Oslo’s transport is run by Ruter, and it is one integrated system: metro, tram, bus, local train and the fjord ferries all take the same ticket.
That last item is the important one, and it is buried in most advice about the city.
The ferries are public transport
The B-line boats from Rådhusbrygge 4 at Aker Brygge to Hovedøya, Gressholmen, Langøyene, Lindøya and the other islands are ordinary Ruter services on ordinary Ruter tickets.
So is the Nesodden ferry, a twenty-minute crossing of the fjord to the peninsula opposite.
A 24-hour ticket therefore buys you a day of island-hopping and a fjord cruise at no extra cost. In almost any other city this would be sold as an excursion at several times the price.
Tickets
Zones. Zone 1 covers the whole city including the airport-side suburbs but not Gardermoen airport itself, which is in a distant zone.
Single ticket — valid one hour, unlimited transfers within it. 24-hour ticket — pays for itself at about three journeys. 7-day ticket — pays for itself quickly if you are staying a week.
Buy through the Ruter app, which is straightforward and works with a foreign card, or from machines and kiosks. You must have a valid ticket before boarding.
There are no barriers on the metro or trams. Inspectors board regularly and the fine is substantial.
The T-bane
Five lines, all of which run through a common tunnel under the city centre between Majorstuen and Tøyen — so in the middle, almost any train is going the right way, and you sort yourself out at the ends.
It is the northernmost metro system in the world and the only one that climbs into a forest. Line 1 to Frognerseteren reaches 469 metres and puts you at the trailheads for Nordmarka; line 5 to Sognsvann ends at a lake.
Trams
Six lines through the centre and out to Grünerløkka, Frogner, Ekeberg and Majorstuen.
Tram 12 is the useful one for Vigeland park; 11, 12 and 13 for Grünerløkka; 13 and 19 for Ekebergparken.
Oslo has been replacing its fleet with new low-floor trams, which has made accessibility much better than it was.
Buses
Comprehensive, and the way to Bygdøy — bus 30 for the Fram and Folkemuseum, all year. In summer there is also a ferry to Bygdøy from the City Hall pier, which is not always on the standard Ruter ticket — check before boarding.
Walking and cycling
The centre is small. Karl Johans gate end to end is fifteen minutes. Most of what you want is within half an hour on foot.
Oslo City Bike is a docked scheme run through an app, seasonal, and cheap. There are also e-scooters, which the city has repeatedly regulated after complaints — expect night-time restrictions and parking rules.
The Akerselva path from the fjord to Maridalsvannet is the best route in the city, on foot or by bike.
Is the Oslo Pass worth it
Sometimes, and it is easy to check.
It bundles unlimited transport with entry to around thirty museums and some discounts. It pays if you visit three or more charging museums per day and use the transport.
It does not pay if your plan is the Opera House roof, Vigeland, Ekeberg, Akershus grounds and the islands — because all of those are free and you only need a transport ticket.
Add up the actual admissions on your itinerary. In a city with this much free, transport-only is often the better buy.
Driving
Unnecessary and expensive. Oslo has an extensive toll ring, congestion charging that varies by time and vehicle, and parking that is priced to discourage.
The city has also removed most on-street parking from the centre as policy — the car-free city life programme took out hundreds of spaces and replaced them with benches, planting and cycle lanes.
Norway has the highest share of electric cars in the world by a distance, and the city’s incentives are built around that.
A car is genuinely useful only for reaching parts of the country beyond this guide.
Accessibility
New trams and most metro stations are step-free, and Ruter publishes accessibility information per stop.
The fjord ferries vary — the newer boats are accessible, the older ones less so.
The Opera House roof is walkable by wheelchair on the shallow northern approach. Ekebergparken and much of Nordmarka are not.
Night transport
Night buses and night trams run on Friday and Saturday nights, roughly from one in the morning, on a reduced network with an N prefix. A supplement applies on some services.
Metro and regular trams stop around midnight to one.
Given that the centre is walkable end to end in half an hour, most people walk.
Luggage
Lockers at Oslo S, in several sizes, paid by card.
Trams and metros have no dedicated luggage space and get full at peak, but the journeys are short and nobody minds a case.
What it costs, in context
A 24-hour Ruter ticket is one of the few things in Oslo that costs about what it costs elsewhere in Europe — and given that it includes the fjord ferries, it is arguably the best-value transport ticket in any Nordic capital.
The full arithmetic is in how much Oslo costs.