This effortlessly cool city is the chicest European escape for 2026

Oslo is a peculiar capital city, maybe because it hasn’t always been one. After a brief stint in the 1300s, the city wasn’t reinstated as Norway’s capital until 1814. But that’s not the only thing that sets it apart. Often overshadowed by its Scandi siblings, Stockholm and Copenhagen, Oslo is petite and walkable, yet equally rich in culture. It nurtured several creative giants: the expressionist painter Edvard Munch, the revered playwright Henrik Ibsen, and the sculptor Gustav…