Marketing & Communications

Ironic, Understated Campaign Attracts Viral Interest in Visiting Oslo

VisitOSLO’s new, viral campaign downplays its city’s appeal with dry humor and an understated production style — and highlights a growing trend in values-driven tourism marketing.

By JoAnna Haugen | Published 5 months ago | About a 4 minute read

Image: VisitOSLO

“I wouldn’t come here, to be honest,” a man intones as people in the background gleefully jump off a boat into the harbor behind him. “Oslo is just not … I mean, is it even a city?”

So begins VisitOSLO’s latest campaign video — which has been widely praised in global media as a “refreshing angle,” “instant classic” and one “redefining destination marketing” from the Scandinavian city that “just won the internet”.

It highlights many of the most appealing aspects of Norway’s capital city while a local resident named Halfdan, played by actor Bendik Aunan, deadpans about how unimpressive the city is. Among his many gripes: Its lack of exclusiveness, “village” vibe and walkability.

The ad isn’t filled with flashy artsy shots or distracting music. Instead, viewers are treated to a taste of Oslo’s understated appeal, backed by Halfdan’s ironic commentary.

Commenting on Oslo’s culture, he asks, “If you don’t have to stand in line for at least a couple of hours, is it even worth seeing?” And, standing in front of what is arguably Norway’s most famous painting — Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” — he sighs and says, “It’s not exactly the ‘Mona Lisa.’”

“Using humor in an international campaign is never completely risk-free; but fortunately, we have received an enormous amount of positive interest after just one weekend,” Anne-Signe Fagereng, VisitOSLO’s director of marketing, told NewsLab — the Oslo-based agency it worked with to create the ad — in late June.

Released June 24, the video instantly caught people’s attention and went viral — with millions of views and comments across social media.

“I am thrilled that this new campaign to strengthen Oslo's standing as a destination is proving a hit with our international audience — with huge reach and engagement across Meta and TikTok,” Fagereng shared on LinkedIn.

The campaign isn’t only garnering attention across social media. Those working in the tourism industry have also noted its cheeky understatedness.

“We like that it has a dark approach,” Torunn Tronsvang, founder of luxury-travel curator Up Norway, told Sustainable Brands® (SB). “It appears clever and thought-provoking; and is perceived entertaining, judging by the number of our guests who’ve seen it and commented on it.”

VisitOSLO has placed the “Is it even a city?” campaign front and center on its website, inviting people to learn more about the sites appearing in the video. Among the “unimpressive” places are the Oslo Opera House, the National Museum and the Vigeland Museum; as well as cultural hub and foodie hotspot Oslobukta, and Akerselva — a river that flows through the city, known for its variety of recreational opportunities.

“It’s refreshing to see a values-led campaign that isn’t commoditizing the travel experience. I sense I’m not alone in feeling this way and perhaps that’s why this piece has received a lot of attention,” Rodney Payne, CEO of destination-marketing consultancy Destination Think!, told SB — pointing to a growing trend toward more intentional destination marketing that prioritizes the wellbeing of destinations and their communities, along with traveler experiences, to help mitigate the impacts of overtourism. “I hope we will look back and see this was just the tip of the iceberg of what’s possible as host communities take a stand for what it is they value.”

This isn’t the first Scandinavian tourism ad to use humor to catch potential travelers’ interest. In 2023, a Visit Sweden campaign focused on the many ways that it is not the same as Switzerland.

“Playing on humor is not always easy — especially not across national borders. Fortunately, it seems that we have hit a nerve,” noted Linn Isaksen, NewsLab's adviser on the VisitOSLO campaign. Indeed, it does seem that way.

Sitting outside a cafe, framed by a yellow door, Halfdan sips a beverage and closes the one-minute-45-second ad by saying, “I think a city should feel a little hard to get. It’s like a good relationship, you know? It’s not supposed to be easy.”

If putting Oslo on more travelers’ radar was the goal, then, yes — it is that easy.

JoAnna Haugen

Founder
Rooted

JoAnna Haugen is a writer, speaker and solutions advocate who has worked in the travel and tourism industry for her entire career. She is also the founder of Rooted — a solutions platform at the intersection of sustainable tourism, social impact and storytelling. A returned US Peace Corps volunteer, international election observer and intrepid traveler, JoAnna helps tourism professionals decolonize travel and support sustainability using strategic communication skills.

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