Karl Johan Hotel: Oslo's most central address

Step out the front door and the Norwegian Parliament is across the street. The Royal Palace is a five-minute walk uphill. Central Station is a five-minute walk downhill. The Nationaltheater Flytoget stop, connecting you to the airport, is around the corner. No hotel in Oslo puts you closer to everything.

The building dates from 1899, and some of that history survived the 2021 renovation. A spiral staircase and stained glass windows in the lobby give it personality that chain hotels can't fake. Inside the rooms, it's clean Scandinavian design, modern and crisp.

The standard doubles are small, roughly 15 to 18 square meters. Two open suitcases on the floor and you're climbing over them. If space matters, pay up for a Superior. The top floor has loft-style rooms with sloped ceilings, which sounds nice until you're 185 cm tall and banging your head.

Noise is the real trade-off. Street-facing rooms catch trams, weekend crowds, and street performers well into the night. Request a courtyard-facing room when booking. You lose the Parliament view but you gain sleep.

Breakfast is served under a glass roof on the top floor with views over the city's rooftops. Smoked salmon, brunost, the full Norwegian spread. It's included in the rate, which in a city where a café lunch costs 200 NOK, matters.

One thing to watch: the hotel has a separate budget wing with noticeably lower room standards. Check which wing you're booking before you pay.