Central Oslo Highlights Guided Walking Tour

The Tiger at Jernbanetorget and the Oslo Opera House

Oslo has been nicknamed the Tiger City since the nineteenth century, and the large bronze tiger outside the Central Station was unveiled in 2000 to mark the city's thousand-year anniversary. It is the meeting point for this Oslo walking tour and the place where your guide introduces the city's story, from a Viking-age trading settlement to a modern Scandinavian capital.

A few minutes away, the Oslo Opera House rises from the water of the Bjørvika district like a white iceberg. Opened in 2008 and clad in white marble and granite, it was designed so that anyone can walk up its sloping roof for wide views over the fjord and the new waterfront. Is the Oslo Opera House worth visiting? Even from outside it is one of the most striking modern buildings in Northern Europe, and the roof is open to the public at no charge.

Christiania Torv and the Old Town

After a great fire destroyed much of medieval Oslo in 1624, King Christian IV ordered a new town to be built closer to the protection of Akershus Fortress, laid out on a regular grid of straight streets and named Christiania after him. The city kept that name until 1925, when it returned to Oslo. Christiania Torv was the main square of this new town, and its fountain features a large sculpted glove, recalling the story that the king pointed to the spot and declared where the city should stand.

Around the square you see some of the oldest surviving buildings in the city, including the Old Town Hall from the 1640s and timber-framed and brick houses that escaped later fires. Your guide explains how these few blocks, known as Kvadraturen, became the core of the capital before it spread north and west.

Akershus Fortress

Akershus Fortress has guarded the Oslo harbour since around 1300, when it was built on a rocky headland to defend the town against attack from the sea. In the seventeenth century it was rebuilt as a Renaissance castle, and its thick walls, gateways and bastions still overlook the fjord. The grounds are an active military area, and you often see uniformed guards on duty.

On this Akershus Fortress walk you enter the grounds on foot and stop at the ramparts, where the view takes in the harbour, the City Hall towers and the islands of the inner Oslofjord. The fortress grounds are open daily and free to explore; the castle interior and museums inside have their own tickets and opening hours and are not part of this tour, but many guests return after the walk to see them.

Oslo City Hall and Aker Brygge

With its two brick towers, Oslo City Hall is one of the most recognisable buildings in the city. It was inaugurated in 1950, and every year on 10 December it hosts the ceremony of the Peace Prize. The great hall inside is decorated with huge murals showing Norwegian working life, history and the years of occupation during the Second World War. Entry to the main hall is usually free during the day, so you can step inside after the tour.

From the City Hall square the walk continues west to Aker Brygge, a former shipyard that closed in 1982 and was transformed into a lively waterfront of promenades, restaurants and modern architecture. Here you have a short stop to enjoy the fjord views, watch the ferries and boats come and go, and take photos looking back towards Akershus Fortress.

Oslo Cathedral, the Parliament and Karl Johans gate

Oslo Cathedral was consecrated in 1697 and is the main church of the city, known for its painted ceiling and its green-roofed tower above the Stortorvet square. From here the walk joins Karl Johans gate, the city's grand boulevard, which runs for about one and a half kilometres from the Central Station to the Royal Palace and is named after King Karl Johan, who ruled Norway and Sweden in the early nineteenth century.

Along the way you pass the Storting, the Norwegian Parliament, a yellow-brick building opened in 1866 with stone lions guarding its slope, and the park of Eidsvolls plass with its fountains and, in winter, an ice rink. Further on stands the National Theatre, opened in 1899, one of the finest buildings of its era in the city. Your guide shares stories of Norwegian independence and democracy as you walk.

The Royal Palace and the Palace Park

The tour ends at the top of Karl Johans gate in front of the Royal Palace, completed in 1849 as the official residence of the Norwegian monarch. Its classical facade looks straight down the boulevard, and in front of it stands the equestrian statue of King Karl Johan, who commissioned the building. The palace guard stands watch at the entrance, and the changing of the guard takes place daily around midday, usually at 13:30.

The palace is surrounded by Slottsparken, a large public park with ponds, old trees and paths that are lovely in every season. After the walk you can stay to watch the guards, explore the park or head to nearby museums and cafés. Guided tours of the palace interior run only in summer and need separate tickets, so they are not part of this walk.