12 min
10 min
25 min
1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 13 · 19
2.5 / km²
5
5
2,514
City average
Counted from OpenStreetMap and Inside Airbnb (CC BY 4.0)
Poor after dark
The Grønland and Tøyen blocks and the Akerselva path have an open drug market after dark, and Norwegian police name them. Violent crime against visitors is rare; being approached repeatedly is not.
Staying in Gamle Oslo
Gamle Oslo is the whole eastern side of the centre: Bjørvika with the Opera House, the Munch Museum and the Barcode towers; Grønland and Tøyen behind the Central Station; then Gamlebyen, Kampen and Vålerenga up the hill towards Ekeberg. Nowhere else in the city puts this much within a ten-minute walk of Karl Johans gate for this money.
The case for it is strong and specific. Grønland is five minutes from the Central Station on foot, every metro line stops there, and it is where Oslo eats cheaply - Pakistani, Somali, Vietnamese, Turkish, with the market halls at Grønlands Torg. Rooms run well below the west side. Bjørvika, three hundred metres south, is new-build waterfront with the Opera roof you can walk up and the Sørenga sea bath at the end of it.
The case against is equally specific and it is why this is not a green district. Grønlandsleiret and the Akerselva path carry an open drug market, and the police name this area and Tøyen among the parts of Oslo locals avoid at night. Bjørvika has the opposite problem: it is a finance district of glass towers where nothing is open at 21:00 and the wind off the fjord is relentless. Book the western strip near the Opera or the streets uphill towards Kampen, not the blocks between Grønland station and the river.
What works
- Cheapest central rooms in Oslo, well under the west side
- Every metro line stops at Grønland and Tøyen
- Opera House, Munch Museum, Botanical Garden and Sørenga sea bath
- Grønland is where you eat for a third of Aker Brygge prices
What does not
- Open drug dealing on Grønlandsleiret and the Akerselva path
- Police and locals name Grønland and Tøyen as areas to avoid at night
- Bjørvika is offices and glass: nothing open after about 21:00
- The borough is huge, and Vålerenga or Ensjø are nowhere near the centre
Though Oslo isn't as dangerous as many places around the world, there are a few working-class areas that many locals would advise people not to visit at night, some of which are: Stovner, Holmlia, and Grønland/Tøyen.The police advise that the area along the Akerselva river from Grønland to Cuba is best avoided after dark. It is known for instances of rape, muggings and drug dealing.