Scandic Byporten review: The most convenient location in Oslo

Scandic is a beloved hotel chain in Norway, especially appreciated for its generous breakfast buffet spreads. But one thing sets the Scandic Byporten apart: This hotel is literally connected to the main Oslo S train station! This station is where you get a train to the airport as well as many other destinations around Norway.

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We first stayed in the Scandic Byporten on the last night of our 2023 trip, when we had early morning flights out of Oslo’s Gardermoen airport. We liked it so much, we stayed there again in 2025, this time for two nights!

The first time we stayed, we got early morning trains to the airport. The second time, we had to board to board a morning train to Trondheim when we left. Both times, super convenient!

In this post, I’m sharing my honest experience staying at the Scandic Byporten: the location, the rooms, the breakfast, the staff, and a couple of downsides.

Scandic Byporten Review: My experience staying at Oslo’s most convenient hotel

Of course, you have a lot of choices in Oslo lodging. Staying in each Oslo neighborhood has its own charm. But if you are taking an early morning train or flight and want to be close to the train station, I recommend staying at Scandic Byporten every time!

Scandic Byporten’s convenient location

From the Scandic Byporten’s lobby, you can walk directly into the train station. That’s particularly valuable if you happen to arrive or leave during one of Norway’s famous summer rains — or during a winter snowstorm!

From Oslo Central Station, you can take the express Flytoget train to Gardermoen Airport, or a regular train that isn’t much slower. You can also board trains for other parts of Norway. On one morning of our trip, we walked out of the Scandic Byporten to board the morning train to Trondheim.

The train station/hotel complex also has a large shopping mall with a grocery store, liquor store, clothing stores, espresso stand and more. That was really convenient both when coming and going, and also while staying there.

And the Byporten’s location isn’t just convenient for arriving and leaving in Oslo. It’s also at the center of everything going on. You’re right at the end of Karl Johans gate, Oslo’s main shopping street. You can walk right down Karl Johans gate to the royal palace. You’re a brief stroll from the Opera and the Bjorvika waterfront and the sauna boats.

And of course, there are tram and bus stops right outside the Scandic Byporten for getting to farther sights, like Frogner Park and the Bygdøy museum area. The Scandic Byporten is a great jumping-off spot for a quick one-day Oslo tour or a longer visit.

The rooms

The rooms at the Scandic Byporten are pretty standard for Norway: Small and with no air conditioning or fans. The windows open, but of course, with only one or two windows, you’re not going to get a cross breeze going. That meant: On mild nights, the rooms were totally comfortable. On hot nights, they were stuffy.

They have several room types available: We stayed in standard rooms, with two twin beds (they also have rooms with full beds. We also tried a family room, which had a set of bunk beds crammed in next to the regular bed.

Like all Norwegian hotels, the double beds at Scandic Byporten come with two separate comforters and no top sheet. (Personally, when traveling in Norway in summer, I take the comforter out of the duvet cover and use just the cover as a light blanket/top sheet.)

Overall, the rooms at Scandic Byporten are nothing to write home about, but neither were they miserable. They were clean and the beds were comfortable.

The staff (friendly and helpful)

If you are an American traveling in Norway, you may notice that customer service there is not the same as at home. People in service jobs are a little more relaxed. The vibe isn’t so much “the customer is always right” as “I’m good at my job, don’t worry about it.”

That said, the people working the front desk at the Scandic Byporten have always been extra kind and helpful to us. When planning both our trips, I ended up having to call and email the front desk several times. I often got an instant reply, even if it was the middle of the night in Norway. In fact, during both trips, two years apart, I ended up speaking with a nigh shift attendant named Moe. Then Moe randomly got put on the day shift on our second visit and I finally got to meet him in person!

On our second trip, when checking in, the desk clerk noticed that we had been charged twice for our stay! They were able to refund us about $600 that I hadn’t even realized we’d overpaid!

Like most Norwegian hotels, the front desk is also the bar. The staff were always happy to accommodate our requests for ice, whether that was extra ice cubes for our cocktails or a bag of ice for our small cooler. They even froze our refreezable ice packs for us overnight.

The staff was accommodating even when we stopped by the Scandic outside the dates of our scheduled stay. Things they did for us without question when we weren’t even staying there:

• Let us store baggage in their baggage room. Before boarding the first train for our self-guided Norway in a Nutshell tour, we stopped into the Scandic Byporten and asked if we could leave our suitcases there. The staff said yes with no hesitation. This was very convenient since they are right at the train station!
  
• Let us borrow a wheelchair to help my dad have a great day seeing the Oslo sights, when we returned from Northern Norway. We were staying in a VRBO at that time — but the staff at the Scandic Byporten were happy to let us use the chair.

The breakfast

Hotel breakfast spreads are great in Scandinavia in general, and the Scandic Byporten breakfast is no exception. Salmon, great breads, high-quality brewed coffee, pastries, porridge, muffins, the works.

On the days we were leaving early, they let us take a to-go box instead of eating at the buffet. You have to ask for this or really look around to see where they keep them. And the rule is that you are supposed to pack a to-go breakfast or eat there, not both. Like most things in Norway, this is on the honor system.

The common areas: Cute although busy

I liked the Scandic Byporten’s library-like lobby design, with bookshelves and cozy chairs. However, we didn’t really spend time hanging out here, except when we were waiting for other members of our party to join us.

During the times when I did sit in the lobby, I saw so many groups coming and going. This is a large hotel, and the guests keep the staff on their toes.

Scandic Byporten’s downsides

I can only cite a couple of things that the Byporten hotel could have done better:

• Laundry. The hotel has a small laundry room available to guests at no extra charge.
  
  However, the washer wasn’t working well during our visit. It wouldn’t spin after the long wash cycle, leaving our clothes soaking wet. I lost hours of sleep on our last night struggling with the machine.
  
• Breakfast buffet accessibility. The breakfast buffet is on the upper level of the attached Egon restaurant.
  
  The only elevator available is a service elevator. The staff kindly escorted us through the kitchen to use it, but once we got upstairs, our wheelchair user could only access a small area of the long, narrow dining room.

Money saving tip: Join Scandic Friends

We received a discounted rate by joining the free Scandic Friends loyalty program. Each room has to have a person with an account to get the discount. So I had to sign my mom up as well, even though I booked at paid for both of our rooms together.

I also earned points for my stay at Scandic Byporten (and for our stay at Trondheim’s Scandic Nidelven on the same trip). But since I don’t live in Norway, I don’t think I’ll ever use them. They expire in 2028.

Will I stay at the Scandic Byporten again?

Absolutely! Especially if I have an early morning departure via train or the Oslo airport, I will always stay at the Scandic Byporten when visiting Oslo.

The only time I would stay somewhere else is if I am with a larger group and we want to rent a whole apartment through VRBO.

Miles on a Dime’s conclusion: Scandic Byporten is a convenient, clean and accommodating spot for families, business travelers and tourists traveling alone or in pairs. You won’t regret staying there.