The latest survey from GoEuro, which compares a variety of prices around Europe for the benefit of travelers, has confirmed that going out for beers in Oslo is an expensive proposition. Norway’s capital has the fourth-highest beer prices not only in Europe, but in the world.
GoEuro compared the prices of the five most commonly imported beers plus the main local beer in 75 cities around the world. Oslo ranked as most expensive of all last year, but this year, prices have been eased somewhat by the weakening of the Norwegian currency, the krone, against the US dollar.
A .33-liter glass of beer at a bar was most expensive in Geneva, followed by Hong Kong, Tel Aviv and then Oslo. It was much more expensive, however, to buy a bottle or can of beer in a grocery store in Oslo (USD 3.45 each, mostly because of Norway’s high taxes on alcoholic beverages) than in Geneva (USD 1.87).
The survey listed an average price of USD 7.17 for the glass of beer in an Oslo bar, but that’s likely to be questioned as rather low by patrons of some of the city’s popular waterfront bars and restaurants. This summer, the price of a 0.4-0.5-liter glass of beer has hit as high as NOK 125 at bars in the Aker Brygge and Tjuvholmen areas, and that converts to USD 16 at current exchange rates. Some restaurants are charging NOK 145 for a .33-liter bottle of beer with a glass, enough to make some beer drinkers choke.
The cheapest beer on GoEuro’s survey, by the way, was found in the popular and historic city of Krakow, Poland, where a bottle of beer at the grocery store costs the equivalent of 62 US cents, and a beer in a bar averages USD 2.70.
newsinenglish.no staff
