The currency in Norway is Norwegian Crowns (NOK and not EURO). You can use your credit card everywhere for payments (sometimes you might be asked for an identification with passport or id card) and for cash withdrawal (called Minibank).
The airport for Oslo is called Oslo Airport Gardermoen (OSL). There are two other airports which are sometimes also called Oslo, namely Rygge (RYG) and Torp (TRF) (see below), but they are much further away from Oslo than the Gardermoen airport. They are used by low-cost carriers, but they are only recommended if you are very short on money because of the long travelling times to and from the airport.
When you left the customs area at OSL airport, you should turn right and walk down to the end of the hall until you reach the stairs to the Flytoget (airport express train). The train takes you to Oslo Sentralstasjon (or Oslo S) in about 25 minutes. One ride costs 170 NOK. You are obliged to buy a ticket before boarding these trains — it is not possible to buy tickets on board. Tickets may be bought by swiping a credit card, at the distribution machines or at the NSB counters.
The Torp airport is serviced, e.g., by KLM, Ryanair, Widerøe, and wizz air. Hint: cash withdrawal is available in the airport check-in hall.
From Torp, the company Torpekspressen offers buses to the Oslo Central bus station (Oslo Bussterminalen) which is in walking distance (5 minutes) from the central train station. The ride takes about 1:45h and cost about 190 NOK for a one-way ticket and 320 NOK for a return ticket.
NSB trains to Oslo/Nationaltheatret run every 1 to 2 hours. The ride takes about 1:45h and costs around 240 NOK (plus 40 NOK fee if you buy your ticket on board of the train). There is a free shuttle bus connecting to the nearest train station.
From Rygge airport, there are buses run by Rygge-Expressen and by TIMEkspressen.
Rygge airport also has a train connection via a free shuttle bus. A ride to Oslo takes about 50 minutes and costs around 150 NOK (plus 40 NOK fee if you buy your ticket on board of the train).
Some useful links for travelling:
- Oslo Airport Gardermoen
- Airport Express Train
- Trafikanten: info on bus, tram and metro (T-bane)
- OsloTaxi: taxi, rather expensive
In case you would like to take the opportunity of coming to Oslo for a visit to other parts of Norway, we have collected a few hints and links:
- The 17th of May is the Norwegian constitution day. All over norway you can watch parades, listen to marching bands, and see people dressed up in the national costumes.
- The company Norway in a nutshell ® offers 1—3 day trips between Bergen and Oslo.
- On VISITNORWAY.COM you may find general information on touristic highlights in Norway.
- The web pages Visit Oslo offer information about the Oslo region.
- If you have a lot of time and money, you might be interested in a Hurtigruten boat trip along the western coast of Norway.