Practical Information for visiting Norway

The currency is the Norwegian krone (NOK). Norway is not in the EU and does not use the euro.

Norway is effectively cashless. Cards work everywhere, including on ferries, buses and at rural petrol pumps, and many businesses no longer accept notes at all.

Tipping is not expected; service is included. Rounding up for good restaurant service is common and entirely optional.

Alcohol is state-controlled. Anything above 4.7% comes from Vinmonopolet, which has limited hours and is closed on Sundays. Beer is sold in supermarkets but not after 20:00 on weekdays or 18:00 on Saturdays.

Coverage is good along roads and in settlements, including much of the far north, and absent in the high mountains and remote fjord arms.

EU and EEA roaming applies, so European visitors use their home allowance.

Free Wi-Fi is standard in accommodation, cafés and on many trains and ferries. For mountain walking, download offline maps — coverage on the trails is unreliable.

Norway is among the safest countries in the world, and crime is not a meaningful concern for visitors.

The mountains are the risk. Weather turns fast, and people get into trouble on day walks in summer clothing. Carry windproof and waterproof layers, tell someone your route, and turn back early rather than late.

Do not walk on glaciers without a guide. Crevasses are snow-covered and invisible, and this is the most common cause of serious hiking accidents here.

Winter driving requires proper tyres and real caution; mountain roads close without much notice.

On Svalbard, polar bears are a genuine hazard and carrying a firearm outside the settlements is legally required — which is why guided trips are the norm.

No vaccinations are required and tap water is excellent everywhere — buying bottled water in Norway is pointless.

Hypothermia and exposure are the realistic risks, and they occur in summer on the high ground as readily as in winter.

Ticks are present along the southern coast and can carry Lyme disease; check after walking in long grass.

Healthcare is excellent. EHIC and GHIC are accepted from eligible countries; others need insurance, ideally covering mountain rescue.

Summer mosquitoes in the north, particularly inland Finnmark, are severe enough to affect plans.

Allemannsretten gives everyone the right to walk and camp on uncultivated land, pick berries and mushrooms, and pass through private property — subject to the distance and duration rules noted above. It is a genuine legal right and among the most generous anywhere.

Open fires are banned near forest from 15 April to 15 September.

Alcohol is sold through Vinmonopolet with restricted hours; the drinking age is 18 for beer and wine, 20 for spirits.

Drink-driving limits are very low (0.02%) and enforced strictly. Road tolls are automatic and unavoidable.

Punctuality is expected, queuing is orderly, and personal space is larger than most visitors are used to — standing close in a quiet queue reads as odd rather than friendly.

112 reaches police, 113 ambulance, 110 fire.

Healthcare is excellent, with hospitals in all major towns. Remote fjord and mountain areas rely on helicopter response, and times are correspondingly long.

For mountain emergencies, call 112. The DNT hut network and marked trail system is the backbone of safe walking here, and registering your route at a staffed hut is normal practice.

Pharmacies are widespread. On Svalbard, all travel outside Longyearbyen should be registered with the Governor's office.