I’ll be moving to Oslo in January for an exchange program, I just want to know what’s the general opinion of Anker Studentbolig
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5mo
Thanks, appreciate it, but yeah judging by all of this it should be fun
Just because other places are worse doesn't mean we should accept or feel content with having those kinds of areas in the center of our capital? That kind of low ambition / expectation approach isn't really a argument in defence of that neighborhood and only puts us on a slippery slope towards more and more parts of the city looking like that down the line.
Also, as an exchange student probably looking for fun times and the beautiful / safe side of Norway being in that area probably isn't going to your stay and mental health any good.
You should see the state of Glasgow😂, but nah I appreciate it you lot have high standards in terms of safety which is something I wish we have over here in the UK
I'm quite content. A lot of privacy, generally more helpful customer support than Sio and a great location. This all depends on which location you're talking about though.
This is where it gets controversial😂, Storgata 57
Yeah that's the bad one. It's right at the edge of the junkie area.
It might get slightly better now that the emergency room has closed and moved, but I'd avoid it if you can.
it’s not that bad lol
That depends on where you are coming from and what your experience of living in a city is like. Oslo is one of the safest cities in the world period. I have lived here since 1993, about half of that time in the inner city centre and have never felt threatened in the least. But like any city in the world even Oslo has areas that are less desirable than others. Your location is in one of the "worse" areas but should still be completely safe. It is across the road from the biggest emergency room in Oslo which did pull in quite a few undesirables but his emergency room has now moved so that issue is solved.
There are still some amenities for addicts and alcoholics in the area but odds are that you'll hardly notice them. The area along the river from Anker and down to Grønland is one of the main drug dealing hubs but again, if you do not go looking for trouble you will not find any. I walk through that area with friends and family any time of day or night. You'll be completely safe but it's not the best area in the city.
What you DO get though is easy access to some of the best areas in the city for going out and having a good time. You are next to Torggata, which houses a ton of cool bars and places to eat. you are also within spitting distance from Sentrum Scene and Rockefeller, the two main concert arenas in Oslo. Not to mention that right across the river is Grünerløkka which is the hippest area of Oslo with a ton of bars, restaurants and cool shops. People pay absurd amounts of money to live near here.
You'll be fine - enjoy Oslo!
Yeah I appreciate it, tusen takk but in terms of transportation how’s that?, I don’t know if I’ll need to be purchasing bus tickets everyday, or if in Oslo you lot have like a pass for public transport
You get a discounted monthly pass as a student that you can use on all public transportation in greater Oslo. Storgata is also super central so it should be easy to find transportation.
Use the "Ruter" app, it's the official app for transportation in Oslo. You can buy one hour, 24 hours or longer tickets and you get a Student discount. It's a pretty good app. Oslo is also a compact city so you can walk almost anywhere in the city centre from where you will be living.
Some people overreact here. It is quite an ok place to live, but probably only for maximum a year or so. It is located in the most heavy drug related area of the whole country. But as long as you keep your head down and dont hang out too much around where you live you will be fine. Reference: brother lived there for 2 years.
I guess the one in Trondheimsveien is more dodgy than most places in Oslo. However, I ofte walk there or park my car there - and I never had any problem nor felt unsafe. If seeing a drug addict makes you feel unsafe then you may not like it. Although there are not that many of them. It is not like the place is dangerous
OP, don’t let people scare you, you’ll be perfectly fine.
My girlfriend used to live there and I used to live in the Grünerløkka student house, the area is great, the river is nice, tram and bus options all the time, and walking distance to the center and all the shops. Lots of restaurants and shops near Torggata and Markveien too. You can also buy cheaper fruits and vegetables in Grønland. I agree about the better customer service too, SiO was pretty shitty in my experience. If you’re under 26 (I think) you get a 50% discount on your Ruter ticket (for public transport).
Drug addicts don’t give a fuck about you tbh, no one ever approached or said anything to me, only once to ask for the time. I used to run along the river and the Storgata area, usually pretty late, and never had any bad experiences. My girlfriend had some late shifts too and never had any problems getting home safe.
Just be aware of your surroundings if you’re out late, as you always should, but don’t worry, when you get there you’ll see that it’s fine. Have fun!
Thanks so much I’ll make sure to keep the ruter ticket in mind thanks
I’ve had a few friends who have lived there. I’m sorry, but it’s not a good place to live. People break in and overdose in the hallway, there’s a lot of noice 24/7 and they didn’t feel safe.
This depends entirely on which one he's talking about. The one in Trondheimsveien is completely fine.
😭😭😭😭I’m finished
Anker has many locations so the things written in here are not nuanced.
And what do you mean they are fully booked? Usually they reserve spots for exchange students. Who told you that you won't get a spot there?
It’s like an agreement thing between my home uni and host uni, had to apply through the pre-application link for housing, both BSN and SiO were fully booked
Dont know the place itself, but I would not recommend the area in the immediate vicinity. Quite a bit of drug dealing near Akerselva, and quite a few alcoholics and drug addicts roaming around. Although you are within walking distance of both downtown and Grünerløkka, which is a plus.
Thanks for the information
No no no no no. That is not a good place to be.
Yeah SiO was fully booked so I had to resort to Anker
Have you tried Finn.no ?
No I haven’t
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5mo
I mean it’s quite close to the one I’ve got an offer from which is Storgata 57
My best friend lived there for a short while, didn't like it much. However, I don't think you'll actually be physically unsafe. I hope you won't be offended for this, but if you're Glaswegian I think you'll make do. The standard is closer to British than to Norwegian as far as I remember.
The location is pretty good for a student, walking distance to everything you need except for maybe the school.
Sweet I’ll feel like home
You'll be totally fine. The location is really good, u also have everything close by. You can just walk home from a night out in 10-15 minutes instead of paying 50 euro for a cab. You also have a tram station outside the building that takes you everywhere in the inner city.
The storgata one is fine. I lived just nearby, my brother lived there (at Anker). I liked living in that area a lot.
The drug addicts are usually chill, and are usually nice if you talk to them, which you’ll rarely if ever do. Sure, rarely you find some dude sleeping on the sidewalk, but just ask them if they are alright. If you feel unsafe, just be on guard. But it’s not unsafe, really.
It’s central, there are lots of transport connections. It’s a culturally rich area.
Just to paint a picture: One of the most prestigious high schools in Oslo is just 50m away.
Don’t worry, Norwegian reddit is not a very good source for information imo. The answers are heavily opinionated.
Hi. People are so scared of their own city it's astounding. If you feel safe in any other big city, you'll definitely feel safe in Oslo, also in that area. You'll be fine. If anything it's a huge plus to live right next to the river. Great for walks and you can walk the entire length of the city just by following the river, recommend it.
Safety wise, a bit more detailed: My gf takes the tram back and forth to work from the stop outside of Anker every day, never had any issue, especially from drug users. They leave you alone 99.99% of the time. The only reason people fear monger that area is because the rest of Oslo is super safe and clean and people, even though they don't admit it directly, hate to see drug users. Lots of stigma in Norway etc. (very high relative OD statistics). People complaining about drug addicts are the same people who feel unsafe when they see a brown person. We don't have any issues to the same degree like you see in American (i.e. not an overflow of Fentanyl) and other less affluent cities in Europe.
As for the practicality of living there: - Not the best transport options to either UiO or BI in terms of direct transport (i.e. you have to walk ~5-800m to UiO campus from the tram) but in general you should be good. The subway is close by anyways. Oslo also have some of the most punctual public transport of any major city I've been to (except for the busses in winter, rip), except for maybe Singapore. - Decent accommodation, speaking from hearsay from friends that have lived there. Not the best, but as others have mentioned; good CS and all in all worth the price. It had issues a few years ago, but that has been improved upon. - Lots of shops near by, and close proximity to Grønland where you're gonna want to do shopping for fruit&veg and international goods (way cheaper prices than Norwegian supermarkets).
All in all, enjoy Oslo. 🙏