Norway Family Holidays & Breaks

Oslo with Kids

• Start your discovery of the Norwegian capital with a trip to the museums on the Bygdøy peninsula: the Viking Ship Museum, the Norsk Folkemuseum, the Kon Tiki Museum and the Fram Museum, for tales of polar exploration and the world’s most famous polar ship.

• Don’t miss the spectacular Munchmuseet, showcasing Munch’s iconic Scream along with another 30,000 of the Norwegian artist’s works, accompanied by waterfront views.

• East of the centre, check out the Natural History Museum, which includes a spectacular Crystal Cave and some Norwegian meteorite samples.

• West of the centre, check out the International Museum of Children’s Art and Frogner Park, home to Oslo's most-visited attraction, the Vigeland Sculpture Park, and to Norway’s largest playground.

• Take a day-trip to Oslo’s Kjelsås neighbourhood to tour the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology.

• Experience the high-octane thrills at Tusenfryd, Norway’s largest amusement park, 20km south of Oslo.

Winter Holidays in Norway

• Head to the far north for a glimpse of the Northern Lights in Tromsø or the Finnmark region ('Norwegian Lapland'). Just 2,000km from the North Pole, Tromsø is the capital of the Arctic and one of the easiest destinations for families hoping to see the elusive Aurora Borealis, which is at its most frequent in late autumn and winter/early spring. Other things to do in Tromsø are seeing the bearded seals at Polaria, the city’s arctic aquarium, and taking the Fjellheisen cable car up Storsteinen Mountain for panoramic views,

• In Finnmark, base yourself in Alta, the largest town, where as well as looking out for the Northern Lights you can get an insight into the life of the region’s indigenous Sami people, join a fisherman on a king crab safari, take the kids on a reindeer sleigh-ride across the region’s white plains, enjoy a dog sled or snowmobile safari, and visit Santa.

• Travel 30 minutes out of the capital to Oslo Winter Park (Tryvann), the area’s main ski resort, offering 14 slopes, alpine skiing, snowboarding and a special area for kids and beginners.

• Seek out more winter fun at Lillehammer 185km to the north, with its Olympic Park, ski-jumping arena and five ski-parks within easy reach of the centre. Active families can tackle everything from dog-sledding and cross-country skiing to ice-fishing, horse sleigh-rides and tobogganing, and there’s magical evening entertainment at Hunderfossen Vinterpark minutes from the centre, with its ice cathedral, fairytale palace and activities including snow-rafting, ice-bowling and high ropes.

• Ask us about family ski holidays in Norway, at popular resorts such as Geilo and Trysil. You can also ski in Kristiansand or in Bergen, where the paths down from Mount Fløyen are floodlit at night (there’s one ski trail and also walking/sledging trails).

Summer Holidays in Norway

• Take a trip to Lake Mjøsa at the southern end of Lillehammer to ride on the world’s oldest paddle-steamer, the Skibladner, built in 1856.

• Visit Kristiansand in southern Norway – for the beach, the Setesdalsbanen Steam Railway and Dyrepark amusement park including a waterpark, forest park, entertainment area and theme park. 

• Base yourself in Bergen if you want to explore Norway’s famous fjords or go up into the mountains surrounding the city for hiking. The Fløibanen Funicular takes you to the top of Mount Fløyen for fantastic views of Bergen, great hiking trails, a playground and the Troll Forest, where little ones can follow a magical trail and cross Billy Goats Gruff bridge.

• In Bergen itself, visit the pretty 19th-century wooden houses in Gamle Bergen (Old Bergen) get hands-on with the interactive exhibits at the Vilvite Science Centre and tour the Bergen Aquarium.

• Head south of Bergen to Stavanger, with some of the best beaches in Norway and the Norwegian Children’s Museum with its secret treehouse, as well as being the gateway to the region’s many fjords. 

• Discover Svalbard, a remote archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, halfway between the mainland and the North Pole. In summer you can take fjord safaris to see glaciers, walrus colonies and (from a distance) polar bears, kayak near glaciers and cliffs rich in birdlife, and spot Arctic foxes, Svalbard reindeer and passing whales. Winter is harder because of thew cold and lack of daylight, but there's dog sledding across glaciers, snowmobiling and wildlife boat tours. Year-round offerings include a museum, an old coal mine and the world's northernmost brewery.