Hello! I found a photo of the Flytoget airport express and it shows 4 steps you need to climb to board the train. Is there any assistance when you have heavy luggage you need to get onto and off of the train? It looks like it will be as difficult as when using regular long distance trains where the doorway isn't wide enough to carry the luggage next to you as you board so you have to haul it up.
Thanks!
-- Ethan
No, it's up to you to handle your bags. If that is a problem, just take the regular train to Oslo, they offer level boarding.
The drawback of the regular train is that it is a few minutes slower, but on the other hand it's a lot cheaper.
I took the regular train into the city in 2022. In addition to the lower cost, there was another advantage: the train ticket covered use of the city buses and trams for at least 90 minutes (could have been longer) after purchase of the ticket, so transportation to a point near one's hotel was covered.
It's so ODD that the regular train doesn't need a step up, but the specially-designed airport train, meant for people with luggage, does.
The regular train is designed to be accessible for wheelchairs and prams. We used the Flytoget in one direction and the ordinary train in the other when we flew in and out of Oslo earlier this year. Getting our bags on and off the Flytoget was no more difficult than lifting them onto the luggage scale at checkin at the airport.
Aussie -- you say that it's not harder than lifting one's bags onto a scale. I saw a photo of the train which showed one narrow step protruding out from the train and three interior steps.
That was the main reason I had thought it would be difficult.
Not only is the normal train ticket available for transfers, but the Ruter one day and 7 day tickets are also valid on the normal trains. Those cover all forms of transport in Greater Oslo for one day or seven days, and are something of a bargain.
In September we had a room for two nights that overlooked the regional train platform, and it seemed to be the most popular option for travelers. We used it when we went into Oslo. For us, the cost savings outweighed the few minutes we lost in time. I agree that the regional train looks easier to board.
It's so ODD that the regular train doesn't need a step up, but the
specially-designed airport train, meant for people with luggage, does.
Not that odd when you think about it. The airport trains are older, built in the 90s for when the airport opened. Low floor trains were far from common then. They have bought some newer ones with low floor sections but the older ones are still in use. The regional trains are newer, the first ones entered service in 2012 and they have replaced older trains from the 70s.
And I'm not sure the airport trains were meant for people with luggage. I wouldn't be surprised if they were built for business travellers carrying only a briefcase, and the thought was that people paying for the tickets themself would prefer the regular trains since they are 100 kr cheaper, despite the fact that they are 3-4 minutes slower.
