Hop-On Hop-Off Bus in Oslo or the Oslo Pass: Which Is Worth It?
4 min read
If you plan to visit several museums, price the Oslo Pass first; if you mostly want to see the city from a seat and get off at a few stops, a hop-on hop-off ticket is simpler. Two bus operators sell tickets in Oslo, and the pass is a different product altogether: a city card that covers public transport and museum entry. This guide sets them side by side so you can pick one before you arrive.
The two bus tickets
Both are valid for 24 or 48 hours, both start in the city centre near the National Theatre, and both offer audio commentary in several languages.
| Bus | Rating and reviews | Starts at | Stops and extras |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gray Line 24- or 48-hour ticket | 4.1 out of 5 from 2,688 reviews | Stop 1, Karl Johan, in front of the National Theatre | Audio guide in nine languages; museum discounts; price €32.53 |
| City Sightseeing 24- or 48-hour ticket | 3.7 out of 5 from 1,120 reviews | Nationaltheatret, Johanne Dybwads plass 1 | Electric buses, free Wi-Fi, stops at the cruise and ferry terminals; price €26.40 |
Gray Line lists buses every 30 minutes during the season. The timetable now on the operator’s site, hopon.no, is thinner: a departure from Stop 1 roughly every 45 minutes between 10:15 am and 3:45 pm, and a full loop of about 75 minutes. The same site sells the bus together with a winter fjord cruise, so the route runs outside the summer too. Its stop list includes Majorstuen, where the page says you change to the metro for Holmenkollen, and the Opera House. Two stops, one at the Filipstad cruise terminal and an extra one at Revierkaia, run only on cruise arrival days. The listing names these discounts with a valid ticket: 10% off at the Kon-Tiki Museum and Viking Planet, 20% off at the Paradox Museum, and 15% off at Castello and Rorbua. The page also notes that the Viking Ship Museum was closed for renovation; our Viking guide explains what is open instead.
City Sightseeing gives its first departure from Stop 1 as 10 am and its last as 4 pm, with a 90-minute circuit and a bus every 30 minutes, and warns that timings depend on cruise arrivals. Its ticket is exchanged with a staff member or the driver before or when you board, so keep the voucher with you. The listing says the voucher can be used on any day within 12 months of the travel date you select, and it lists dates with possible disruptions: 24–25 April, 1 May, 17 May, 19–27 June and 12 September. All of those dates fall between April and September, so check the booking calendar before you count on this bus in winter. It also mentions space for collapsible wheelchairs and for strollers; confirm with the operator what fits.
What the Oslo Pass covers
According to VisitOSLO, the official city card comes in 24-, 48- and 72-hour versions. It covers Ruter buses, trams, metro, ferries and Vy local trains in zones 1, 2, 3, 4V and 4N, including trains to and from Oslo Airport Gardermoen. It also gives free entry to more than 30 museums and attractions, among them MUNCH, the Vigeland Museum, the Holmenkollen Ski Museum & Tower, the Fram Museum and the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History. Each included place can be visited once a day, and MUNCH uses timed slots. VisitOSLO gives adult prices of NOK 580 for 24 hours, NOK 845 for 48 hours and NOK 995 for 72 hours. Neither hop-on hop-off bus appears in its list of what the pass includes or discounts, so the pass does not replace a bus ticket.
Which one for whom
- Two or three museums in a day, plus the metro and ferries: add up the entrance fees of the places you really want and compare the total with the pass price. One benchmark: an adult ticket for the Holmenkollen Ski Museum & Tower costs NOK 200, against NOK 580 for a 24-hour pass. Our guides to the Bygdøy museums and the Munch Museum, National Museum and Opera House show how many stops that is.
- One museum and a lot of looking: a bus ticket is easier. You get a seat, commentary and a loop past Vigeland Park and the Bygdøy museums.
- Cruise passengers with a few hours: both operators list cruise-terminal stops. Check which one stops at your berth on your arrival day.
- Anyone on a tight budget: walking the centre costs nothing. The Vigeland Park guide covers a free stop.
The ratings differ, so read a few recent comments before choosing.
Our recommendation
For most visitors with only a day or two, choose the Gray Line ticket: it is the better-reviewed of the two, names its museum discounts one by one, and its operator runs the route in winter as well. If a museum-heavy trip is the plan, buy the pass instead and skip the bus. More options are on the tickets, museums and hop-on hop-off page.
