Something To Do Instead of Oslo

Either works. Oslo (in my opinion) warrants more than one day. That said, Lillihammer is an interesting less urban experience (check out the Maihaugen Museum).

OSL to Oslo S by NSB takes less than a half hour and cost 92 NOK each way. OSL to Lillihammer by NSB takes 1-3/4 hours and cost 293 NOK each way. Train ride to Lillihammer is more scenic than train ride to Oslo S.

Suggestion is to keep your end of travel plan open until you have at least spent the day in Oslo. If you think you have seen everything in a day, do Lillihammer for your end of travel day.

Scene from Lilyhammer: https://youtu.be/2YUC6Tl6MAI You may (probably should) want to turn the sound off and just watch the scenery - R for language and in any event, English sub-titles.

Thanks. Really appreciate the idea of just leaving it open ended. I slightly worry about hotel availability because our trip is at the end of July but I'm sure something will be available somewhere.

Thanks much!

...slightly worry about hotel availability because our trip is at the end of July ....

You could hedge by booking free cancellation lodging in Lillihammer or up hill in the Sjusjøen area. If you decide to take more time exploring Oslo after your one day visit, book Olso and cancel Lillihammer. Oslo hotels are business driven and July is the low season for business. The Norwegians head for their hytte in mountains or on seashore in July. Probably easier to book a last minute Oslo room than Sjusjøen/Lillihammer.

Thank you so much!

There is so much to do in Oslo. I am not sure if the first day that you are in Oslo is a full day. Do you arrive, recover from jet lag, and stay an entire day and then leave the next morning?

Regardless, I would save the Viking Ship museum and the Kon Tiki and the Northwest passage/ Amundsen museum (forget the name) for shorter day. They are literally just a few minutes walk. The Norwegian folk museum is just a short bus ride from these 3 museums.

For the day that you have more time, I would go to Frogner Park, the Resistance museum, the National Gallery, the Munch museum, City Hall, etc. as these will take time to travel between sites. The Resistance Museum was my favorite.

There is plenty to do, deciding what to do, will be the issue.

Hi Nick. Thanks for the info. We will have a very full day in Oslo on the first day. Arriving by boat from Copenhagen around 9am and will spend the full day sight seeing . I left Frogner Park and the Resistance museum of our list as well as the Munch gallery. Figured the National Gallery was better to see than just a Munch collection. Although Frogner looks nice, I'm not really sure how important it is on the list.
Glad to see that the Resistance Museum is your favorite. We will add that to the list. I have a feeling from the suggestions that we will do the last day in Oslo instead of elsewhere just to take in more of the city at a slower pace. I guess that I need to either dive into Rick's walking tour a little more or take a look at the city map to figure out the most efficient way to see everything.

Thanks for the advice.

"Although Frogner looks nice, I'm not really sure how important it is on the list." What? I LOVE that park with amazing sculptures.

My personal favorite of the Bygdøy peninsula museums is the Fram Museum. The Fram Museum is close to the ferry dock. The Fridtjof Nansen story of arctic exploration is spell binding. While Nansen did not reach the north pole, Nansen left the ice bound Fram and set off over the ice reaching a point farthest north at that time (latitude of 86°13.6′N).
http://www.frammuseum.no/

And to top off Dr. Nansen's arctic exploits, he was awarded the Nobel Peace for his work Post WW1 role in enabling stateless refugees cross national borders.
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1922/nansen-facts.html

Catch the Bus 30 from city center to the Folk Museum and the other Bygdøy museums. Return by ferry back to the dock next go City Hall and stop by the Aker Brygge mall for afternoon refreshment. Walk or take the tram back to city center.

I vote for a day trip to Lillehammer and Maihaugen. It is really a beautiful place!