Must-Have Mobile Apps in Norway
If you’re planning a trip to Norway (or living there for a year), I recommend you check this out! I made this page mostly for my own sanity, but others might find it useful too.
WEATHER
Yr.no
This is a really accurate weather app and website. You can see hour-by-hour predictions, cloud cover radar, and some stats. Check it out!
TRAVEL
Vy.no
This is the go-to website and mobile app for using trains and busses in Norway. It’s beautifully designed. You can purchase tickets on the app to avoid waiting in line at the kiosk. Note: buying your ticket on the app or at the kiosk is cheaper than buying a ticket in-person on the train. vy.no →
Entur
Entur is pretty much Norway’s public transit in one app. Here, you’ll get travel suggestions from door to door by bus, train, metro, boat and airplane. Entur website →
Ruter Reise
Ruter is the public transit system for Oslo and the greater Oslo area. This app is used to locate the nearest bus stop and bus routes. It has accurate arrival times. Downside: it’s for routes and times only; you have to purchase the actual bus ticket on either Vy.no or Ruter Billett or Entur. Ruter Reise website →
Ruter Billett
Here, you can purchase bus tickets — but that’s it. To see bus stations and arrival times, you’ll have to use Ruter Reise. Note: this app isn’t really necessary if you have Vy since you can purchase bus tickets there too. Ruter website →
FINANCE
Mattilbud
Fun fact: Norway’s food is the priciest in Europe. Thankfully, this app shows coupon deals for all of the major grocery stores. Save that money! mattilbud website →
Elk: The Travel Converter
This is the most elegant app I can find for currency conversation. Swiping left and right changes the decimal place, and a single tap shows values in between the increments.
LANGUAGE
NRK Radio
The NRK Radio app lets you easily listen to all of NRK’s podcasts, live channels and recordings of radio programs. In the app you can also listen to live radio and rewind up to 3 hours. NRK radio →
Google Translate
This one goes without saying, but Google Translate can be a lifesaver. People will debate the accuracy, however, in a pinch it’s the best way to do a reasonable translation. Most notably, the mobile app allows you to activate your phone’s camera, and it will translate the image in real time — transposing your native language on top of the foreign text while preserving the image. Impressive.
Originally published on August 16, 2019.
