The Pasvik valley and the Øvre Pasvik National Park are squeezed between Finland and Russia in eastern Finnmark. The national park visitor centre is in the middle of the valley, at Bioforsk Svanhovd.

This national park visitor centre opened in 2001 and has information and exhibitions relating to both the Pasvik valley and the Øvre Pasvik National Park. The park was designated to protect one of the last areas of virgin forest in Norway. The pine forest in the southern part of the valley is a north-western branch of the Siberian taiga, and the area is characterised by easterly species that are rare elsewhere in the country. Some of them can be studied in the botanical garden outside the Visitor Centre.

The Øvre Pasvik National Park Visitor Centre is an integral part of Bioforsk Svanhovd, one of 17 research centres belonging to Bioforsk, the Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research. The facilities include a conference centre, which can also offer you meals and overnight accommodation.

Purpose
The national park visitor centre aims to:

• impart knowledge about the distinctive aspects of the natural history and cultural heritage in the Øvre Pasvik National Park and surrounding district
• give information on other protected areas in the vicinity
• impart knowledge about the ecological and historical assets in the Pasvik valley and neighbouring areas in Russia and Finland
• encourage visitors to use the areas in a way that does not conflict with the protection regulations