Oslofjord Weather for Boat Trips

The inner Oslofjord is enclosed water with islands scattered across it, so the sea state is rarely the problem. Wind on an open deck usually is. Cruises run in rain and they run in cold; the one weather event that genuinely stops this product is ice, and only for the wooden ships, which are cancelled and refunded if the fjord freezes. We have no sourced figure for how often a departure is called off for wind, so we are not going to invent one.

WaterEnclosed, island-sheltered

Main discomfortWind on the open deck

RainCruises still run

IceWooden ships refunded

Cancellation rate for windNo sourced figure

IndoorsSaloons on most boats

What the fjord actually does

Behind the shallow sill at Drøbak and inside a scatter of low islands, this is not open sea. The swell that makes people nervous about boat trips is largely absent from the inner harbour, which is why the seasickness question has a short answer here. The short answer.

Wind is the thing

Air moving across open water at deck height is colder and more persistent than the same air ashore, and the fjord opens up the moment you clear Akershus. This is why the boats with heated saloons are not a luxury in March and why blankets are handed out on the wooden ones. Dress for the deck and then choose whether to use it. What to wear.

Rain

Cruises go ahead. On a boat with a panoramic saloon that is barely an inconvenience; on an open wooden deck it is the trip you booked, in the rain. The wooden ship from Rådhusbrygge 3 also has open boarding and no guaranteed seat, so in bad weather arriving early is how you end up under cover rather than beside the rail.

Ice

In a hard winter the inner fjord can freeze. The wooden ships are cancelled and refunded when it does, which is a clean policy and the only cancellation rule in this catalogue we can state with confidence. Winter cruising.

The boat weather affects least

Ninety minutes on an electric ship with a panoramic saloon, audio guide in seven languages, 4.5 from about 6,690 reviews. It leaves from Langkaia, by the Opera House, not from the City Hall quays. A glass saloon is the closest thing to weatherproofing on this fjord.

Check availability & book

We’re an independent guide, not a tour operator. Booking links go to GetYourGuide and are affiliate links — book through them and we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. See our affiliate disclosure.

Frequently asked questions

Are Oslofjord cruises cancelled in bad weather?

Rain and cold do not stop them. Ice does, for the wooden ships, which are cancelled and refunded if the fjord ices over. We have no sourced figure for wind cancellations and will not guess at one. Booking and changes.

Is the Oslofjord rough?

Rarely, in the inner fjord. It is enclosed water behind a shallow sill at Drøbak and scattered with low islands, so the boats work sheltered harbour rather than open sea. Seasickness on the Oslofjord.

Is it worth cruising on a grey day?

The city reads well in flat light and the saloon boats make it comfortable. What a grey day costs you is the islands, which look like a green line rather than a place. Photographing the fjord.