Norsk Folkemuseum
Norsk Folkemuseum
4.5
Historic SitesAmusement & Theme ParksHistory Museums
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Norsk Folkemuseum shows how people lived in Norway from 1500 to the present through its collections from around the country. Among the highlights are the Stave Church from Gol, dating from 1200 and an apartment building with homes from the 20th Century. 160 historic buildings in the big Open-Air Museum represent different regions in Norway, different time periods, as well as differences between town and country, and social classes. Indoor exhibits present Norwegian heritage. The museum has a comprehensive activity program and is open all year.
Suggested duration
2-3 hours
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  • Sofia M
    Helsinki, Finland476 contributions
    Great place with a lot to see
    Great experience with a LOT to see.Reserve a lot of time if you go there, since it will take time to walk through all of the different buildings. Note: worth trying to access buildings that might look like closed, since most of them were anyhow open. One could see old shops etc. worth visiting but maybe nit during winter
    Visited January 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written January 6, 2023
  • NicDR
    Lichfield, United Kingdom132 contributions
    What a hidden gem!
    We took the public bus to the island and toured round a number of museums on the same day. This one was the first one and we were literally blown away by the size of it. Fascinating to walk inside the exhibition and also the outside open museum and beautiful church! This is surprisingly good and I would recommend it! Families would love it too.
    Visited February 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written February 9, 2023
  • AndyJ77
    Bratislava, Slovakia328 contributions
    Breath the history
    This lovely open-air museum will guide you how people used to live in Norway in the past. There are several farms and buildings divided between countryside and Oslo with its suburbs. One of the highlight is Stave church. To visit this museum is a must for everyone visiting Oslo.
    Visited May 2022
    Written February 18, 2023
  • Tasha E
    38 contributions
    Stunning open air museum!
    Whatever expectations I had for the Folke Museum were blown away by the sights seen. There is an indoors museum, with plenty to look at, but we spent the majority of our time outside, exploring the recreated villages from as early as the 16th century. Absolutely loved the Stave Church and its atmosphere. There is a section for the 1900s (particularly the 30s-50s), which we enjoyed also. It is a great visual contrast against the Stave Church and its gothic surroundings.
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written March 25, 2023
  • Nicôle + Kurt
    Maidstone, United Kingdom45 contributions
    Worthwhile but underwhelming
    Very interesting outdoor museum, although became slightly repetitive after a while. We didn’t think it was very well layer out, felt a bit like a maze at times. Worth visiting just don’t have super high hopes.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 9, 2023
  • amyb
    Hereford, United Kingdom6 contributions
    Informative and Interesting
    We only had 90 minutes to look around this museum and it was not enough! All ages in the group found the exhibitions interesting and loved looking around. The church looks like something out of a fairytale. We all learned a lot about Norwegian life and history from this museum.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written April 27, 2023
  • mjc_travels
    Lexington, Massachusetts405 contributions
    Disappointing
    I expected to like this museum a lot but I have to say I was disappointed.I am thinking that May is still the off-season because I didn’t really see any actors and I didn’t find the signage that clear. We saw two people that maybe were actors but they didn’t engage with us at all so I thought maybe they were just keeping an eye on things. We went to several of the locations that supposedly were hosting events but nothing was going on. The brochure they gave us provided a map and a little bit of information about what should be going on but it didn’t seem to match the reality. I did enjoy seeing the church and a few of the other buildings but other than that there wasn’t much going on.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 7, 2023
  • Lucylou88SC
    Greenville, South Carolina27 contributions
    Great historic buildings
    Great sense of the history of Norway through its buildings. Wish more were open fir entry, but the open ones were great. We didn’t see any life re-enactment we nuts, but we enjoyed wandering through time with the various exhibits. Nice to be outdoors also.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written May 25, 2023
  • JPM0713
    Winter Park, Florida113 contributions
    Wort it if you are able to take the guided tour, are ok walking on dirt trails and bending over to enter buildings
    We spent about two hours at the museum; highly recommend you take one of the guided tours. Takes about an hour and explains many of the houses villages and buildings. E advised you will. E walking on unpaved paths that are hilly. Getting into and out of buildings requires caution and stooping over,
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 27, 2023
  • GreggWanderer
    Cork, Ireland124 contributions
    Worth a visit
    I was a reluctant visitor to this museum but was proven wrong. It is well worth a visit, particularly the Stave Church. The exhibitions are also good. My only disappointment was that the exhibition of Norwegian church art of the Reformation was locked.
    Visited July 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written July 5, 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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RGM17
Guildford, UK4 contributions
Sep 2022 • Friends
We visited at the end of August and were charged full price tickets. We were not warned at reception that it was off-season and so 90% of the buildings were locked and there were only a few actors on site. The buildings had no signage or information boards so we were unable to learn anything about them. We only saw three actors in traditional wear and none of them were remotely interested in acting. It was basically like walking around a historic ghost town with a few farm animals thrown in. There are much better museums just around the corner, avoid this one at all costs.
Written September 2, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Patricia M
12 contributions
May 2019
Not to be missed. Charming village of 200 structures, including a stave church. Make sure you interact with the guides in each building. One of our guides told stories about each family member inhabiting their house, very detailed and well-researched. Fun fun fun way to learn about fabulous Norway and its people.
Written February 5, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

58sparrow
Ascot, UK83 contributions
Mar 2020
This museum is on the peninsula go by the 31 bus which runs every 15 mins. There is a lot of information here with 2-3 inside area about farming, toys religious artefacts and the Sami culture. There are a large number of houses and farm buildings from all over Norway accumulated here. It is a lot of walking between the buildings and to see the church. So not a place for anyone with a walking difficulty as there are different levels, uneven and slippery ground. It was still very intetesting.
Written March 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

HerbertEdgewood
Orlando, FL1,894 contributions
Sep 2019
‘Ello chaps! The Norwegian Folk Museum is one of the main attractions among Oslo’s tourists, putting on display Norway’s culture and history. You can see that history through various museum style displays, but also through a large open-air museum, with more than 150 buildings. This is one of Oslo’s more favored museums with lots to see and do. Plus, a cute coffee shop and gift shop. It’s very accessible by public bus from downtown Oslo and is also a short walk from the Viking Ship Museum. I give Norwegian Folk Museum Four Stars out of Five.
Written January 12, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alessio Stolzbart
2 contributions
Aug 2022 • Friends
The visit at the Norsk Folksmuseum was very interesting, impressive and thought provoking. I went there with two friends, and we did extensively enjoy the museum‘s exhibition as well as ‚openair‘-part, especially the Gol stavechurch. I‘d definitely recommend to anyone that is interested in Norse/Norwegian culture, history, politics or art to visit this fascinating museum. The experience there is highlighted in a very pleasant way by staff members as Sigfrid that kindly take time to explain things to visitors, respond all your questions and give you a lot of information/narratives/fun facts that you can’t easily find in the e.g. guides. If you have the chance to go to the museum, you shouldn’t think twice!
Written August 18, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

corhiain
England, UK158 contributions
Feb 2020 • Couples
I love anything that involves history, museums that left you really experience things and really opens up your imagination and this ticked all three boxes. Next door to the Viking museum and absolutely worth a look. So many Norwegian houses from 1300 to 1960’s set in little communities that really makes you feel you have gone back in time. Licked play area and picnic area too. Great museum and value for money.
Written February 21, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

David S
Kingston-upon-Hull, UK99 contributions
May 2019 • Friends
The majority of the museum is a huge open air landscape, including hillside pathways, but first of all you come across old houses and streets from the 19th & 20th century. These are interesting but very similar to other Western/Northern European cities from that time.

The really interesting parts of the museum are when you wonder around the back and discover dozens and dozens of the old wooden houses, many with green roofs, along with examples of farmland buildings. There is also a magnificent church, The Stave Church, at the top of a slight hillside walk. A beautiful old building, partly built in the Middle Ages.

You can spend a good 2/3 hours here, especially if the weather is good. It's also free entrance if you have an Oslo Pass.
Written January 10, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bárbara Gonçalves
Lisbon, Portugal10 contributions
Jan 2020
I loved visiting this open-air museum! Its various wooden buildings take us back in time to understand the history of Norway and its people. I also learned a lot about Sami, which was very interesting. Definitely worth it :)
Written January 31, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

World Prof
Buffalo Grove, IL173 contributions
Jun 2022
This is a fabulous combination of extensive outdoor exhibits including a stave church, numerous farm houses, folk arts, and the like in a lovely wooded island location. Numerous workers dressed in traditional clothing will explain various sites. There is a live traditional music and dance demonstration throughout the day. Don't miss tasting "lefse", freshly baked in the traditional manner. Farm animals and story times await children. There are also several indoor museums with folk art, church art, traditional dress, etc. There is a nice café on location.
If you want to see everything - plan for at least 5 hours.
Bus line 30 will bring you directly to the entrance from central Olso. You can also take a ferry from City Hall - but beware, the ferry ticket may not be included in the Ruter public transportation pass.
Written June 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

JasonP
Steady Brook, Canada221 contributions
Feb 2020
This is a interesting museum. You walk around to all these buildings from different periods of time in Norway seeing how people lived. Really enjoyed this . The main church is a very beautiful structure. Very nice cafe on site also that serves food
Written February 13, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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