Oslo

Oslo occupies the end of the Oslofjord, hemmed in by wooded hills that are protected from development and criss-crossed with trails. The historic centre runs from the central station along Karl Johans gate to the Royal Palace, but the city's centre of gravity has shifted to the water: Aker Brygge, Tjuvholmen, the opera house and the Munch museum now form a continuous waterfront walk where the docks used to be.

It is a small capital with a big hinterland. The metro runs from the city centre up into the Nordmarka forest, which means a ski trail or a lake swim is twenty minutes from the opera house on an ordinary ticket.

Oslo holds the best of Norwegian art and the best of Norwegian maritime archaeology in one walkable city: Munch's work in a purpose-built museum on the harbour, and the Viking ships and polar expedition vessels out on the Bygdøy peninsula.

It is also the easiest place to see how a northern city can be built around water and forest rather than around cars, which is increasingly the reason architects come.

• The Munch museum. A tall building on the harbour holding the artist's own bequest to the city, including versions of The Scream, and the fullest account of his work anywhere.
• The National Museum. The largest art museum in the Nordic countries, near the waterfront, covering Norwegian and international art in one building.
• The Opera House. A building you walk on: the marble roof slopes into the fjord and is public space, free and open, with the best view of the harbour.
• Vigeland Park. Hundreds of Gustav Vigeland's sculptures in a public park at Frogner, open at all hours and free.
• Bygdøy. The museum peninsula, reached by bus or by summer ferry, with the Fram polar ship, the Kon-Tiki raft and the Norwegian Folk Museum.
• Akershus Fortress. The medieval castle on the harbour, with grounds that are free to walk and a view back over the water.
• Holmenkollen. The ski jump above the city, reachable on metro line 1, with a museum inside the hill and a panorama over the fjord.

June to August gives long light evenings, island ferries in the fjord, swimming from the city's own harbour baths and full museum hours.

May and September are quieter and cheaper, with comfortable walking weather and autumn colour in the Nordmarka forest at the end of the range.

Winter is cold, dark and genuinely functional: cross-country trails are lit and start at metro stations, and the city does not slow down. Daylight in December is short, so plan outdoor time around the middle of the day.

Sentrum, between the station and the palace, is the practical base with everything walkable and the airport train at one end.

Aker Brygge and Tjuvholmen are on the water, newer and more expensive, and good for evening walking.

Grünerløkka, north-east along the river, is the neighbourhood of independent cafés, second-hand shops and small restaurants, and the best value with character.

Frogner, west, is quiet and residential, close to Vigeland Park.

Sentrum: the central grid between the station, the palace and the harbour, with the main shopping street and the fortress.

Aker Brygge and Tjuvholmen: the redeveloped docks, with restaurants on the quay and the Astrup Fearnley museum at the tip.

Bjørvika: the newest waterfront, holding the opera house, the Munch museum and the Deichman library.

Grünerløkka: former working-class district along the Akerselva river, now the city's café and independent-shop centre.

Frogner: embassies, nineteenth-century apartment buildings and Vigeland Park.

Grønland: the most mixed and least polished part of the inner city, with the best cheap eating.

Metro, tram, bus and the local ferries all run on one ticket, and a single ticket is valid for an hour across modes. Buy through the transport app or at machines before boarding.

Oslo S, the central station, handles national rail and the airport trains; the Flytoget express and the ordinary regional trains both serve Gardermoen, with the regional service cheaper and only slightly slower.

The city centre is compact and largely low-traffic, with much of the core closed to through cars. Public ferries to the fjord islands leave from Rådhusbrygge and are covered by the standard ticket.

Seafood is the strength: cod, salmon, shrimp and, in season, king crab. The shrimp boats that tie up at the quay near the city hall in summer sell straight from the deck.

Traditional dishes worth trying include fårikål, mutton and cabbage, the autumn national dish, and kjøttkaker, Norwegian meatballs. Brunost, the caramelised brown whey cheese, is a breakfast fixture that divides opinion.

For eating without booking, Mathallen in Vulkan is the main food hall, and the harbour at Vippa has a more casual street-food line-up.

The Oslofjord islands — Hovedøya, Gressholmen, Langøyene — are reachable on ordinary public ferries in under half an hour and are the easiest escape from the centre in summer.

Nordmarka, the forest north of the city, is reached by metro to Frognerseteren or Sognsvann and offers marked walking, cycling and ski trails and lakes you can swim in.

Drøbak, down the fjord, is a wooden-house town reachable by bus or summer boat. Fredrikstad, further south, has an intact seventeenth-century fortified old town and is about an hour by train.

Oslo is one of the more expensive cities in Europe, and restaurants and alcohol are where that is felt hardest. Self-catering, bakery lunches and the food halls keep costs down considerably.

The outdoor city is free: Vigeland Park, the opera house roof, the fortress grounds, forest trails and harbour swimming all cost nothing, and the fjord island ferries are on the ordinary transport ticket. If you plan several museums, the Oslo Pass includes transport and can pay for itself over a day or two.

Use the regional train to the airport. It costs substantially less than the express and takes only a few minutes longer.

Buy transport tickets before boarding. There are no barriers and inspections carry fines.

Take the metro into the forest. Line 1 to Frognerseteren is an ordinary journey that ends in the woods above the city.

Alcohol is state-controlled. Anything stronger than light beer is sold only at Vinmonopolet, which keeps limited hours and closes on Sundays.

Dress for wind off the fjord. The waterfront is several degrees colder than the sheltered streets in any season.