Coming to the University of Oslo is a great opportunity to experience the beautiful nature and outdoors of Norway.
University of Oslo is located just minutes by subway, tram, or bicycle from the heart of Oslo. The city of Oslo lies at the end of the 100 km Oslo Fjord and is surrounded by sea, forests, and hills.
You can easily take a fresh swim in the water on one of the beaches in the city, or book a sauna for the afternoon. The city is close to nature and with public transport you can quickly and easily reach Oslomarka, the forested and hilly areas surrounding Oslo. You can reach many of the 40 islands in the Oslo Fjord by boat from downtown Oslo. Oslo’s many parks cover over 8 km2 of the city. Over 50% of the city area of Oslo is covered by forest and parks, and there are hundreds of lakes within the city limits.
In the summer, when the sun only sets for a few hours and the sky never turns dark, people enjoy the many public beaches. The next day, you may mountain bike or hike in the woods of the Nordmarka. City parks, forests, cycling, walking routes, and hiking are all within easy reach.
- Knutepunktet - International Student Reception
- Learn more at VisitOslo
- More information about staying in Oslo
How to plan your trips and buy tickets for public transportation
Download the app Ruter (available on Apple and Android). With Ruter you can both plan all your trips with public transportation in Oslo (bus, tram, train, subway, and ferry), and buy a ticket. For travelling in Oslo and some of the surrounding area, only 1 zone is necessary. We recommend you buy a 7-day ticket. A 7-day ticket costs 335 NOK for 1 zone. Important: you are not eligible for a student ticket with Ruter when you are an international student at summer school, so remember to buy the adult ticket, and not the student ticket (the price for 7 days is the same for adults and students).
This ticket will take you everywhere in zone 1 and allow you to travel as much as you want during the 7 days. You can also buy 30-day tickets or 24h-tickets through the app.
How to get from Oslo Airport (Gardermoen) to the city center
There are several ways to travel from the airport to the city center. We do not recommend you take a taxi. It is very expensive and not as effective. Use the app Ruter to check out times for all options below.
Option 1 – the cheapest option: Take the train. If you buy the 7-day ticket for 1 zone through the Ruter app, you can buy an extension for 75 NOK that will allow you to take the train from the airport to the city. The train will depart the airport about 3 times per hour. Leave the train at either Oslo S (Oslo Central Station) or Nasjonaltheateret (the National Theater) (both are in downtown Oslo and pretty close together, just depending on where your hotel/AirBnB is located).
Option 2 – The most comfortable option? The airport train. This train leaves the airport every 10 minutes and cost 105 NOK for a student. You can buy the ticket either physically at the airport or through the app called "Flytoget". Leave the train at either Oslo S (Oslo Central Station) or Nasjonaltheateret (the National Theater) (both are in downtown Oslo and pretty close together, just depending on where your hotel/AirBnB is located).
Option 3 – The bus. You can take the airport bus which might stop closer to your hotel/AirBnB than the trains will. Worth to check out if that is the case. Find times, bus stops and get your ticket at flybussen.no. A one-way ticket will cost 119 NOK for a student (below age 31).
How to get to the university campus
The campus where the summer course will be held is called Blindern. There are several ways to get to Blindern, depending on where you stay. The tram and the subway are the easiest options, in addition to walking/biking if you stay nearby. Use the Ruter app to plan your trips and to check times.
Subway: Lines 4 and 5 stop at "Blindern" and "Forskningsparken". Our building will be closest to the "Forskningsparken" stop. If you are coming from the city center, you will take the westbound line – 4 Vestli via Majorstuen, 5 Ringen via Majorstuen or 5 Sognsvann – to the stop, Blindern or Forskningsparken.
Tram: Routes 17 and 18 stop at Blindern Campus at the stop called "Universitetet Blindern". If you are coming from the city center, lines 17 Rikshospitalet and 18 Rikshospitalet to the stop, "Universitetet Blindern".
If you don’t live too far from the campus, we encourage you to walk, rent a bike or a scooter.
In Oslo there are city bikes that you can use from bike station to station. You can either pay for single rides (29 NOK), day pass (59 NOK) or a monthly pass (149 NOK). Check out the website https://oslobysykkel.no/en/ for more information and to download the app.
You can rent an electrical scooter from Voi, Tier or Bolt. Download the apps to locate a scooter nearby.
What is open at the Blindern Campus during the summer?
Food/drinks:
- Georg Kaffebar located at the university library at Georg Sverderups hus – open Mon-Fri 09:00-15:00
- Tacoteket at Frederikkebygningen – open Mon-Fri 11:00-16:00
- Union Blindern at Frederikkebygningen – open Mon-Fri 11:00-16:00
Grocery store:
- Bunnpris at Frederikke – open Mon-Fri 07:00-20:00, Sat 15:00-17:00
Bookstore:
- Akademika Blindern – open Mon-Fri 09:00-15:00 (17:00?)
Pharmacy:
- Vitusapotek Blindern – open 08:30-16:30
Swimming
Oslo is surrounded by a forest and a fjord, which provides many options to take a refreshing swim in the ocean after class. Check out Sørenga or Tjuvholmen if you wish to stay close to the city. There is many sauna options as well. Huk or Paradisbukta at Bygdøy are wonderful options if you want to lie on a beach. It is the perfect place to walk or run to if you wish to move your body after a long day of class. It is also just a short bus ride from the city center (and works with your 1 zone 7-day ticket if you have one – take bus no. 30 to Huk).
If you prefer swimming in something other than the salty fjord, you can take the subway or walk to Sognsvann, north of the city center near the forest, where there is a beach and several nice places to take a swim.
If you buy a 7-day ticket for 1 zone through Ruter, you will also be able to take the ferries from Aker Brygge out to some of the small islands in the fjords. These islands are perfect for a day of swimming and relaxing. If the weather is nice, this is really recommended! The islands are of different sizes and are called Hovedøya, Lindøya, Nakholmen, Bleikøya, Gressholmen, and Langøyene.
Hiking
If you wish to spend some time in nature after class, there are several opportunities around Oslo. For great views, check out the accessible walks to Grefsenkollen or Vettakollen. Both hikes are also great starting points for hikes further into the forests.
Grefsenkollen provides great views of the city and the fjord, and also has a restaurant and a café at the top. Take the bus no. 25 to the stop Grefsenkollveien/Grefsenlia and hike about 30 minutes from there to the top. Use Google Maps to find your way from the bus stop to the top.
Vettakollen is on the other side of town, and is a shorter, but a little steeper hike. Take the subway no. 1 Frognerseteren to Vettakollen station and walk about 20 minutes to the top. There should be clear signs to show you the way. At the top, enjoy one of the best views that Oslo has to offer. Bring lunch or something to drink, as there is no café on top.
Museums
There are several museums in Oslo. We have listed a few that you might want to check out!
Fram – The Polar Exploration Museum. Looking for a museum with something other than pictures to look at? Check out Fram Museum – The Polar Ship Fram at Bygdøy. In the museum, you can see and walk inside the strongest wooden ship ever built. You can either just visit Fram (ticket price for students: 50 NOK), or you can buy combined tickets including admission to Fram, the Kon-tiki museum, and the Norwegian Maritime Museum. The latter option is only available to purchase physically at the reception. Take the bus or a boat from Aker Brygge to the museums. The ticket for the boat trip to Bygdøy is not included in the 7-day Ruter app but can be purchased prior to the boat ride (one way 58 NOK, daypass 92 NOK) or at the ferry (more expensive, one way: 68 NOK).
Astrup Fearnly – If you are a fan of contemporary art, check out the Astrup Fearnly museum at Tjuvholmen. The entry fee is 100 NOK for a student. Tjuvholmen is overall a great place to be in the summer, with cafes, restaurants and great places for swimming.
Munch – check out the newly opened Munch museum on the edge of the fjord. In addition to Munch's art, other contemporary art is exhibited in the museum. Order your ticket in advance at https://www.munchmuseet.no/en/ as there is a limited number of people that can enter at a given time slot. There is no student discount, but if you are under 25 years of age, a ticket costs 100 NOK.
Nasjonalmuseet – The National Museum. Oslo's newest museum opened on June 11, 2022. The museum will exhibit a permanent exhibition of about 5000 objects, including fine art, contemporary art, design, and arts and crafts. The museum is located in the city center and is very accessible. No student discount, but if you are under 25 years of age, a ticket price for this museum is 110 NOK.
Grünerløkka
Grünerløkka is a part of the city which is known for its independent stores, nightlife, bars and restaurants. Great place to check out, and it has a lot of open stores on Sundays (when most stores are closed in Norway).
Torshov
Torshov is north of Grünerløkka and is a little more quiet. Torshov also has some great bars, wine bars, and restaurants, but most importantly it has two big parks perfect for casual get-togethers; Torshovdalen and Torshovparken.
Frogner
Frogner is not too far away from the Blindern campus and is mostly known for the sculpture park called Frognerparken/Vigelandsparken. This park is a wonderful destination for casual get-togethers, but also if you are interested in art and sculptures. It is free and highly recommended to check out.
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a new and vibrant part of the city with new stores and bars/restaurants popping up almost weekly. You find Bjørvika close to the Opera house (definitely worth a visit as well!) and the new Munch museum.
Oslo is also so much more than what is listed here. Check out visitoslo.com or ask one of the staff members if you are looking for something specific to do.
Sources: visitoslo.com
