Back from the Arctic to Oslo: Review of SAS A320neo Tromsø to Oslo in Economy
The beauty of Tromsø, Norway, and the Northern Lights would be missed! Photo by: Evan Berman
After an action packed 2 days in Tromsø, Norway, filled with memories that will last a lifetime, it was time to head back to Oslo. I flew in Economy on Star Alliance Member SAS. This review of the flight from Tromsø to Oslo is a part of the larger Nordic Expedition. For more on this trip, follow these links:
Flight: Delta Comfort+, CHS-JFK
Flight: Norse Airways Economy, JFK-OSL
Flight: Norwegian Economy, OSL-BGO
Hotel: Clarion Collection Hotel Havnekontoret, Bergen, Norway
Hotel: Comfort Karl Johan, Oslo, Norway
A Whale of a Meal, Tromsø, Norway Restaurants
Hotel: Clarion Collection Hotel Aurora, Tromsø, Norway
Hotel: Clarion Collection Hotel With, Tromsø, Norway
Flight: SAS Economy, TOS-OSL (This Article)
Flight: Norse Atlantic Airways Economy: OSL-JFK
Flight: Delta Economy, LGA-CHS
Flight Info:
Route: TOS-OSL (Tromsø, Norway’s Tromsø Airport to Oslo, Norway’s Gardermoen Airport)
Date: Tuesday, 12/6/2022
Flight: SK 4409 (SAS)
Plane: Airbus A320neo
Seat: 29B (Middle)
Est. Departure: 8:45am local time (delayed twice by 30 minutes. 9:45am new departure time) (2:45am EST)
Taxiing: 10:23am local time (4:23am EST)
Takeoff: 10:44am local time (4:44am EST)
Gate: 21 (Domestic Terminal)
Est. Arrival: 10:45am local time (became 11:45am based on 1hr delay) (4:45am EST)
Touchdown: 12:21pm local time (6:21am EST)
Arrived at Gate: 12:24pm local time (6:24am EST)
Gate: 20 (Domestic Terminal)
Pricing:
Flight: I booked the flight from Tromsø to Oslo for 949 NOK or $92.30. These are the cheapest fares and do not include even a carry-on bag. I credited the flights to United and earned the following:
PQF: 1
PQP: 58
Miles: 348
Booking:
I booked on the SAS website. There is a piece of advice on flights within Europe. When planning a trip from the US to Europe, not worry about where you specifically want to go, just find the flight to Europe. Once you are in Europe, it is easy to find reasonably priced flights to and from any major city ($100 or less each way).
SAS is a founding member of the Star Alliance. This flight was similar to what you might find in a United flight in the US– not a low-cost airline like Norwegian or Spirit.
I did not add on any extras. As mentioned previously, I flew only with a backpack, which was able to fit under the seat in front of me and with the flight being only a bit over 1 hour and a half from takeoff to touchdown, I was not worries about missing out on food or drinks.
Since SAS is a member of the Star Alliance, you have the option to choose any Star Alliance member to credit your flights. Once again, I suggest you visit Where to Credit if you do not have elite status to use. Since I have no elite status in the Star Alliance, I opted to credit the flight to United rather than a different member as it offered the best return.
Lounges:
There are no lounges in the domestic terminal of Tromsø Airport.
I’d like to reiterate the genius of towels in the airports in Norway. Rather than the typically ineffective dryers, there is a roll of a paper towel. You pull down to find a new spot, then dry your hands off. This is just as effective as using paper towels and (I assume) more sustainable. I’m all for solutions like this that make everyone happy and do not cause an issue (in this case, hands that cannot be dried).
Recap:
Our pane today had the new SAS livery which is attractive, though I still prefer the old design, shown below. Boarding was done through both the front and back doors. As I was in row 29, I boarded from the back. This process is much quicker and easier than boarding through just the front or back doors and I wish more flights boarded this way!
As mentioned above, this plane is an Airbus 320neo. This was a first for me and I was disappointed at how full the plane was as I was unable to take many photos to share. Once again, I did not select a seat and unfortunately this time was assigned to the middle seat.
The flight was fairly uneventful. We took off in the late morning (at which time the storm had dissapated, leading to a mostly clear though still dark morning) and headed south into to Oslo. While we were flying, despite it being 12pm local time, we were treated to a beautiful sunrise! Oslo was bright and clear on this day and we touched down with minimal turbulence.
The A320neo we flew has a setup of 3-3 seats in economy.
Meals:
SAS offered snacks and water on this flight, though I passed since I was tired and had 2 terrific meals planned in Oslo and did not want to spoil my appetite!
Sleep:
I got about an hour’s worth of sleep on this flight. Despite being in a middle seat in economy, I slept well. I was exhausted from the excitement of Tromsø and this was well needed!
Experience:
The part of the flight that I was awake for was quite short, but I enjoyed seeing the sunrise and the day gradually get brighter as we headed towards Oslo!
We touched down in Oslo just before 12:30pm local time (6:30am EST). As mentioned before, the sun does not rise in the wintertime above the Arctic Circle and it is only light in Oslo for a few hours.
The flight took just under 1 hour and a half. Though I had already been in Oslo, I was excited to see a bit more and eat terrific food.
Customs:
As this was a domestic flight, I did not experience customs.
Recap:
The flight from Tromsø to Oslo was delayed quite a bit due to snow in the morning. Once we were finally able to board, the flight was smooth and uneventful. I got a decent amount of sleep and woke up to catch the beautiful sunrise as we headed towards Oslo. As we touched down, I was salivating over the meals that were to come. Stay tuned for the full recaps!
2 thoughts on “Back from the Arctic to Oslo: Review of SAS A320neo Tromsø to Oslo in Economy”
Comments are closed.