Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

LGBT

What you need to know about the Oslo Pride Parade 2024

Norway’s largest Pride celebration, the parade in Oslo, takes place on Saturday, June 29th. Here’s what to know if you plan on attending.

Published: 28 June 2024 14:14 CEST
Pictured are people gathered at a Pride parade.
Here's what you need to know about the Pride parade in Oslo this weekend. Pictured are people gathered at a Pride parade.

The highlight of Pride celebrations for many people are parades. The parades bring people from all walks like together to celebrate and champion LGBTQ+ rights.

The largest Pride parade in Norway is the Oslo Pride Parade, the yearly procession typically acts as the climax of more than a week of LGBTQ+ events and exhibitions across the Norwegian capital.

When and where

This year, the Oslo Pride Parade will take place on Saturday, June 29th and will begin in Grønland and travel to the heart of the city’s centre before heading up Storgata to the trendy Grünerløkka neighbourhood.

The parade will end in Sofienbergparken, which is also the home of Pride Park this year.

The official starting point is Helga Helgelsens plass. There will be toilets at the beginning, and participants will be able to purchase Pride flags. The parade begins at 12:00 p.m. and it will take about two hours to walk the 2.9-kilometre-long route.

Participants can join the parade wherever they wish, and there will be medics and volunteers from the Red Cross at various stops.

The weather in Oslo is looking sunny, with temperatures around 20 degrees. So sunscreen and some water may be a good idea.

Drinking alcohol in a public space in Norway is illegal, and the event’s organisers have said that they want the event to be one that people of all ages can enjoy.

Many in the parade may be affiliated with an association or organisation, but individuals can show up and join the parade without having to register.
It is too late for people to register organisations and vehicles to take part in the parade.

When it comes to safety, police have said that they were not aware of any concrete threats against the LGBTQ+ community. Police have also reported a lower level of hate speech in relation to the event compared to last year.

Despite there being no specific threat this year, the police will be armed nonetheless to act as a deterrent. Police will both be uniformed and in plain clothes.

What to know if you aren’t attending 

Given the large volume of people progressing through the town centre, you can expect disrupted and crowded public transport in the areas where the pride parade is starting, taking place and ending. 

The procession won’t affect the opening of stores and restaurants, so if you are in the Grünerløkka area then you can still go about your daily business while enjoying the atmosphere the parade brings as it makes its way up the neighborhood’s main street, Thorvald Meyers. 

Those who want to do some sightseeing can also expect more crowds around the main train station and the sqaure behind Oslo’s town hall during the parade’s duration. 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

SCHOOLS

Why Oslo is one of the cheapest cities in Europe to attend international school

International schools allow students to carry their education across borders in a language they are comfortable in. While they have a pricey reputation, schools in Oslo are affordable for most.

Published: 1 July 2024 16:19 CEST
Why Oslo is one of the cheapest cities in Europe to attend international school

Many parents choose to put their children into an international school when moving countries.

This may be done for a number of reasons, such as wanting their child to obtain internationally recognised qualifications, feel more comfortable with the language taught in, or wanting their offspring to be surrounded by students from an international and multicultural environment.

However, these schools aren’t always within the reach of everyone. In cities such as New York, Beijing, and Shanghai, the median cost of one of these schools can range between 34,000 to 43,000 US dollars.

Norway has a reputation for being expensive. Still, many parents may be shocked to find out that international school in the Norwegian capital of Oslo could cost roughly ten percent of the figures above.

There are a handful of schools to choose from and prices are typically between 40,000 to 50,000 kroner for the year – which is probably affordably for a dual-income household earning around the average wage in Norway.

There are exceptions to this rule, however. The most expensive international school in Oslo is Oslo International School. This school is also the most well-known international school in Oslo, and parents pay tuition of 264,200 kroner per year for students to attend.

READ MORE: The international school options for parents in Oslo

At the time of writing, there are also two international schools which do not charge parents because they are, in fact, state schools. These are Blindern Videregående Skole and Manglerud School. In the case of the latter, the international classes were a trial that was extended to 2024.

What’s the reason?

Norway has an act on private schools, which keeps the majority of international schools in the country somewhat affordable.

Essentially, parents and pupils in Norway are entitled to a choice of education. This choice comes in the form of private and public education. However, if private education is out of the reach of most people, then the choice doesn’t really exist.

Therefore, a large number of private and international schools in Norway receive government funding. This funding keeps tuition fees low and allows the schools to exist.

In return for the funding, schools’ curriculums are more regulated, and there are caps on how much these schools can charge in tuition.

Government grants subsidies and funding makes up around 85 percent of international schools budgets. Fees are capped to only allow schools to make up the remaining costs. Therefore, fees only make up the remaining 15 percent of a schools budget.

However, not all international schools receive government funding. Those who do not have this funding, therefore, have higher tuition to make up for the lack of funding.   

SHOW COMMENTS