Eurotrip suggestions (minimizing expenses)

[EliteZags]

loose itinerary 4 days in/around London 2 in each of Brussels(maybe day trip to Bruges)/Amsterdam/Oslo, couple single first timer guys, primary focus will be partying/nightlife but also looking for daytime tourism activities, not interested in brothels

Will have the most free time to explore nearby areas around London

3 plane tickets totaled around $500, sharing rooms at decent rates coming out to ~$30-40/night each (avoiding hostel dorms this time)

don't plan on shopping, main expense will be food(want to eat out a lot but will avoid high end restaurants) and main splurge will be nightlife/drinking, gonna see Galantis/Kygo/Gryffin and hit a lotta pubs/clubs


would actually pay a bit for worthwhile guided tours if anyone knows of any just to be more efficient cause we'll prob neglect proper daytime activity planning, would like active type stuff with good overlooking views
Northern Lights was discussed if that'll plausible at all, again prob should be with some tour group type

any other tips to keep costs low appreciated

[Optimiser]

Amsterdam has cheap canal tours with drinks (unlimited I think) included.  I went on a regular canal tour and it was a great way to learn about the city.

[eliza]

Most cities have free walking tours - you are expected to tip your tour guide, but it's still relatively cheap.

There are some great free museums in London if that's of interest - the Tate, British Museum, British Library, Victoria & Albert.

I haven't been to Oslo, but I've heard food there is outrageously expensive.  It might make sense to pack some food/snacks in your bags for that portion of the trip if it is feasible.

Also, one of my coworkers travels extensively and the place he's raved about most is Bruges, so definitely consider going if the timing/budget works out. 

ETA: Given your interest in partying/nightlife, you might want to look into beer/wine/liquor tastings and pub crawls.  I have fond memories of the Bombay Sapphire distillery in London and the Heineken Brewery in Amsterdam and I'm sure there are far more interesting places that I was too young/naive/unsophisticated to partake in when I did my backpacking across Europe trip many, many moons ago.

[chouchouu]

If you like architecture Brussels is the birth place of art nouveau architecture and there are some beautiful examples in St Gilles. It's actually very nice just walking on foot from the Grand Place going outwards through st  Gilles to Uccle. You have medieval and gothic and then fin de siecle where there was a lot of growth, art nouveau then mid century modernist, all gradually peeling away as you work your way outwards. It's just really cool seeing the different layers and going from winding alleyways to open boulevards. There's also a nice bistro on rue vander shriek in St Gilles that has a art nouveau dome inside and a phone book of beer selections.

[runbikerun]

Bruges has a price tag to go with its reputation. Of the people I know who've been to both Bruges and Ghent, all of them prefer the latter - the old city is still very well preserved, and it's not as expensive. I haven't been to Bruges myself, but spent a few days in Ghent in 2016 and am still idly considering learning Flemish in order to retire there.

Eat in curry houses when in London: British curries are the best in the world outside of the Indian subcontinent. Tayyab's in Whitechapel is frequently listed as being among the top ten restaurants in the entire city, and it's about £10 for a main course.

[SmallCheese]

For travel in London make sure you research which kind of transit card will be the most economical for you. Depending on how much tube/bus travel you'll do in a day, the Oyster Card might work out better than a daily travel card. There's a deposit for the physical card (£5, which appears to be refundable), but there is a daily cap on it that once you reach it you don't have to pay for the rides the rest of the day. Food is very reasonable in London.

As for Oslo, we recently just visited. The food and alcohol was fairly pricey and there wasn't very much to do in the actual city besides eat and drink. And shop, but that doesn't interest us either. We rented a car and drove up and down the coast one of the days we were there. It was beautiful and we caught some nice casual walking spots, but if you do go, keep in mind Oslo is on the lowlands side so you won't get to see the sweeping fjords of the West Coast.

[Playing with Fire UK]

Are you firm in your itinerary? I've done Brussels and wasn't impressed. Bruges is lovely and interesting. Depending on your plane tickets you could swap out Oslo for a closer or cheaper city (Paris, Tallinn, Copenhagen?).

Time of year?

For a tour of London, there are plenty of free (well, tip-only) walking tours of the city. Many museums and galleries are free. If you are hungover, a bus tour will help you pick up a lot of information without exertion (they are pricey though). Seconding the curry suggestion in London, I'm biased, but they are excellent.