Updated September 2026 · we visited the old museum in September 2017
The Viking Ship Museum in Oslo has been closed since September 2021, and it won’t reopen before late 2027. If you’re reading this on a hotel bed after finding the doors shut, you’re not alone. It’s one of the most common disappointments for families in Oslo, because older guidebooks and blogs (ours included, until this year) still list it.
Here’s what’s happening, what we saw there in 2017, and where to take kids who came to Oslo for Vikings.
Quick answers
- Is the Viking Ship Museum open? No. It’s been closed since September 2021.
- When does it reopen? As the Museum of the Viking Age, currently targeted for late 2027. No exact date yet.
- Best alternative with kids in Oslo: the Historical Museum’s family exhibition Miðgarðr. Free for under-18s.
- With older kids: The Viking Planet, a digital Viking museum opposite City Hall. Free with the Oslo Pass.
- Day trip: Midgard Viking Centre at Borre, about an hour from Oslo by train. It has a Viking hall and a Viking playground.
Short on time? Our top 3 picks in Oslo
Citybox Oslo – 5 minutes from Oslo S, with family rooms, self check-in and a guest kitchen. Breakfast isn’t included, which is how it keeps prices down.
Thon Hotel Opera – 25 m from Oslo S and a short walk to the Opera House roof. Breakfast buffet included, rooms for up to four.
Sommerro – Frogner, with Oslo’s first rooftop pool and 45 m² family rooms. The tram stops outside.
Affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. On our trip we stayed with friends outside Oslo, not in a hotel.
Why is the Viking Ship Museum closed?
The old museum on Bygdøy, with halls dating from the 1920s and 1930s, is being rebuilt and expanded into the Museum of the Viking Age. The new building is designed to protect the fragile wooden ships in a climate-controlled space, with room for the thousands of finds from the great burial sites that were never shown properly before.
The ships remain on Bygdøy during the work but can’t be seen. There’s no partial opening and no viewing window, so don’t make the trip to Bygdøy for them.
What’s inside: the three ships
- The Oseberg ship, found at Oseberg near Tønsberg, from the largest known ship burial in the world. It’s the ornately carved one on every postcard.
- The Gokstad ship, found at Gokstad near Sandefjord.
- The Tune ship, the smallest and least complete of the three.
What we saw in 2017
We went on a rainy September day with a 4-year-old and a toddler, as our second museum on Bygdøy. Three ships, each more than a thousand years old, stood in the museum’s halls. What held Damian wasn’t only the ships. It was a short animation projected on a wall about who the Vikings were, where they came from and how they lived. He loved this museum.
It wasn’t a big museum, and we went on to Kon-Tiki and the Fram the same day. If the new museum keeps some of that simplicity and adds space, it’ll be worth the wait.
What to see instead in Oslo with kids
1. The Historical Museum: Miðgarðr, the Vikings’ mythical world
The best alternative for families, and it’s in the city centre, a few minutes from Karl Johans gate. The Historical Museum runs a family exhibition, Miðgarðr – The Mythical World of the Vikings. It displays the original carved serpent head from the Oseberg ship for the first time, having kept it in storage until now because it’s so fragile. So in 2026 you can see a piece of the Oseberg ship, just not on Bygdøy.
2026: NOK 160 adult, free for under-18s, free with the Oslo Pass. Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00 (Thursday until 18:00), closed Mondays. From October to April, entry is half price on the last Saturday of the month. Frederiks gate 2.
2. The Viking Planet: for kids 6 and up
A digital Viking museum on Fridtjof Nansens plass, opposite City Hall, so it’s easy to combine with the harbour and the Bygdøy ferry. It uses screens and projections rather than artefacts, which suits kids who find glass cases boring. Allow an hour and a half to two hours.
2026: NOK 285 adult (12+), NOK 175 child (6–11), free with the Oslo Pass. Open daily 10:00–18:00 (July–August 9:00–19:00). The VR experiences are not recommended under 12, because of violence and headset fit, so with younger children stick to the museum.
Honest note: we haven’t been, and it’s a different kind of experience from seeing real ships. With young kids, the Historical Museum is the better first choice and costs nothing for them.
3. Sail on the ships that are still open
If what your kids want is to stand on a real historic ship, the Fram on Bygdøy lets them walk on board. The Kon-Tiki raft is next door. Neither is Viking, but our 4-year-old loved the Fram just as much. See our Bygdøy museums with kids guide.
Day trip: Midgard Viking Centre at Borre
If Vikings are the reason for your trip, go to where they were buried. Midgard Viking Centre sits next to the Borre burial mounds near Horten, about an hour from Oslo S by train to Skoppum. The ticket includes the Viking Hall, a guided tour and a Viking playground, which with small kids might be the part that matters most.
| Midgard 2026 | Adult | Child 7–17 |
|---|---|---|
| High season (Jun–Aug, daily 11–16) | NOK 140 | NOK 100 |
| Low season (Sep–May, Tue–Sun 11–16) | NOK 100 | NOK 70 |
Children 0–6 go free. We haven’t been, so this is planning information from the centre’s own site. The Oseberg ship itself was found near Tønsberg, further down the same coast, so a Vestfold Viking day can take in both.
When will the Museum of the Viking Age open?
The target is late 2027, with no exact date announced as of September 2026. We’ll update this page when the date is confirmed and again when it opens. If you’re planning for 2027, don’t book around it until tickets are on sale.
Planning the rest of Oslo? Our 2-day Oslo with kids itinerary · Is the Oslo Pass worth it for families? · Norway with kids: our full week.
Frequently asked questions about the Viking Ship Museum
Is the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo open?
No. The Viking Ship Museum on Bygdøy has been closed since September 2021 for rebuilding, and the ships cannot be seen during the work.
When does the Museum of the Viking Age open?
The Museum of the Viking Age is currently targeted to open in late 2027. No exact date had been announced as of September 2026.
Where can you see Viking artefacts in Oslo now?
At the Historical Museum in central Oslo, whose family exhibition Miðgarðr shows the original serpent head from the Oseberg ship. Under-18s go free and the museum is closed on Mondays.
Is The Viking Planet good for kids?
It suits children from about 6. Tickets are NOK 175 for ages 6–11 and it’s free with the Oslo Pass, but its VR experiences are not recommended for children under 12.
Can you do a Viking day trip from Oslo?
Yes. Midgard Viking Centre at Borre, about an hour from Oslo by train, has a Viking hall, guided tours and a Viking playground next to the Borre burial mounds.
