Norway's most visited tourist spot (Holmenkollen Ski Arena)

Member Name: Shazzy

Product:	Holmenkollen Ski Arena
Date:	30/06/01 (92 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Something you won't find here., It won't break the bank to visit it.

Disadvantages: Steep paths and lots of steps.

You’ve seen them on TV haven’t you? Those towering constructions that grown men leap off of the ends of? Ever wondered how it feels to stand at the very top and look down that slope out into….. what? Well if you’re ever in Oslo, visit Holmenkollen Ski Jump and you’ll have the chance!

The tower itself, that’s the bit where they stand and throw themselves onto the slope of no return, is 60 meters high. As if that’s not enough, it also stands more than 400 meters above sea level. So? What difference does that make? Well consider this for a moment. The Holmenkollen ski jump is situated on a mountainside behind the city center. From the tower you have a view of Oslo and the fjord below. You can see for miles and it’s a loooooong way down. Believe me, if you have a problem with heights, this is terrifying!

There’s more than a century of tradition surrounding the Holmenkollen ski arena, but the tradition of skiing goes back much further. How far? 4000 years!

Inside the actual jump you’ll find a museum specialising in….. yes, you guessed it! Skiing! The museum is actually the world’s oldest of it’s kind and holds both rock carvings and skis from the Viking period. I love history so I found this totally absorbing.

It’s unlikely that most of us will every actually do a real jump from one of these huge towers, or from anything else for that matter, but at Holmenkollen it’s possible to try a ski-jump simulator. And should the jump leave you wanting more, you can try a downhill run on a simulation of the Olympic slope at Kvitfjell. Awesome!

Getting there is easy. Take the t-bane (a cross between a tram and a tube train) from the city center. You’ll need the No. 1, heading for Frognerseteren. Get off at Holmenkollen station and follow the signs. It’s about a 10 minute walk.

It goes without saying that there’s a gift
shop. Nothing spectacular about it though. Mostly the same sort of things that can be found all over Oslo, apart from stickers, t-shirts, key-rings and the likes that say “I’ve been to Holmenkollen”. Well some like to let the world know that they’ve been, others don’t. Whatever takes you fancy!

A ticket for the Jump Tower and the Ski Museum will cost you around 60 kroner for an adult and 30 for children. That’s about £5 and £2.50 respectively. Not bad considering we’re talking about an EXPENSIVE country here! The simulator is an extra 40 kroner for adults, 30 for the nippers.

All in all, a worthwhile and entertaining day out.

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