18 hours lay over in Oslo... Will save alot $$$... Norwegian Airlines... Thoughts

[LovesTimone]

We are planning at trip to Paris and DLP for our anniversary... I have already posted other questions.
Well our travel agent suggested sent me a email... flying into Olso arriving at 3:00 in the afternoon, and leaving for Paris the next morning at 8:00 am... It would save us right at 1,000 dollars US on airfare and around 350.00 off for that night, then we could get a room around 200 US for 1 night, so a saving of 1,100 US

So has anyone done this long of a layover? The agent suggested, getting a room at the airport, then going into Oslo to check it out have dinner, then sleep and be fresh and ready to go the next day and be ready to site see right off the bat... My thought would be to look at it as part of the trip, and not just a layover.

DH had a question about the checked baggage?, we would want to pick it up when we arrive in Oslo... Is this possible or would it just be stacked somewhere until the next morning which does not sit well with us.
The travel agent 1st said yes we would have to pick up the checked bags, then she said I'm not sure... Our friend who flies all the time said it would depend... Anyone any thoughts here?

Last question ( kidding... for now ) Suggestions on what we should do in Oslo, maybe a area to check out... really any input would be great...

Thanks

 

[RedmonFamily]

You will most likely have to get your bag, but yes we have done this in Boston. Flew Norwegian air into Boston and spent the night before flying home at 7 the next morning. It was fun to see the city and nice to get some sleep after a long trip.

 

[C3PO]

I live in Oslo, so I'm sure I can help with things to do. What time of year are you talking about? It's nice to hear the name Oslo associated with savings, as Oslo is a pricy town. If you stay at the airport, you can take the express train into town (about 20 minutes). The train isn't cheap, but it's definitely the fastest way into the city. Just stay away from taxis. They're all honest, just horrendously expensive.

 

[LovesTimone]

I live in Oslo, so I'm sure I can help with things to do. What time of year are you talking about? It's nice to hear the name Oslo associated with savings, as Oslo is a pricy town. If you stay at the airport, you can take the express train into town (about 20 minutes). The train isn't cheap, but it's definitely the fastest way into the city. Just stay away from taxis. They're all honest, just horrendously expensive.

Hi, We are planning the last week of April or first week of May... What is the cost on the train? we would definitely stay at the airport and what would be a good area to stretch our legs, perhaps some shops, not sure we would have really any time other than to walk around a bit then have dinner, suggestions would be great? Oh and how would the weather be during this time of year? Also if I may do you have a suggestion for which hotel at the airport would be nice, maybe with a restaurant... If we are tired and just decide to relax, have dinner and go to bed early to rid ourselves of the jet lag.

Thanks so much

 

[LovesTimone]

You will most likely have to get your bag, but yes we have done this in Boston. Flew Norwegian air into Boston and spent the night before flying home at 7 the next morning. It was fun to see the city and nice to get some sleep after a long trip.

This is want I wanted to hear is that we will have to get our bag... We are just not comfortable leaving them sitting about for 18 hours. I am going to call the Airline to see if I can get a clear answer.

 

[C3PO]

I also imagine you'll have to pick up your bags. That's how it is when we fly to the US. You have to pick up your bag at the first airport you land in, clear customs, then go to your next flight.

Brace yourself. The train costs about $24 each way. There are two hotels at the airport. A Radisson Blu and a Park Inn. The Park Inn is cheaper, but nice. They also serve breakfast earlier than the other one (I think from 5 am).

I'm not sure what area to recommend in downtown Oslo. The harbor area called Aker Brygge is really nice, and has a good view of the old fortress. There's a nice Italian place called Olivia that we often go to - decent food and OK prices. You can find it on the Internet. Of course I would recommend getting some fish, but it's pretty expensive everywhere. Otherwise the city officials have developed a really nice Harbor promenade - which makes for a 9K walk from end to end. I can definitely recommend it.

Otherwise I would recommend taking the metro/subway 3 stops west from the central station to an area called Majorstua. Just a short walk away is Frognerparken, which is a famous sculpture park, and one of Oslo's landmarks. In my eyes, that's the real place not to miss when coming here. There are lots of places to eat in the area. It's in a residential area, so the prices are slightly less inflated than at Aker Brygge.

I suggest checking out Trip Advisor, and looking at restaurant prices so that you don't get a complete shock. The upside is that when you get to DLP it'll actually feel cheaper. If you look at Trip Advisor and find some options, feel free to ask. Also about price levels.

The weather is impossible to predict this far in advance. I always say that you can't be sure that winter is over until the 17th of May - the Norwegian national holiday. It has occasionally snowed then, and we had snow earlier on in May last year. April is usually fairly warm - for us. And the nights are getting longer, and people are generally pretty happy about spring, so there's a good vibe in the city.

 

[Vala]

Normally when you fly out of the US your bags will be transferred to your final destination, you don't pick them up when you have a connecting flight. However, I am really not sure how this is handled with a stopover that long. Would the flights all be on one ticket? Then you probably wouldn't have to do it. Your travel agent would probably do best.

 

[mel2014]

Even with a long layover, on a trip to Europe, your bags would be checked through to your final destination and you usually wouldn't have the option of reclaiming them. You're just transiting through. Since Norway is a Schengen zone country, you would go through immigration control, but not customs, since you're not "entering" the EU on your transit through Norway. On a flight into the United States, where you have a layover before proceeding to another state, you do have to reclaim your bag, then re-check, because you clear customs at your first entry point. You would just want to pack your valuables and essentials in your carry-on. We did this in Istanbul with a long layover on the way back to the United States and it was a great way to get a taste of another country.

 

[BadPinkTink]

In 2012 me, my mum and sister went to Vegas from Ireland for my mums birthday. On the way back we had a 12 hour layover in Philadelphia, early morning flight from Vegas to Philadelphia, late night from Philadelphia to Ireland. My sister arranged the flights as she wanted to go to King of Prussia Mall (I know, I know, dont ask, lol)

Our flights were all on one ticket, booked with the same airline. At checkin in Vegas we got 2 boarding cards and our luggage was tagged straight through to Ireland.

When we arrived in Philadelphia we exited the airport the same as all the other passengers and got a taxi to King of Prussia. We did not collect our checked luggage, that went on its own adventure. getting transported airside from our Vegas flight to our transatlantic flight. It would have a timeout somewhere in a luggage store during the day while we were at the mall.

When we came back to the airport, we just went directly to TSA as we already had our boarding cards for our transatlantic.

 

[LovesTimone]

Even with a long layover, on a trip to Europe, your bags would be checked through to your final destination and you usually wouldn't have the option of reclaiming them. You're just transiting through. Since Norway is a Schengen zone country, you would go through immigration control, but not customs, since you're not "entering" the EU on your transit through Norway. On a flight into the United States, where you have a layover before proceeding to another state, you do have to reclaim your bag, then re-check, because you clear customs at your first entry point. You would just want to pack your valuables and essentials in your carry-on. We did this in Istanbul with a long layover on the way back to the United States and it was a great way to get a taste of another country.

Well I haven't been able to get a straight answer either way... After talking to some friends who travel all the time ( they are heading off in April for a month in Germany and neighboring countries with a river cruise thrown in for one of the weeks), and have done many long layovers they gave us the pro and cons, they gave us some advice on how they make it work... this options he said they never check bags when this long of a layover is in the plan.. They just carry on and buy what they need once they touch down, then when they get ready to head home to go they ship everything back home. They do a lot of cruises and add-ons, and wash clothes on the ship or a few times they had some laundry done. A few times they got lucky and got a non-stop heading home so then they checked bags... We have decided that having our bags lounging around unattended in some baggage hold area is to big of a chance for them not being where they are going to go and us not having them when we arrive... I think that there are to many unknowns, and with our 1st trip Europe, we would feel much better. But I will say, that I am looking at alternative ways to fly... they gave us some pointer on getting cheaper flights.

 

[C3PO]

You do realize that Norway is one of the safest countries in the world, right? So there's no danger of your luggage being interfered with if they keep it at the airport.

 

[LovesTimone]

You do realize that Norway is one of the safest countries in the world, right? So there's no danger of your luggage being interfered with if they keep it at the airport.

Oh... I'm not worried about someone getting into them, I'm worried that they won't make it to where we are going. Which we had happen once, and thankful they found it before we left the airport.