Oslo - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the overall climate: is it extremely hot or cold, wet or dry, at any time of year, for example?
The weather is perfect, sunny and not humid from May to September, iffy in October, bad in November (cold, dark, and rainy), snowy in December to February, hit and miss in March, and good in April. Our family spends a lot of time outdoors and as long as you dress properly for the weather, you'll be just fine :) - Dec 2022
Very cold and snowy in winter. Summers can be glorious and between 20-35 or full of rain.... but if you like to ski and sail.. you are in the right place - May 2021
Long winter, but lots to do outside. Usually very mild summers. - Jan 2020
Summer never got hotter than 82F and mornings and nights were chilly. Norwegians enjoy sunshine as much as possible during the summer and sunbathe in bikinis and BBQ wherever there is a little green space.
Winter is cold, dark, wet, icy, and very long. It didn't even snow enough to make it pretty. - Dec 2016
Too cold and dark for me. Winters vary, but we had one winter with 6 months of temperatures hovering just under/around 32F/0C. While it was never TERRIBLY cold (never below -20C, say), that was a long time of being chilly and having to worry about ice and snow on the ground. The other two winters have been much milder, only about 1 month of snow. Regardless, it gets dark by 3:30pm in December and January; if you work an office job, you will only experience sunshine during the week if you go out at lunchtime. Summers are really variable - we had some "balmy" days in the 70sF, but it can also be grey, chilly, and rainy, which can be depressing. Definitely plan for sunshine breaks to places south in the winter and maybe even the summer! - Dec 2015
This is Norway, so it will be cold. Some winters are worse than others, and sometimes you will find yourself in wool socks in August when it's only 60F and raining. But the Norwegian saying is 'there is no bad weather, only bad clothing', so do not expect for events to be cancelled or moved indoors due to the cold/rain/ice/snow. Four years here without a single snow day or even a delay. Our son is in a local school and they have significant outdoor time every day. When it starts to get cold, every kid just adds a full layer of wool long underwear under everything else, and we invested in good insulated outdoor gear that was put to good use. But some winters were not even that bad...while this spring has been cold and as I type this in June we have yet to hit 70F and they just had another huge (think feet!) snowfall in Telemark a couple of hours from here! - Jun 2015
Winters are long. They are no worse than a Midwestern winter (temps down to about -20C or 0F), but they can be relentless, with snow starting in mid-November and lasting well into April, with the occasional flurry seen in May. The worst part of the winter isn't the dark or the snow, but the fact that Norwegians are too $%^*&@ lazy to shovel the sidewalks after storms, which means there is a layer of ice that is never treated and persists for months. They occasionally throw rocks on it to help with traction, but that is of limited use. Walk like a penguin, indeed! Summer (Jun-Aug) alternates between majestically cool days (low 20s C) with bright skies and sun, and grey rainy days. Summer ends abruptly the last week of August (without fail) with temps falling 5-8 degrees C within a week. Spring and Fall are similar in pattern to Summer, just cooler. - May 2013
Summer - 60s may rain a lot. Winter in Oslo begins in December and lasts to the end of March. The first heavy snow usually is near Christmas, and then the snow will not melt until the end of March - Aug 2011
We were here for two winters. The first was dark, dreary, drizzly, with lots of black ice but little snow. This past winter (2008-09) we had lots of snow, a clear day here and there, and no black ice. So - weather probably depends. You should plan to take sunny holidays regulary from October to March. - Jun 2009
