Oslo Day Trips: 6 Day Plan
Six days adds a splurge day: a paid, narrated Oslofjord cruise in summer or Tryvann’s alpine runs in winter, on top of the fjord islands, forest, Drammen, Fredrikstad, and Lillehammer route above. This builds on the 5 day plan ; see the 7 day version for a flex day on top.
| Day | Day trip | Travel time from Oslo |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oslofjord islands (Hovedoya, Lindoya) | 7-15 min by ferry |
| 2 | Nordmarka forest (Frognerseteren, Sognsvann) | 30-35 min by T-bane |
| 3 | Drammen and Spiralen | 30-40 min by train |
| 4 | Fredrikstad and Gamlebyen | About 1 hour by train |
| 5 | Lillehammer and Maihaugen | 1h45-2h15 by train |
| 6 | Oslofjord cruise or Tryvann skiing | Departs central Oslo |
Book these before you go
- Compare hotel rates near Oslo S , the base for every train in this plan
- Book the day 6 Oslofjord cruise , which does sell out on clear summer evenings
- Book a Fredrikstad day trip tour if you’d rather have Gamlebyen explained than self-guide it
- Book a Lillehammer and Maihaugen tour given how much ground the museum covers in one visit
Day 1: the ferry hack to a ruined monastery
Walk to Radhusbrygge for the Ruter B1 ferry to Hovedoya, a 7-minute ride on the standard NOK 44-46 Zone 1 ticket. Cistercian monks from Kirkstead Abbey in England founded an abbey here in 1147, burned in 1532, its stone later quarried into Akershus Fortress (background on visitoslo.com ). Continue on the same ticket to Lindoya before heading back for dinner.
Day 2: the forest loop by T-bane
T-bane line 1 ends at Frognerseteren, where a marked trail runs down through Nordmarka to Sognsvann, a real local swimming lake come summer. Loop back on lines 4 or 5 from Sognsvann. Winter turns this into ski country, with roughly 2,600km of groomed cross-country trail.
Day 3: Drammen and the spiral tunnel
Vy trains run every 15 minutes, about 30-40 minutes each way, to a working city rather than a curated stop. The reason to go is Spiralen, a 1,650-metre helical tunnel through Bragernesasen opened in 1961, ending at Spiraltoppen for a cafe and a real view over Drammensdalen.
Day 4: Fredrikstad’s free ferry to Gamlebyen
Vy trains run roughly hourly from Oslo S, about an hour each way for around NOK 215 (check current times on visitfredrikstadhvaler.com ). Walk to the river and cross on Byfergen, a free electric ferry running every 15 minutes to Gamlebyen, the walled old town built in 1567, home to roughly 350 residents inside its ramparts.
Day 5: Lillehammer and the 1994 Olympics
Lillehammer sits 1h45 to 2h15 from Oslo S, with 12-18 daily departures. Maihaugen holds close to 200 buildings collected from the Gudbrandsdalen valley by Anders Sandvig, given a permanent site by the town council in 1901 (current hours on eng.maihaugen.no ), and the town’s 1994 Winter Olympics history sits alongside it.
Day 6: the splurge day, cruise or skis
By day six you’ve already done the DIY fjord ferry, so this is the day to book the version you skipped on day one: a narrated Oslofjord sightseeing or dinner cruise leaving Aker Brygge, typically NOK 340-830 depending on length, seeing more of the fjord’s outer islands than the Hovedoya ferry covers. In winter, swap it for Tryvann instead, 18 alpine runs about 25 minutes from the centre by T-bane, a different kind of day than Nordmarka’s cross-country trails from day two.
Is the paid Oslofjord cruise worth it after already doing the DIY ferry?
Yes, if you want the outer fjord and a guide narrating it, since the Ruter ferry only reaches the inner islands like Hovedoya and Lindoya. It’s redundant if you just want more of the same view for free; in that case, spend day six back in Nordmarka or repeating whichever earlier day you liked best instead.
Does the Oslo Pass help with any of these six days?
Only day one, since the pass bundles Zone 1 Ruter transit (current fares on ruter.no ), which covers the Hovedoya ferry. Drammen, Fredrikstad, and Lillehammer all run on separate Vy tickets, and the day 6 cruise and Tryvann lift tickets are separate bookings too, so a pass bought for this itinerary specifically won’t earn back its cost.
Book the day 6 cruise a day or two ahead in July and August; clear-evening sailings do sell out.