10 Visitor Centers in Finnmark That You Shouldn't Miss

Nesseby municipality/Unjárgga gielda is a community of coastal Sami people, on the inland banks of the Varangerfjord in East Finnmark. The municipality also has a significant cultural element and has invested a lot of time and money in presenting the Sami background. Unjárga/Nesseby is a fantastic place for outdoors pursuits, with activities ranging from the fjord to the mountain, both summer and winter. Visit Nesseby and enjoy our countryside – you can pick berries, go fishing for salmon and trout, go hunting, fishing on the fjord or long hikes in the silent, peaceful landscape. In Nesseby, nature, the great outdoors, culture and commerce are all in prefect harmony. Population: 856 Area, municipality: 1,438 km²

The island municipality of Masoy is made up of mainland areas and around 400 islands and islets. The most well-known islet is Fruholmen, which was home to the northernmost manned lighthouse in Europe up to 2006. We can recommend island hopping trips onboard scheduled express boats from the municipal centre of Havoysund and out to the islands of Ingoy, Rolvsoy and Masoy – all active fishing villages with their own fleets and fish processing plants. Excellent fishing in the sea and rivers, hillwalks and hunting. The stretch of road from Kokelv to Havoysund (RV 889) will be named a National Tourist Route in 2012. Visit the world’s northernmost windmill park and the Arctic View viewpoint at Havoygavlen. Population: 1,333 Area, municipality: 2,100 km²

Welcome to the world’s northernmost town, Hammerfest. An Arctic town full of life at 70 degrees North. Hammerfest was officially recognised as a town in 1789 and is the oldest town in North Norway. But did you know that Hammerfest was also the very first town in Norway and Northern Europe to introduce electric street lights in 1891? The polar bear in the town’s coat of arms is the symbol of the town’s proud roots connected to Arctic hunting. In recent years, the town has gained world renown for Snohvit, the world’s northernmost LNG plant, and the very first natural gas development in the Barents Sea. From Hammerfest, you can explore sea, land, mountain and mountain plain – no matter the season! Population: 10,287. Area, municipality: 844 km².

Welcome to the tourist information located in Honningsvag. Honningsvag is a town in the municipality of Nordkapp which is located on the island Magerøya. With Honningsvag as the town centre, Magerøya also includes four picturesque fishing villages which we highly recommend you to visit: Skarsvag, Gjesvær, Kamøyvær and Nordvagen. North Cape is our main attraction and it's the northernmost point in Europe that can be reached by car. Population: 3,219. Area, municipality: 924 km² Location: Honningsvag Harbour, in the centre of Honningsvag.

The Tourist Information is located in the city center by the bus station. Alta - the City of the Northern Lights - where past meets future! Rock carvings created 10,000 years ago tell the history of our cultural past. Today, export and technology, entrepreneurs and the service industry leave their mark for the future. Alta is a modern technological community, with an emphasis on research and higher education. 2,000 students have found their place in the community and fallen in love with the city of Alta and the wonderful countryside right on Alta's doorstep. Alta, the City of the Northern Lights, is only a 2-hour flight from Oslo, and provides a natural base for day trips to the most popular attractions such as the North Cape, Sapmi theme park and Juhls' Silver gallery. Population: 20.000 Area, municipality: 3,845 km²

Porsanger municipality is in the very centre of Norwegian Lapland, stretching from the Finnmark mountain plain in the south, via fertile river valleys and the Porsangerfjord, to the Arctic Ocean in the north. This municipality has thousands of lakes teeming with fish and wonderful salmon fishing rivers. A trip through Porsanger is also a journey through a diverse culture and history. Porsanger has a strong multi-cultural appeal. In addition to Norwegian, the population speaks Sami and Kven/Finnish daily. Lakselv, the municipal centre, has an excellent range of services, with shops, cafes and restaurants. Lakselv Airport Banak is only 1.5 km from the town centre, and is the central charter and cargo airport for Norwegian Lapland.

In the far north and as far east as you can go in Norway, where the sky meets the sea, lies Varanger, bathed in the midnight sun and the northern lights of winter. Here the wild landscape meanders through bird-nesting cliffs, fishing villages, and rugged headlands – out to the end of the world. Nature offers rivers teeming with fish, snow-clad plains, exotic king crabs, birds breeding in spring, leaping salmon, the shining sea, and dancing northern lights. People and traditions make Varanger an Arctic melting pot of communities and cultures. Varanger is a different experience. Scenery and settlements, the light, the colors, the lofty sky and wide horizon, exciting activities – and the open people.

Do you need informastion on activities and accommodation in the Karasjok area? Please stop by the tourist information and get the information you need on the area and the rest of Finnmark. We are specialists on sami kulture and activities. Welcome to a fascinating and exotic adventure in the heart of Sápmi – Kárášjohka/Karasjok. Around 90% of the local population speak Sami, and the area is home to approx. 60,000 reindeer on autumn and winter grazing. Pay a visit to an authentic Sami family, see the reindeer and listen to the stories of past and present Sami culture. Taste Sami food such as bidos, a traditional reindeer stew, and listen to the fascinating joik, the Sami chant. We can also recommend a trip up onto the mountain plain in the winter, by ski, on a sled pulled by reindeer or huskies, or on a snowmobile. You will never forget the sight of the Northern Lights dancing over the winter skies, and the fascinating diversity of Sami culture and activities. Population: approx. 2,900. Area, municipality: 5,464 km².

National Park Centre for Stabbursdalen National Park and information centre for nature and culture in Finnmark county.