Practical guide · Checked 21 October 2026

Copenhagen to Oslo by ferry: the overnight boat, and how it compares

Here in Denmark we simply call it Oslobåden, the Oslo boat. You walk on board in Copenhagen at teatime, eat dinner while the coast of Zealand slips past, sleep in your own cabin and wake up sailing into the Oslofjord. This guide covers the timetable, terminals, cabins, check-in and "from" prices, then sets the boat against the train, the bus and the plane so you can pick what suits your trip.

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Sailing to Oslo? Line up both ends of the trip.

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Compare Copenhagen–Oslo sailingsSee dates and fares side by side on Direct Ferries.Stays in OsloThe ship docks at 10:00, so check-in times matter.Oslo tours and ticketsFill your first morning ashore.

Quick answer

The Copenhagen–Oslo ferry sails every day at 16:30 and arrives at 10:00 the next morning, about 17½ hours with no stops. It was run by DFDS for more than 150 years. Gotlandsbolaget took over the route from DFDS on 1 November 2024 and relaunched it as Go Nordic Cruiseline in February 2025, with the same two ships. Every ticket includes a private cabin with its own bathroom. One-way fares on foot start from DKK 310 per person (about US$47 / €41) with two sharing a cabin. It leaves from Dampfærgevej 30 in Copenhagen and docks at Akershusstranda 31 in Oslo, below Akershus Fortress. Check-in closes 15 minutes before departure, and travellers from outside the Nordic countries and Schengen need a physical passport.

Checked 21 October 2026 against Go Nordic Cruiseline's one-way fares, check-in rules and FAQ. Fares are dynamic, so treat them as starting prices. US$ and € amounts are rough conversions at the 20 October 2026 ECB rate.

Copenhagen to Oslo at a glance

Option	Time	From price (checked 21 Oct 2026)	Good to know
Overnight ferry (Go Nordic Cruiseline)	16:30 → 10:00 next day, ~17½ h	DKK 310 pp on foot, two sharing a cabin (~US$47 / €41)	Saves a hotel night; cabin always included
Train via Gothenburg (Öresund train + Vy)	About 8 h, one change	SEK 1,380 full-flex (~DKK 930 / US$140)	Several departures a day; the full-flex fare does not change, so you can book late
Train on SJ only	9 to 12 h, 1–2 changes	SEK 375 advance (~DKK 250 / US$38)	The cheapest rail fares, if you book ahead and commit to a train
Bus (FlixBus)	About 8 h	£28.49 (~DKK 255 / US$38)	About four a day, including evening departures
Flight CPH → Oslo Gardermoen (SAS, Norwegian)	About 1 h 10 gate to gate	Varies a lot by date	Fastest; add the airport trains at both ends

Ferry fare from Go Nordic Cruiseline; rail fares and times from The Man in Seat 61's Copenhagen–Oslo page; bus fare and duration from FlixBus's UK route page; flight time from the SAS schedule for CPH–OSL. All are "from" prices seen on 21 October 2026 and move with demand. Conversions are rounded.

The Oslo boat: timetable and route

Generations of Danes and Norwegians have taken this boat for Christmas shopping, school trips and summer holidays, and many of us still think of it as "the DFDS boat". Gotlandsbolaget, a Swedish shipping group, took over the route from DFDS on 1 November 2024 and relaunched it as Go Nordic Cruiseline in February 2025. The two ships, Nordic Crown and Nordic Pearl, are the same ones that sailed for DFDS, and all cabins were renovated in spring 2025.

Departs Copenhagen: daily at 16:30. Special event sailings can leave at other times, so check your ticket.
Arrives Oslo: 10:00 the next morning. Oslo to Copenhagen runs on the same times.
Crossing time: about 17½ hours, with no stops.
The route: north up the Øresund past Kronborg Castle at Helsingør in the early evening, through the Kattegat and Skagerrak overnight, and up the Oslofjord in the morning.
Fewer sailings in January 2027: Nordic Pearl goes into dry dock in January 2027. Go Nordic's sailing schedule lists no departures from Copenhagen on 4 and 6 January (from Oslo on 5 and 7 January); check the schedule if you are travelling in January.

You can book direct with Go Nordic Cruiseline, or compare Copenhagen–Oslo sailing dates and fares on Direct Ferries (affiliate link). That is handy if you want to look at a run of dates before you commit.

Cabins and "from" prices

There are no seats or deck passage on this route: every ticket includes a cabin, and you only share it with people on your own booking. All cabins have a private bathroom, bed linen, towels, a hairdryer, air conditioning and a TV.

Ticket	From (checked 21 Oct 2026)	What the "from" price assumes
One way on foot	DKK 310 per person (~US$47 / €41)	Two people sharing one cabin
One way with a car	DKK 293–316 per person (~US$44–48 / €39–42; Go Nordic's English and Danish sites differ)	Four people in an inside standard cabin, car up to 1.85 m tall
MiniCruise (Copenhagen–Oslo–Copenhagen)	DKK 286 per person (~US$43 / €38)	Two people in a standard sea-view cabin; two nights on board and about 6½ hours in Oslo

Fares are dynamic, so a solo traveller, a summer weekend or a better cabin all cost more than these headline prices. A few more costs to know about:

EU climate surcharge (ETS): €5 per passenger per direction, added at booking (€21 for a car under 1.85 m).
Bike: from DKK 200 (~US$30).
Booking by phone or at the terminal: DKK 150 service fee per booking, so book online.
No date changes: moving your trip counts as a cancellation under Go Nordic's terms, and cancellation fees apply. Get travel insurance, because the line does not sell it.
Peak season covers the summer holidays, two autumn-holiday periods in late September and October, and the Christmas weeks, when cheap cabins go first.

Which cabin? Economy cabins are the cheapest, but Go Nordic warns that some sit near the nightclub or the engine room. Inside standard cabins sleep 1 to 4 and sea-view cabins 1 to 5. Premium cabins add free Wi-Fi, breakfast, a bottle of bubbles and, in selected categories, lounge access, plus earlier boarding from 13:30. Pet-friendly and accessible cabins exist too; accessible cabins are booked by phone.

What is on board

The Oslo boat is half transport, half a little cruise. Dinner with a view of the sea is part of the ritual, and so is a slow breakfast as the boat glides up the Oslofjord.

Restaurants: Skagerak (buffet with meat, fish and vegetarian dishes), Kull (steak and seafood grill) and Syd (Italian). Pre-book dinner no later than 32 hours before departure; after that, ask the restaurants on board.
Bars, live music and a nightclub, plus children's entertainment with a play and pool area.
Go Shop, the tax-free shop, with clothes, design, jewellery and drinks.
Wi-Fi: free in premium cabins; otherwise bought from Telenor Maritime, for example DKK 119 (~US$18) for 24 hours. Turn off roaming at sea, as phones connect via the ship's satellite network and charges can be high.
Payment: prices on board are in DKK, but you can pay in DKK, NOK, SEK, EUR or GBP, or by card.
Your own food is allowed in your cabin, not in the restaurants or bars.
No doctor and no seasickness tablets for sale on board. If the Skagerrak worries you, bring tablets from a pharmacy before you leave.

Check-in, boarding and ID

Check-in closes 15 minutes before departure, so 16:15 for the 16:30 sailing. Arrive later and your ticket is cancelled.
Mobile check-in: at 18:30 the day before, you get a link by SMS. Confirm everyone's details and you get one QR code per traveller to show at the gate with photo ID.
Boarding on foot: from 15:15 in standard cabins, from 13:30 in premium cabins. With a car, from 15:00 (Go Nordic's check-in page; its FAQs say 14:45 or 15:15, so go by your booking confirmation), and you cannot stay on the car deck or go back to the car during the crossing.
Luggage: no fixed limit, but foot passengers must be able to carry their own bags on board.
ID must be physical, not a phone app. Travellers from outside the Nordic countries and Schengen need a valid passport, children included, plus a visa where one is required. Schengen citizens can use a passport or a national ID card. Without valid ID you are refused check-in.
Age: the minimum age for one-way and return trips is 16, and 18 for a MiniCruise, unless travelling with an adult.

Norway is in Schengen but not in the EU, so there is customs on arrival in Oslo. Go Nordic notes that you cannot bring plants, fruit or vegetables from outside the EU into the EU without a certificate, which matters on the way back to Copenhagen.

Getting to the terminals

Copenhagen: Dampfærgevej 30, 2100 København Ø

The terminal is the old DFDS terminal in the harbour north-east of the centre, near Nordhavn. It is open daily from 09:00 to 16:30. It is not one of the cruise ship berths; if you are joining a cruise, see our Copenhagen cruise port guide.

Metro or S-train: take the M4 metro or an S-train to Nordhavn station, then walk 10–15 minutes.
Shuttle bus: Go Nordic's shuttle, run by Vikingbus, leaves Copenhagen Central Station (Bernstorffsgade 2) at 15:40 and Nørreport (Øster Voldgade 2C) at 15:55 for the 16:30 sailing. It costs DKK 50 (~US$7.50) one way, children 0–3 free. Book it with your ticket or at reception on board. On arrival in Copenhagen it leaves the terminal at 10:30.
Parking: a limited number of spaces at the terminal at DKK 195 (~US$29) a day, booked by phone; the nearest public car park is at Amerika Plads, about 300 m away.

Oslo: Akershusstranda 31, 0150 Oslo

The ship docks right in the city, below Akershus Fortress. Oslo Central Station (Oslo S) is a 15–20 minute walk away, and there is no shuttle bus in Oslo. Arriving at 10:00 means you have most of the day before hotel check-in, so many hotels will hold your bags.

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Stays in Østerbro, near the Copenhagen terminal →

Handy for a relaxed last night before an afternoon sailing.

Stays in central Oslo →

Walking distance from the terminal and Oslo S.

By train: via Gothenburg

There is no direct train from Copenhagen to Oslo, and no night train. The quickest rail route is an Öresund train from Copenhagen Central Station to Gothenburg (about 3½ hours, over the Øresund Bridge), then a Norwegian Vy train from Gothenburg to Oslo S (about 3½ hours). With the change, allow about 8 hours. Seat61's timetable shows departures through the day, for example 05:29 from Copenhagen arriving in Oslo at 13:45.

Price: a full-flex through fare of SEK 1,380 (~DKK 930 / US$140), which does not rise as the train fills, so there is no need to book months ahead.
Cheaper but slower: SJ, the Swedish railway, sells advance fares from SEK 375 (~DKK 250 / US$38) on its own trains, taking 9 to 12 hours with one or two changes. Book a few weeks ahead on sj.se.
Check the change: when booking, make sure your journey is train all the way and not a replacement or express bus for part of it.
Carry your passport: trains cross from Denmark into Sweden and then Norway.

Going this way, you could stop a night in Gothenburg, or catch Malmö on the way; our Malmö day trip guide covers the Swedish side of the bridge. Going on to Stockholm instead? See Copenhagen to Stockholm by train.

By bus

FlixBus runs Copenhagen to Oslo in about 8 hours, with about four departures a day including evening buses, from £28.49 (~DKK 255 / US$38) on its UK site on 21 October 2026. Buses leave from Copenhagen Bus Terminal at Carsten Niebuhrs Gade 30 or the stop at Ingerslevsgade 22, both near Copenhagen Central Station, and arrive at Oslo Bus Terminal (Galleriet). The bus is the cheapest way to go if you are travelling light and on your own; the boat often wins once two people share a cabin and you count the hotel night saved.

By plane: Copenhagen Airport to Oslo Gardermoen

SAS and Norwegian both fly Copenhagen to Oslo Gardermoen several times a day, about 1 hour 10 minutes gate to gate. Add the time at both ends: the metro from central Copenhagen to the airport takes about 15 minutes, and Flytoget, the Oslo airport express train, runs every 10 minutes and takes 19 minutes to the city centre. City centre to city centre, we would allow 3½ to 4 hours in practice.

Flying makes most sense if you are short on days, or if Oslo is where your flight home leaves from. We compare fares on Kiwi.com.

Compare flights on Kiwi.com →

More on fares and routes from Copenhagen in our cheap flights from Copenhagen guide, and on the terminals and trains in our Copenhagen Airport guide.

Which one should you pick?

Two or more people with a few days to spare: the ferry. The cabin replaces a hotel night, you lose no daylight, and you arrive in the middle of Oslo.
Driving through Scandinavia: the ferry with your car saves the long drive through Sweden. If the car is a rental, check the company allows it in Norway first; our driving in Denmark guide covers the cross-border basics.
Train lovers and Interrail travellers: the train via Gothenburg, with a stop on the way if you like.
Solo on a tight budget: the bus, or an advance SJ ticket.
Short on time: fly, and spend the saved day in one city or the other.

A good plan for a Scandinavian loop: a few days in Copenhagen, the boat to Oslo, then the train back via Gothenburg. You see the sea one way and the Swedish west coast the other.

Quick answers

How long is the ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo?

About 17½ hours. It leaves Copenhagen every day at 16:30 and arrives in Oslo at 10:00 the next morning, with no stops on the way. Oslo to Copenhagen runs on the same times.

Is the Copenhagen–Oslo ferry still DFDS?

No. Gotlandsbolaget, a Swedish shipping group, took over the route from DFDS on 1 November 2024 and relaunched it as Go Nordic Cruiseline in February 2025. The ships, Nordic Crown and Nordic Pearl, are the same ones DFDS used, and the Copenhagen terminal is the old DFDS terminal at Dampfærgevej 30.

How much is the ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo?

On 21 October 2026 Go Nordic Cruiseline showed one-way fares on foot from DKK 310 per person with two sharing a cabin, one way with a car from DKK 293–316 per person with four in an inside cabin (Go Nordic's English and Danish sites differ), and a MiniCruise from DKK 286 per person. Prices are dynamic and rise with demand, and an EU climate surcharge of €5 per passenger per direction is added.

Do you need a cabin on the Oslo ferry?

Yes. It is an overnight sailing, so every ticket includes a cabin with a private bathroom, and there is no seat-only option. You only share with people on your own booking.

Where does the Oslo ferry leave from in Copenhagen?

From the terminal at Dampfærgevej 30, 2100 København Ø, north-east of the centre. Take the M4 metro or an S-train to Nordhavn and walk 10–15 minutes, or book Go Nordic's DKK 50 shuttle bus from Copenhagen Central Station or Nørreport.

What time is check-in for the Oslo ferry?

Check-in closes 15 minutes before departure, so 16:15 for the 16:30 sailing. Foot passengers in standard cabins can board from 15:15 and premium cabins from 13:30. You can check in on your phone from 18:30 the day before.

Is it quicker to take the train from Copenhagen to Oslo?

Yes. The train via Gothenburg takes about 8 hours with one change, against about 17½ hours on the ferry. The ferry saves you a hotel night and a day of travelling in daylight, though, because you sleep on the way.

Do I need a passport for the Copenhagen–Oslo ferry?

Travellers from outside the Nordic countries and Schengen need a valid physical passport, children included. Schengen citizens can use a passport or national ID card, and Nordic citizens a passport or physical Nordic driving licence. Digital ID is not accepted.