dense Bygdøy. The Viking ship is one of the main reasons for our fascination with these seafarers from the past and Oseberg has the three best-preserved ships in the world. The ships were found about 100 years ago in Oseberg in the county of Vestfold, not far from Oslo, where the blue clay soil had preserved them amazingly well for about 1,100 years. The museum also has some of the best evidence we have today of fabric and weaving techniques from the Viking Age, found in and around the boats, along with many tools and weapons.

Oslo's Art Museums

National Museum of Art and the Munch Museum

The National Museum of Art and the Munch Museum are well worth visiting. The National Museum of Art is next to the university just a couple of blocks from Karl Johan. It contains an extensive collection of both Norwegian and international art.

Edvard Munch is the most famous Norwegian artist in history and is considered one of the pioneers in Expressionism. His Skrik (The Scream) is one of the most recognized paintings in the world. The Munch Museum, about a 10-minute walk from Karl Johan, contains thousands of Munch’s paintings, donated to the city in accordance with his last will.

Henie-Onstad Museum

The Henie-Onstad Museum is Oslo’s museum of contemporary art and is in Høvikodden, a 15-minute bus ride west of the city, in a tranquil environment on the Oslofjord. The paintings were donated by the former Olympic ice-skating champion Sonja Henie and her husband Niels Onstad, who was a famous ship owner. During years of traveling the world, the couple acquired a collection of several hundred paintings, which they eventually decided would be best used for the general public to enjoy. The museum, which opened in 1968, contains works of art by such masters as Picasso, Matisse and many more. There’s also a separate room with all the medals and trophies from Sonja Henie’s career, over 600 in total. Another reason to visit this museum is for the beautiful surroundings and Henie-Onstad is best visited in the summer for this reason. Another reason is the big sculpture park just outside.