Norway Travel Guide

Norway does not allow Russian citizens to enter Norway for tourism. The border can be crossed with a tourist visa if the reason for the journey is among accepted ones, such as visiting close family members resident in Norway.

Norwegian currency is the Norwegian krone (crown, plural: kroner) (ISO code: NOK), sometimes abbreviated kr or kr., but often just the amount is shown on price tags. A 1/100th krone is called øre. Be careful when crossing borders to differentiate the Norwegian krone (NOK) from the Swedish (SEK) and Danish (DKK) ones.

Norway is a large country with some very difficult terrain so getting around, particularly up north, is expensive and time-consuming. Because of difficult terrain in large parts of the country, navigation is largely related to landscape features such as valleys, lakes, fjords and islands rather than to towns. Norway is sparsely populated compared to continental Europe; visitors should not expect that every name on the map is served by frequent public transport or offers commercial services such as taxi, cafés and hotels – it may not be a town or settlement at all. The best way to see the Norwe…

There is no standard spoken Norwegian (norsk) – a wide range of dialects is used even in public broadcasting. Differences among dialects are much more than accents and slight differences in pronunciation; some dialects are almost like different languages, and these differences have 1000 year old roots. In the middle ages, Norse (old Norwegian) was spoken in Norway, Iceland and parts of the British Isles. In Iceland, the Old Norse is largely retained, while Norwegian has changed substantially, he…

Norway has a very low rate of violent crime. The most likely crimes for tourists to experience are car break-ins and bicycle theft. Pickpockets do also tend to be an increasing problem in urban areas in the summer season, but it's still nothing like in larger cities in Europe. It is always a good idea to look after your belongings, this includes never leaving valuable objects visible in your car and locking your bike safely. It is generally illegal to carry knives and firearms in public places such as on the street.

For minor injuries and illness, go to the local "Legevakt" (emergency room/physician seeing patients without appointment) . In cities this is typically a municipal service centrally located, be prepared to wait for several hours. In rural districts, you typically have to contact the "district physician" on duty. For inquiries about toxins (from mushrooms, plants, medicine or other chemicals) call the national Toxin Information Office at

The international dialling prefix is 00 like in the EU. On mobile phones, you can use "+" instead. Norway's country code is 47 (so Norwegian numbers can be dialled as +47 xx-xx-xx-xx). Since 2020, there are no area codes; the leading "0" in some numbers should not be dropped when dialling from abroad.

Norwegians are generally open-minded and tolerant and there are few, if any, dos and don'ts that foreign visitors need to keep in mind. If anything, it is important to keep in mind that Norway is perhaps the most egalitarian country in the world. Behaving in a way that suggests either party is inferior or superior is considered exceptionally rude, and the flaunting of wealth or rank (if any) is frowned upon. Waiters and other service personnel expect that customers will treat them as equals. Most Norwegians will handle misunderstandings or possibly offensive comments in a friendly manner and a…

The major holidays are Easter, Christmas (24 December, 25 December and 26 December are all considered holidays), and the "common vacation" throughout July. In May there are several holidays including constitution day (17 May) – the main national celebration and an attraction in itself.