Stavanger on a budget
Tips to save money while visiting Stavanger, Norway
Stavanger is a beautiful city sorrounded by mountians and fjords, but like most cities in Norway, a quite expensive place to visit. Stavanger is the oil capital in Norway and prices are high, and for this reason, making a little research in advance can save you time and money. Below you'll find some tips that will help you save money on your trip to Stavanger - guaranteed.
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ACCOMODATION - TRANSPORT - FOOD - ALCOHOL
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Find cheap accommodation in Stavanger.
Getting holiday or short term accomodation in Stavanger can potentially be difficult and expensive, especially during the tourist season (May to September). Below we have gathered som links to cheaper alterntives:
Rooms and flats with PRICE GUARANTEE - if you find the accomodation cheaper somewhere else, you'll be refunded the difference.
Airbnb Stavanger - wide range of private apartments. Read how to become a member of Airbnb here
Bring alcohol into the country
Alcohol is EXTREMELY expensive in Norway (3 eur for the cheapest beer in a supermarket and 7-10 eur for a beer in pubs / resturants). So, if you plan to enjoy alcohol during your trip you should bring some or buy it from the Tax Free at the airport. However, make sure you dont bring more than you are allowed to (normally 1 litre of spirits, 2 litres of wine and 4 beers).
Buy beer before 20:00 / 18:00.
If you forget to buy beers at the airport, buing beers in grocery stores is the cheaper option. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to understand that buing beers in a store is the cheaper option, however, it can be a bit difficult to understand why the sale of beer closes at 20:00 on weekdays and at 18:00 on Saturdays although the grocery stores are open longer. After the closing time of the beer sale the shops cover the beer behind big curtains. This is a part of the strict alcohol policy in Norway and you just have to accept it. If you're two minutes too late - sorry - no beer for you.
Shop in the low price grocery stores
Many tourists find food in Norway quite expensive. But like most other places, some store grocery stores are more expensive than others, and you can save some money on going to the cheaper ones. The low price grocery stores are called Rema 1000, KIWI and RIMI and you can find them spread out all over the city. In addition you can buy cheap fruits and vegetables from the markets, many of them located in the Grønland area.
Read more about traditional Norwegian food here.
Go by walk
The city centre of Stavanger is relatively small and if you stay in the central part of Stavanger you can reach many of the attractions by walk. If you need to take public transport make sure you buy the tickets before you enter the bus or the tram. If you buy the tickets on the bus or tram it costs you extra.
Avoid taxis.
In general, taking a taxi in Norway is very expensive and not recommended if you want to save money. The Stavanger city centre is relatively small and compact and most of the tourist attractions can easily be reached by foot or by public transport.
Drink water from the tap
The tap water in Norway is drinkable and of good quality. Therefore you can safely drink water from the tap instead of buing expensive water from the stores.
Do you have more tips to save money while in Stavanger?
Feel free to share them below
