One of the most important Norwegian Christmas traditions is to have a spruce tree indoors for Christmas as a Christmas tree. Some people prefer to use plastic trees, but most Norwegians still swear to using real spruce trees to decorate for Christmas.
You will find spruce trees everywhere in the Norwegian nature, but you can’t just steal one of those to use as a Christmas tree. So, let’s take a closer look at where to buy a Christmas tree in Norway.
Christmas trees are usually sold at parking spaces outside big grocery stores beginning around December 14. These spaces are typically rented out to Christmas vendors for the two week period, allowing you to easily buy a Christmas tree when shopping groceries.
You will find that these places that sell Christmas trees pop up all over once we get close to December, and even most towns will have multiple places where you can buy them.
There are also some stores that will sell Christmas trees when we get close to Christmas, such as Plantasjen.
How parking space and empty space are turned into pop-up Christmas tree stores
Christmas trees take up a lot of space, and is best suited to be kept outside (to prevent them from shedding leafs), so what’s a better option than to have grocery stores rent out a piece of their parking lot?
This makes it easy to pick up a Christmas tree after you are done shopping groceries, making it much more convenient than having to go to a farm to buy one.
In addition to renting space at parking lots at grocery stores or shopping malls, you often find these Christmas tree vendors set up shop at public areas such as inside parks or other places where they can fit a handful Christmas trees to sell.
Buying a Christmas tree from a farm in Norway
Some farms that produces Christmas trees also have them for sale, and going to one of these Christmas tree farms to buy a Christmas tree in Norway is something special.
Many farms allow you to buy a licence to chop down a single Christmas tree, letting you go into the planted forest to choose and chop down your own Christmas tree.
You likely won’t save any money on it, but it’s a nice experience if you want to make the experience a bit more special than just picking it up from a parking lot next to a grocery store.
I really enjoy doing this with my family, and it’s a Christmas tradition to chop down the Christmas tree in itself. As a bonus, all these farms tend to also act as a mini Christmas market at the same time, so you might be able to go horseback sleighing, enjoy a warm drink or pick up some Christmas decorations from one of the stalls.
Most cities will likely have a farm like this nearby, so check on Google Maps for one that’s near you. A good phrase to search for is “selvhogst juletre“.
Are you allowed to chop down a spruce in the forest to use as a Christmas tree?
You will find that spruce trees are all over the forest in Southern and Eastern Norway, so could you just go ahead and find one in the wilderness to use as a Christmas tree?
You are not allowed to chop down any trees without the permission of the ground owner in Norway. You should not find a Christmas tree in the woods unless you ask permission from the owner to chop it down.
Some people are under the assumption that chopping down trees are part of the freedom to roam principle that Norway has, but it is indeed not a part of this. So don’t go chopping down trees in the woods without permission!
However, if you own the ground where the spruce is, then you are OK with chopping it down and using it as a Christmas tree.
How much does it cost to buy a Christmas tree in Norway?
You should expect to pay between 300 and 800 NOK for a single Christmas tree, depending on type and size.
Traditionally, the Norway spruce (Picea abies) used to be the most popular type of Christmas tree, but silver fir (Abies alba) has actually become as popular or even more popular than the Norway spruce.
The reason is simple; the silver fir takes much longer before it starts to shed leafs / needles, so it’s easier to care for.
On the other hand, silver fir tend to be slightly more expensive than Norway spruce, so expect to pay an addition 100 – 200 NOK for a silver fir of the same size.