How to experience Oslo at its best within 24 hours

Oslo is not a big city, in fact it is so small that you can get around on foot and be able to experience the top things to see. On the must-see list that I had was: The Nobel Peace Price Centre, Vigeland Sculpture Park, Slottsparken (home to the Royal Palace), Aker Brygge and Tjuvholmen (nice area for restaurant and sight seeing), Karl Johan gate (for shopping), The Opera House, The Kon-Tiki Museum (a famous Norwegian story), and Holmenkollen (for a nice view of Oslo).

I just recently had a friend of mine visiting me in Norway for 3 days. We met at The University of Manchester and did partly the same course for three years, back in 2014. I haven't seen her for over a year, so it was lovely to meet her again and catch up.

This is what we managed to do within the first 24 hours that my friend was here:

1. Aker Brygge

Getting off the train at Nationaltheatre - where most of the sightseeings are located closely to each other, I thought that Aker Brygge would be a good place to start showing my friend the capital of Norway. Aker Brygge gives a nice impression of Oslo, because it is so beautiful area, by the sea, with lots of restaurants by the pier. It's a place where people meet to mingle, shop, eat and drink, perhaps enjoying fresh seafood from the boats by the dock. It's a popular tourist destination that gives a brief historical overview of Norwegian shipbuilding, as well as giving you a nice view of the Akershus Castle and Fortress.

The Fortress is located behind us, on the left

2. Akershus Festning

Next, we went up the small hill towards the Akershus Castle and Fortress and walked around, looking at Oslo from the other side of the Oslofjord. Unfortunately, we didn't manage to visit Forsvarsmuseet (Norway's Resistance Museum), because we got there after it's closing time at 4pm. The Forsvarsmuseet gives a representation of the German occupation during World War 2. The museum has free access and has opening hours between 10am - 4pm from Tuesday to Sunday.

3. Tjuvholmen

Walking downhill from Akershusfestning - back to Aker Brygge, we walked along the pier towards another area named Tjuvholmen. It is one of Oslo's newest boroughs, and offers architectural diversity and unique outdoor spaces. Tjuvholmen is best known for their restaurants with high standards, such as the highly exclusive Hanami (Japanese restaurant), to more informal places like Rorbua with great sea view. If curious, you will have a chance to try whale meat.

If you like contemporary art, Astrup Fearnley Museum would be a nice place to visit to see Norwegian and International art.

My friend and I walked through some very nice apartments, and we could see that this area is expensive and with high standards. Tjuvholmen is one of the nicest and most expensive areas to live and explore in Oslo, not surprisingly, because it is located in the centre and with a spectacular sea view.

4. Karl Johans gate

After exploring the sea side of Oslo, we walked on a long street called Karl Johan, that would take us to Oslo Centralstation. Here, there are many shops, restaurants and bars along the street. On the other end of the street, there is the Royal Castle.

Walking towards Oslo S., we passed the Parliament, the Grand Hotel (where Barack Obama stayed in 2009, the year he received the Nobel Piece Price), and the Freia watch logo (the company that produces Norwegians most famous chocolates; Melkesjokolade and Kvikklunsj).

At Karl Johan's street, there are exclusive shops with high end brands, designer brands, and Zara, as well as Victoria Secret store, and many more.

The Royal Castle at Slottsparken

5. The Opera House

The last place we explored before leaving Oslo for the night, was watching the view from the roof of the Opera House. The view from the top is not great, to be honest. However, the architecture of the Opera house and the building's bold design provides a much nicer scenery to the public. The Opera House is dedicated for opera and ballet venue in Norway, designed by Snøhetta, receiving the World Architecture Award for their design.

Since Maddie, my friend, was visiting me for only three short days, we didn't had that much time to explore Oslo at its fullest. So I made a plan that we had to stick to, according to the schedule and times, in order to see as much as possible during the short period that she was here. So this is what we managed to do on that day, but Sunday would be an equally busy day for us!

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