Stockholm or Oslo?

Stockholm is far more beautiful and the one I would recommend. The old town (Gamla Stan) is fantastic. I also enjoyed the Vasa Museum and cruising around the islands (the city is set on 11 islands). It's really stunning. Oslo is nice and has some nice things to do but can't compare in my humble opinion.

What does the rest of your trip involve? That could guide the recommendations.

I prefer Oslo myself, mainly for it's parks and sort-of- small-town feel, but I only spent a few hours in Stockholm.

Kathi,

i thought the VASA museum was a highlight for me. But if youre not into boats, then you may not care.

Since youre going to both, to me the question is moot.

If you can get less expensive flights in/out of one particular place i would look at that option.

happy trails.

I like Oslo, but I love Stockholm. Stockholm is a beautiful city and it is just stunning on a sunny, summer day. the city is on 14 islands, surrounded by water (both the Baltic and Lake Mälaren) with lots of beautiful parks. Don't miss the Vasa Museum which I think is one of the best museums in the world. The story of how the ship sunk on its maiden voyage in the 1600s and was raised in the 1960s is fascinating. Also, make sure to take a tour of Stadshuset (the City Hall) which hosts the Nobel Prize dinner each December 10th and walk around Gamla Stan, the old town. The Stockholm Card is usually a good value.

I admit to being a bit biased. I lived in Stockholm for more than two years. I've only visited Oslo twice.

We really loved Oslo! Stockholm was good, but not a match to Oslo. There are the Viking ship museum , Norwegian Folk Museum, Kon Tiki museum, Maritime Museum and others, on Bygdoy peninsula. A cruise on the fjord is wonderful- especially a late afternoon one. We especially enjoyed the Vigeland sculpture park. You can take a train up to a silver mine for a day trip, too. Plenty of other day trips that we didn't have time for. It is a very walkable city as well. And CLEAN!!!!

Oslo has some charm and interesting attractions but Stockholm is far better in the charm department as well as things to do and see.

If you can only do one, Stockholm is the more diverse and comes with more obvious beauty. Also the weather tends to be better there.

I really enjoyed the museums in Oslo (Munch, various ship museums, etc), but was cool to the city itself. I was less taken with the specific "attractions" in Stockholm (although the Vasa was great), but loved the vibe of the city itself. That's just one person's opinion, from July 2003.

I agree, if you post the rest of your itinerary, that would influence my recommendation. You can't go "wrong" with either one.

You should also know that, while Stockholm isn't "cheap," it's definitely less expensive than Oslo. If you are on the fence in every other way, maybe that will be the deciding factor.

Thanks everyone for your input, looks like Stockholm has a slight edge over Oslo. Couldn't have decided without you!

I'd go with Stockholm over Oslo. Stockholm has more to see, set nicely on a series of islands, and is much more convenient to add side trips to Helsinki and/or Tallinn (which take you through the archipelago).

Oslo is more out of the way. It has a some good sights but isn't really convenient to anywhere (other than Norway).