Myths and Legends evening walk review
My verdict: the highest-rated tour of the six at 4.8 from 515 reviews, and the one people describe most warmly afterwards. Two hours in the evening through Oslo’s old quarter, taking in City Hall, Christiania Torv, Bankplassen and Akershus Fortress. It is folklore, told well. It is not a history lecture and it is emphatically not a wartime tour, so if the occupation is what brought you to the fortress, book elsewhere.
What kind of tour this is
You meet by the Swans fountain at the entrance to Oslo City Hall, on Fridtjof Nansens plass, and walk from there into Christiania Torv and Bankplassen, the oldest surviving grain of the city, and on into Akershus Fortress. The material is legend and folklore: the stories Oslo has told about itself, which are not the same thing as the documented record and are not presented as though they were.
That distinction matters more here than on any other tour I cover. Akershus has a real and heavy twentieth-century history, and this tour does not go near it. I think that is the right call. Ghost stories and executions do not belong in the same two hours, and the operator has kept the two registers apart. If you want the occupation years, that is the Resistance Museum and the private tour that includes entry to it.
What people who took it say
- “Great tour, Maria was an excellent and very knowledgeable guide. We loved it.” Caroline, United Kingdom
- “We loved learning about some unique history and Norwegian lore.” James, United States
- “Our guide Maria was so knowledgeable, humorous and kind, with such a truly lovely manner.” Virginia, Australia
Maria comes up again and again in this tour’s reviews. On a small operation that is usually a good sign and a small risk at once: a lot of the 4.8 belongs to one guide, and a tour carried by a person is only as good as whoever is working that evening.
What works
- The best average score of the six tours here, and the reviews read as genuinely fond rather than merely satisfied
- Evening departure, which is when the old quarter is at its best
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off is included, which no other walk here offers
- Covers the oldest part of Oslo that most visitors walk straight past
- Keeps folklore and wartime history separate, which is the honest way to do it
Worth knowing
- Folklore is not documented history and should not be taken for it
- English only, so no German or Spanish option
- 515 reviews is the smallest sample of the rated tours
- In December it is fully dark by around 15:15, so an evening walk is a night walk
- The fortress main gate closes at 21:00 all year, which constrains a late start
The light, and the gate
An evening tour in Oslo means two completely different things depending on the month. On 21 June the sun sets at 22:44 and you get nearly nineteen hours of daylight with a long twilight after it, so an evening walk is a walk in the light. On 21 December the sun sets at 15:12 and you have under six hours of daylight, so the same tour is done in the dark. Neither is worse. They are different tours wearing the same name.
The real constraint is not the sky, it is the gate. The fortress main gate closes at 21:00 every day of the year, and in winter the side gates shut at 18:00. Check the opening hours against your departure time, and see when to come if you are still choosing dates.
Book this for your second evening rather than your first. The stories land better once you can place Christiania Torv and the fortress on a mental map, which is exactly what the Central Oslo walk gives you in the morning.
Usually included
- A live English-speaking guide for two hours
- All taxes
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off
Not included
- Food and drink
- Entry to any ticketed building
- Wartime and occupation history — a deliberate omission, not a gap
Who should not book this
Anyone who wants the documented history of Akershus should book the Central Oslo walk or read the fortress history instead, and anyone whose interest is 1940 to 1945 should go to the Home Front Museum tour. Families with young children should think about the hour and the dark rather than the content. And if you are in Oslo in midwinter and want to see the fortress rather than sense it, do the grounds in daylight and save this for after.
The alternatives
Most bookedOslo: Guided Walking Tour of Central Oslo with Local Guide
English or GermanOslo: Best of Oslo Walking Tour
Inside the wallsNorway Home Front Museum Oslo Private Tour & Transport
Frequently asked questions
Is the Myths and Legends tour a ghost tour or a history tour?
Folklore, told as folklore. It covers the legends Oslo has grown around Christiania Torv, Bankplassen and Akershus Fortress, and it does not present them as documented fact. For the record of who built the fortress and what happened in it, read the history page.
Does the tour cover the German occupation of the fortress?
No, and that is deliberate. Over 40 Norwegian resistance members were executed at Akershus during the occupation, and that material belongs in a different register from an evening folklore walk. It is covered properly at Norway’s Resistance Museum and on the private museum tour.
How dark will it be on the walk?
It depends entirely on the month. Around 21 June the sun sets at 22:44, so an evening departure runs in daylight. Around 21 December it sets at 15:12 and you will be walking in the dark. Either way the fortress main gate closes at 21:00 all year — see opening hours.
Is hotel pick-up really included?
The listing includes hotel pick-up and drop-off along with the live English-speaking guide and all taxes. Confirm your hotel is in the covered area when you book, since that is the one detail a listing cannot promise for every address.
Why is this rated higher than the other walking tours?
It rates 4.8 from 515 reviews against 4.7 from 1,692 for the Central Oslo walk. A tenth of a star on a third of the sample is not a strong result, and I would not choose between them on the number. Choose on whether you want an orientation walk or an evening of stories.