Oslo

Oslo is where most Norwegian road journeys start the clock, because the airport, the trains from Sweden and two overnight ferries (Color Line from Kiel, DFDS from Copenhagen) all land here. The planner's question is how fast to leave it: the fjords are a full day west over the mountains, the Arctic is two or three days north, and the city itself is expensive to park in and cheap to walk.

Every road in and out crosses the toll ring, and there is nothing to stop for. Fjellinjen's 2026 tariff for a small car is NOK 38 per passage outside rush hour and 47 in it for petrol, 42 and 50 for diesel, and 21 and 26 for an electric car, with rush hour defined as 06.30–09.00 and 15.00–17.00 on working days and no rush-hour rate in July. The plate is read and a foreign car is invoiced; a rental car passes the charge on. Budget two or three passages for a day that touches the city.

Fuel is no cheaper here than elsewhere in Norway, so fill when convenient rather than in town. Supermarkets close early on Saturdays and most are shut on Sundays; Sunday is also the quietest day to drive out through the ring.

Leaving west, the E16 towards Bergen and the Rv7 over Hardangervidda are the two mountain roads; both have winter column driving or closures in bad weather, and Statens vegvesen's map and the 175 phone line are the source for that morning's status. Leaving north, the E6 is open all year and dull until Dovrefjell. If you are not driving out, the Kiel sailing with Color Line is the way to take a car into Germany without the Swedish motorway day.