Oslo Airport

A single terminal building. It took us all of 6 minutes to get from the train to the BA lounge (via both check-in and security). Downside is that from the lounge you still have to go through one check to let you into the international area and then passport control and we seemed to board at the furthest gate. There are two trains you can get to the centre run by different companies so make sure you get the right one. The airport express is fast regular and only stops at Olso central station. The other is slower but considerably cheaper and also continues part the central station which may be handier for your hotel.

Overall a very nice & clean airport. The downside is especially the transportation to Oslo. Nice looking clean easy to get to public transportation - but location far out of Oslo very expensive ride to the Central station and long walks compared to the rather small size of the airport.

A well-designed clean and pleasant airport which has the appreciated advantage of being smoke-free unlike other major European airports (CPH FRA). The one thing that would be a welcome and useful improvement would be a cheap simple travelers' hotel like the one at CPH especially since a fair number of flights seem to come in to Oslo after 22.00. With the airport being an hour away from the city unless your final destination is Oslo transit passengers are forced to take more of a lodging than they might like at an unnecessary price. I had friends take me home with them but I would have hoped to have found an in-house option like that in CPH from a new airport in Scandinavia. All in all a very warm and user-friendly structure as airports go.

First experience with OSL was very favourable. On arrival first impression of the terminal building was warm and welcoming although it was mid-winter and the outside temperature was sub-zero. Immigration staff were friendly and efficient. Although the distance to baggage reclaim was fairly long it was along a clean and attractive corridor with wooden structure reflecting Norwegian ambience. Baggage appeared almost immediately after a brief visit to the immaculately kept toilets. The check-in hall was airy and clearly signed. Check-in security clearance and immigration check were all swift and friendly. There is a good selection of shops and catering facilities at fair prices beyond passport control. In summary we found OSL to be a joy to use and would not hesitate to recommend it !

A lot of walking here which can be a bit of a hassle particularly on arrival with a lot of hand baggage. There is now duty free on arrival with a fairly decent selection of goods. Something nice to do while you wait for your luggage!

Perfectly nice airport in terms of aesthetics and layout but I do have one gripe- the SAS lounge (for international flights) was overheated and had virtually no food on a Sunday evening. Now I know it was quiet but pasta salad that looked like it had been lying out for hours and a couple of pieces of fruit is absolutely pathetic. I have been in Star Alliance airline lounges in many cities in Europe USA Asia and Australasia and while the lounge had pleasant amenities what is wrong with providing some decent food? Take a leaf from Air New Zealand's domestic koru club lounges- a selection of fruit fresh salads meat cake and even hot food - all for passengers flying no longer than say 1.5 hours or so. The Heathrow London Lounge has more food as well. This lounge was for international flights including long haul although I was only on a flight to London (which barring business class requires one to pay for a sandwich).

Oslo airport is a torture for smokers. They have not designated any smoking area inside (there are no law against it) and the passengers have to go outside or use the lavatories. This is one of the reasons why many passengers from other places in Norway prefer CPH as the foreign hub for connections to outside Scandinavia. Especially if you have a long wait for connecting flights.

To be honest they could have laid out the airport a little better. Checkin desks were at the other end of the airport from the railway station from which most people arrive and no seperate desks for Club Europe on BA. This is a no smoking airport so if you want one you have to go back out through security. I agree that the BA Terraces are a little hard to find but WOW that's what I call relaxing with a fountain in the middle and help yourself to a large selection of drinks - again no smoking in here. Aside from that nothing really to set it apart from the rest it can just be a pain to get around sometimes - especially if your gate is right at the other end of the airport and you have to go through immigration it will take at least 15 minutes.

While it is aesthetically quite agreeable Oslo Gardermoen isn't exactly the most user-friendlyairport I've used. Situated some 45 km out of town you can either use the SAS Flybussen (14 euros o/w) or train (20euros o/w) neither of which are cheap. I found it a bit odd that BA check-in desks were a bit of a free-for-all and that there was no seperate Club Europe desk. However if you've hand luggage only there are several self check-inmachines but you need to have the credit card used for the ticket purchase. A modest but comfortable BA Terraces lounge is available after security check but I guarantee you will go round in circles looking for it. Located on the domestic departures side it is very poorly signposted as the lounge attendant has probably been told 100s of times. Take the spiral staircase on your left after security and continue to the end of the corridor. DO NOT go to international departures after security as you won't be allowed to step back into domestic even though there's no barrier between the two. Instead you will have to exit at gate 42 go thru customs and back into the departures hall - really annoying. Overall by no means unpleasant but not a patch on it's neighbour in Copenhagen.

OSL Gardermoen is a pretty efficient airport that reminded me of Vantaa in Helsinki. The biggest disappointment (and one that seems to be shared with other travellers) is that it is a long long walk from one part to another - arriving from LHR required a walk of nearly a kilometre to arrivals with no moving sidewalks. Return to LHR also was from the far end of the airport - could this be because of Schengen? - but trollies are available in the departures area which was a nice plus. Getting from OSL to Oslo city centre couldn't be easier via the SAS Flybus just outside the arrivals hall. In all OSL is just another example of how things can be run well in a Scandinavian country with the understanding that everyone will meet the same high expectations.