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Some Key Museums and Sights in Oslo Currently Closed

My pre-trip research has revealed that several significant Oslo sights are not currently open. Those planning trips should take this into consideration in deciding how much time they need in the city.

  • The Viking Ship Museum will be closed until 2026. I believe some items from the museum are on display at the National Historical Museum.

  • The National Gallery, which Rick labels the country's best art museum, has been closed for some time. The website says it will reopen this year, but no specifics are given, so I wouldn't count on it for a summer 2022 trip.

  • The Parliament Building (Stortinget) is offering no tours (and thus no public access) at the moment. I believe this is related to COVID-19.

All operating hours should be checked; many places are closing an hour earlier than older guidebooks indicated.

On a happier note: Those with trips coming up soon should check out the Wednesday 6 PM - 9 PM free-entry period offered through June at the Edvard Munch Museum. The usual entry charge is NOK 160, about US $18, and there's no senior discount. I know we're all gun-shy about taking advantage of free-access periods in museums that could be unpleasantly crowded. I haven't been to that museum, but the website makes it appear a relatively modern, spacious place, so I think it could be OK even during a free period. Note that not all of Norway's Munch works are in this museum. Some are part of the (currently closed) National Gallery's collection; others are in the KODE in Bergen.

There's a special Munch exhibition scheduled for the Courtauld Institute in London from May 27 until September 5; I suspect some of the Norwegian National Gallery's Munch paintings are being loaned for that exhibition. That's one reason I don't expect the Norwegian Museum to reopen in the next few months--but I'm only guessing here.

Posted by
10186 posts

And France has a couple of small Norwegian exhibitions at the moment -- Gallen-Kallela at the Jacquemart-André, and Albert Edelfelt at the Petit Palais.

The Orsay will have a special Munch exhibit beginning in late September and running through January.

Posted by
6968 posts

The National Gallery, which Rick labels the country's best art museum,
has been closed for some time. The website says it will reopen this
year, but no specifics are given, so I wouldn't count on it for a
summer 2022 trip.

The website says it will reopen 2022-06-11 so you can probably count on it for a summer trip.

Posted by
2547 posts

Wow! I am so glad we went to the Viking Museum in 2019. I would have been so sorry to have missed that.

Posted by
28055 posts

Thank you, Badger. I didn't see a date on the website. That works for me, because I'm not leaving until a bit after that. Hope it holds.

Posted by
6968 posts

Then you probably haven't visited the website in a while, now it is the first thing you see there. At least on the Norwegian site. Let's hope it doesn't get postponed.

And to clarify, the National gallery does not exist anymore. It has been merged with a few other museums to create the new National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design.

Posted by
28055 posts

I followed a Google link to the website just hours before I made the initial post. Perhaps I ended up on a cached, rather than current, page.

Posted by
28055 posts

I'm looking forward to Oslo as well as the other places I plan to see: the area around Flam and Balestrand, Bergen, Alesund, Trondheim, and the coast between Bergen and Trondheim, assuming I can get point-to-point tickets on Hurtigruten. I'll be in Norway between June 15 and a date to be determined in the first half of June. I'm hoping for decent enough weather that I can enjoy wandering around the streets of the cities as well as going to museums. There's a limit to what you can do in a country like Norway without a car--unless you have unlimited funds.

Posted by
6968 posts

It sounds like you found an old website. And like I said, the National gallery is now part of the new National museum, you can find them at https://www.nasjonalmuseet.no

There are many who have a bit of a negative view of Oslo, which I don't agree with. It is not the best capital in Europe, but it is certainly worth a few days.

Posted by
5837 posts

RE: "... I can get point-to-point tickets on Hurtigruten...."

You should be able to get point to point deck space tickets. A number of years ago we traveled from Meham to Kirkeness on a deck space (no cabin) ticket.
Port to port: https://global.hurtigruten.com/port-to-port/#/

And I also enjoy just walking about Oslo.

Posted by
28055 posts

Thanks, Edgar; you saved me from having to dig for that website. I know I have it in my notes, but it might have taken some time to locate it.

Posted by
5837 posts

You may already know that the Hurtegruten ships are working boats carrying people and cargo first and serving as a cruise ship second. That means departure and arrival times may not be tourist friendly. You could depeding on which port deparr or arrive during night hours.

Posted by
28055 posts

I'm lucky; the two places I want to get off and look around--Alesund and Trondheim--have daytime arrivals. It appears they've tried to set up the schedule so the ships arrive in most of the more important cities/towns during the day, sometimes with a few hours in port for a quick look around. I plan to overnight in Alesund and Trondheim, though.