LGBTQ+ Guide to Oslo
Bars & Clubs
London Pub
The London Pub is a popular hangout for LGBTQ+ people since 1979. A place where everyone can be themselves and be accepted for it. There is a club interior upstairs, while downstairs there is a classic British tavern with pool table and wooden fixtures. The bar is always open from 15:00 until 03:30 and hosts regular parties, performances, comedy shows, themed events, and a weekly karaoke on Tuesday. Everyone is welcome to sing, regardless of their ability to do so. The place is especially busy on Saturdays after 23.00.
Website: www.londonpub.no/
Cesar Bar & Café
Café and bar in the center of Oslo. A cozy place to eat in a gay-friendly environment. You can also dance here on Friday and Saturday nights. There is also a stage where you can perform or sing karaoke. There is a nice terrace which is very convenient on warm summer days
Elsker
Elsker is a bar and club that is popular among both gays and lesbians. The second and third floor (Klubb 9) is open on Friday and Saturday respectively. If you like dancing, Elsker is the place to be. A friendly and open-minded atmosphere with regular drag performances. Visited by a younger crowd.
Cruising Clubs
SLM Oslo
SLM Oslo is a club for gay and bisexual men who like leather, rubber and uniforms. The club is mostly open during the weekend and located in the city center of Oslo, a few hundred meters off Karl Johans gate. In accordance with Norwegian law you have to be a member or a guest to visit the club. You can register on their website, or send a text to +47 41 444 666 with your name, no later than 22:00 before the party starts. Bear in mind that the club requires their visitors to wear ‘masculine’ clothes. The ‘absolute minimum’ for a first visit is jeans and a white or black t-shirt, boots or dark shoes.
Website: www.slmoslo.no/
Gay Saunas
Saunahuset Hercules
House Hercules is the only gay sauna in Oslo and Norway. It hosts four floors with two shower areas, two saunas, steam bath, jacuzzi, free sunbed, free Wi-Fi, lounge with TV and computer with internet access for free use, smoking room, four cinemas, cruising areas, playrooms and private rooms.
Trans men: Welcome 🙂
Entrance: €18/€12 Concessions
Website: www.Herculessauna.com/
Queer Shops
Website: www.tronsmo.no/
Cruising Areas
Homolulu Nude Beach
This rocky nudist beach is an excellent place to meet other LGBTQ+ people. If you want, it is also possible to find a private spot. During the summer, the forest near the beach is full of activity. To reach this beach, you have to take bus 30 until the last stop. Then you walk north on a paved road along the coast. After the asphalt ends at Paradisbukta, you follow the sea line for 200 meters and pass a house. The beach is below a cliff and can only be reached by climbing down a steep path.
Location: 59.90426, 10.66459
Svartkulp Lake
The Svartkulp lake is located in Sognsvann Forest and is popular among naturists and cruisers during the warm summer months. The north-eastern part of the lake is predominantly gay, and there tends to be some cruising going on there. There is no sandy beach but there are rocks to sit on. The north-west has both men and women, and there is a nice grassy field to relax.
Location: 60.027870, 10.673174
Queer Events
Oslo Pride
Oslo Pride is Norway’s largest LGBTQ+ festival and offers varied programme with concerts, art exhibitions, shows, film screenings, parties and political debates. Oslo Pride consists of more than 150 small and large events over the course of ten days, with the colorful Oslo Pride Parade on the final Saturday. The event was first established as “Gay Days” in 1982 and got its current name in 2014.
Website: www.oslopride.no/
Oslo/Fusion International Film Festival
Previously known as Oslo Skeive Filmer LGBT Film Festival, Oslo/Fusion was founded in 1990 and is one of Norway’s longest-running film festivals. It is still the largest festival dedicated to promoting equality and education through entertainment, with film screenings, discussions and related events.
Website: www.oslofusion.no/
LGBTQ+ Organizations
Fri.
The FRI works for equality and aims to prevent discrimination against people who violate gender and sexuality norms in Norway. FRI has been a clear voice and a premier supplier for LGBT rights since the 1950s. FRI organises activities through its student groups, youth groups, sports, late bloomers, S&M groups, film groups, lesbian mothers’ group, flamenco groups and more.
Website: www.foreningenfri.no/
Norway Bears
Norway Bears provides a setting in which gay men of all ages can meet, establish social networks and have fun together. Norway Bears is part of a greater international movement of men who define themselves as bears, chubbies, cubs, and chasers. It is not uncommon for their members to be in so-called age gap relationships, or that men in one age group seek a partner in a different age group – the so-called daddies and admirers. The guiding principle has always been that all men are welcome as long as they share the organization’s ideals of inclusiveness, caring, and social engagement.
Website: www.norwaybears.com/
Oslo Tango Queer
Oslo Tango Queer is a forum for tango dancers in Oslo and Eastern Norway, who want to break with traditional gender roles in Argentine tango. Oslo Tango Queer arranges courses, practice sessions (practicals), dance parties (milonga) and other cultural events (concerts, festivals, etc.) associated with Tango. Oslo Tango Queer aims to provide a safe space for homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people.
Website: www.oslotangoqueer.com/
Skeiv Ungdom
Skeiv Ungdom is a youth organization for all under 30 years of diversity and discrimination. The organization is a member organization open to all under 30, both gay, bisexual, lesbian, transgender and questioning youth as well as their allies. Skeiv Ungdom is the youth organization of the FRI – the association for gender and sexuality diversity.
Website: www.skeivungdom.no/