Beer

The alcohol prices are probably the first thing you heard about Norway, and the thing you worry about the most. Here are a few pubs where you can get a pint at a decent price. If you're bringing alcohol into the country, remember the rules about the quantities you may bring into the country! Only 1 litre of spirits (above 22%, but everything above 60% is illegal), 2 bottles of wine (up to 22%, you can take 3 bottles it you don't take liquor) and 2 litres of beer (up to 4.7%). You may only bring 200 cigarettes (one carton).

You must be 18 to buy beer/wine and 20 to buy spirits. You have to be 20 or older to get into pubs that sell spirits. At some pubs, the age limit is even higher, probably to avoid the younger crowds.

Some cheap downtown/city center places:

• Evergreen (before 9pm)
  

• Tempest (before 9pm)

• Café Fiasco

• Destiny café

• Den Glade Munk

• Naboens pub (before 9pm)

The most expensive beer is usually found at Aker Brygge.

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Clothing & shoes

Clothes aren't actually that expensive in Norway. Here are some of the cheapest stores:

Unisex: H&M, Cubus

Female: Gina Tricot, Vero Moda

Male: Dressmann

Shoes: Økonomisko, Skopunkten

At flea markets you will also find good quality clothes, some even still have the price tag on it!

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Cosmetics

Ordinary cosmetics (tooth paste, hand soap, regular shampoo and so on) are cheaper at supermarkets than e.g. H&M or drugstores. You can also shop on the Internet. StrawberryNET.com offers well-known brands like Biotherm, Clinique, Elizabeth Arden and more. Shipping is FREE, but remember that if the purchase price exceeds NOK 200 (se currency rates at Toll.no), you have to pay a customs fee (about 10%, applies to clothes, cosmetics) and Norwegian VAT (25%, applies to CDs, electronics and more), but usually StrawberryNET.com covers this as well. Just pay the fees and fax them the receipt.

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Eating out

Lots of Indian restaurants in the Grønland area have dinner for "only" 60 kroner (about 10 USD), just take the metro down to Grønland, you'll see them everywhere.

Great (and reasonable) take-away sushi at Sushi Express near Bislett.

Vegetarian food is not always easy to get. One of the oldest vegetarian restaurants just closed, but this restaurant is still open.

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Furniture

Don't forget about the environment, buy second hand furniture! Finn.no/torget is Norway's biggest second hand site on the Internet. Here you will find tons of furniture people are actually giving away for free or selling at redicilously low prices.

Of course, there is also IKEA. The bus from the central station to IKEA (both of them) is FREE, and you can buy some quite cheap meals in the restaurants there as well. Used IKEA furniture is also sold at finn.no/torget, then you'll pay half the price and don't even have to put them together yourself.

Also check out the flea markets every spring and autumn. An insider tip for these is to visit the ones on the west side of Oslo (best ones are e.g. Slemdal, Voksen, Huseby, Vinderen, Hovseter, Røa, Smestad to name a few)! Flea market season is March-May and September-October.

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Gifts

It's always impractical to buy gifts for people back home when you are travelling. Shipping costs and time must always be considered (not to mention the customs procedures). A great idea for a gift is to donate money for children's schools through the link below, and you'll get a certificate informing about the project and how your donated amount helps school children.

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Souvenirs

The best (and cheapest) souvenirs to buy in Oslo are of course the ones made in Norway. Buy some brown cheese (and maybe a cheese cutter). When unopened, it can easily stay in your backpack/suitcase for a couple of days without going bad.

Also, some dried fish or moose/raindeer jerky is cool to bring back. About twice a month, Farmer's Market is arranged on different locations in Oslo. Taste traditional cheese, ham/sausages, cakes and bread from small farms around in Norway.

Groceries

There are often big differences between supermarkets. Stick to Rema 1000. They have been proved cheapest several times.  Check out the Norwegian yellow pages to find one close to you. Lidl is also quite cheap, but usually not as cheap as Rema.

In some of the other supermarkets, like Rimi or Kiwi, you will find the cheap brands like "Billi" or "First Price". Just look around a bit and ask the staff if you like. Never buy groceries in kiosks or gas stations, they're twice as expensive there!

Many stores display an average price per kilo/unit or similar measurements on the bottom of the shelf price tag. It's very handy when comparing options with different quantities.

What sort of food is cheap?

• seasonal fruit and vegetables (look for the special offers)

• "kneipp" bread and "First Price" (or other cheap brands) meat, cheese and jam

• some frozen dinners (like "First Price" lasagna or fish au gratin)

• fish fingers or frozen cod/pollack

• potatoes, carrots

• "First Price" pasta and pasta sauce

• sausages in variuos shapes and sizes

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