Find out the latest news and information about reserve access as RSPB NI responds to the COVID-19 government guidance and advice.Monday 24 May
Exciting news Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre reopens Sat 29 May, 10am – 5pm.
Catch your first glimpse of puffins, razorbills and guillemots and experience the excitement of seeing thousands of nesting seabirds up close!
Here’s everything you need to know before you visit
Monday 26 April 2021
Great news! We’re excited to announce our May re-opening dates for Belfast’s Window on Wildlife and Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre in line with the NI Executive's indicative date for visitor attractions (subject to review).
Belfast WOW – re-opening Mon 24 May, 10am – 4pm. Open every day except Tuesdays. From this date you can access: Visitor Centre Hide 1 and Hide 2 Car park Relax with a hot cuppa and lagoon views in the observation room and get up-close views of nesting season from the bird hides too.
Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre – re-opening Sat 29 May, 10am – 5pm (last entry 4pm). Open daily until 19 Sept. From this date you can visit: Seabird Centre Cliff-side viewing platforms Experience breath-taking sea views and catch your first glimpse of guillemots, razorbills and puffins.
We can’t wait to welcome you back!
Thursday 4 February 2021
Following updated government advice, RSPB have taken the decision to close bird hides across our nature reserves. This means that all outdoor spaces at Belfast’s Window on Wildlife will be closed until further notice. Please observe all current government guidance on travel, maximum group sizes, social/physical distancing and hygiene if visiting your local RSPB reserve as part of essential daily exercise.
Here’s a reminder of what’s open on our nature reserves;
Portmore Lough ️Car park ️Boardwalk ️Wildlife garden Hide Toilets
Belfast’s Window on Wildlife All areas closed
Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre All areas closed
Friday 22 December 2020
Belfast WOW - The visitor centre at Belfast WOW will be closed from 24 December for the Christmas holidays and will remain closed from 26 December in line with the latest Covid-19 restrictions announced by the NI Executive. Hide 1 will also be closed during this period.
The car park and outdoor viewing area at Hide 2 remain open. When visiting us please observe current government guidance around travel, maximum group sizes and social distancing.
Portmore Lough - The bird hide and toilet facilities are currently closed. However our outdoor spaces remain open for you to enjoy the stunning views and wonderful wildlife. When visiting, please observe all current government guidelines around travel, maximum group sizes, social distancing and follow all signage on-site.
Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre - The Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre is currently closed for the winter season. We hope to reopen in spring 2021.
Friday 11 December
Belfast WOW - Our visitor centre is open 10am – 4pm, Wednesday – Saturday. You’ll notice we’ve made some changes to help keep everyone safe. The viewing areas at Hide 1 and Hide 2 remain open for you to enjoy however the enclosed members’ areas are currently closed. If you are planning a visit, here’s everything you need to know – Belfast WOW COVID-19 update.
Portmore Lough - Our outdoor spaces remain open for you to enjoy the stunning views and wonderful wildlife. When visiting, please observe all current government guidelines around travel, maximum group sizes, social distancing, and hygiene, as well as following all signage on-site.
Friday 27 November
Following further government guidance, The Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs has clarified that our outdoor spaces at Belfast’s Window on Wildlife (WOW) can remain open. All indoor facilities, including the WOW visitor centre are closed. When visiting us please observe current Government guidance around maximum group sizes, social distancing and follow all signage on-site.
Our work across Northern Ireland is only possible thanks the generosity of our members and supporters, and we are incredibly grateful for your continued support at this difficult time.
Monday 19 October
Due to new guidance announced on Friday by the NI Executive our visitor centre at Belfast WOW is closed until further notice. Whilst we are disappointed to be closing our doors again so soon, we will be ready to reopen again once the restrictions are lifted and it is safe to do so.Our outdoor spaces at both Belfast WOW and Portmore Lough remain open for you to enjoy the stunning views and wonderful wildlife. When visiting, please observe all current government guidelines around travel, maximum group sizes, social distancing, and hygiene, as well as following all signage on-site. Our work across RSPB NI is all only possible thanks to the generosity of our members and supporters and we are incredibly grateful for your continued support at this difficult time.
Friday 9 October
Belfast WOWWe’re delighted to announce, that from Monday 12 October, in addition to our trails and bird hides, the visitor centre at Belfast WOW will be OPEN! You’ll notice we’ve made some changes to help keep you, our staff and volunteers safe. Here’s everything you need to know before you visit http://bit.ly/WOWVisitorInfo
Portmore Lough There is signage and markers in place that will help you explore our reserve safely and discover wildlife, please adhere to these directions when visiting our reserves.
Please keep any accompanying dogs under control at all times.We encourage anyone visiting RSPB Portmore Lough to do so whilst following government guidance on social distancing and be considerate of our neighbours and other visitors.
RSPB Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre The Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre is currently closed for the autumn/winter season. We hope to reopen in spring 2021.
Tuesday 26 May
From Wednesday 27 May the outdoor spaces at Belfast’s Window on Wildlife and Portmore Lough reserves will be open for visitors however Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre will remain closed. Behind the scenes we've been working hard to make our nature reserves safe and ready for our staff, visitors and wildlife. Whilst outdoor spaces at Belfast WOW and Portmore Lough reserves will be accessible, visitor centres and offices remain closed as well as the enclosed hide and toilet facilities at Portmore Lough.
Please stay local to your nearest reserve and continue to enjoy the open spaces closest to home.
What does this mean for visiting our sites?
Belfast’s Window on Wildlife
We’ve added signage and markers that will help visitors explore our reserve safely and discover wildlife, please adhere to these directions when visiting.
Please keep any accompanying dogs under control at all times.
For more information on Belfast’s Window on Wildlife visit our website or for directions access Google Maps.
Portmore Lough
We’ve added signage and markers that will help you explore our reserve safely and discover wildlife, please adhere to these directions when visiting our reserves.
We encourage anyone visiting RSPB Portmore Lough to do so whilst following government guidance on social distancing and be considerate of our neighbours and other visitors.
Tuesday 12 May
While the Northern Ireland Executive has today announced a plan for lifting restrictions, lockdown remains in place in Northern Ireland. Our reserves at RSPB Portmore Lough, RSPB Belfast’s Window on Wildlife and RSPB Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre remain closed until further notice.
We look forward to welcoming visitors again once it is safe to do so.
Tuesday 24 MarchFollowing the latest clear instructions from the Government for us all to remain at home apart from a limited number of allowed activities, we are closing our reserves to visitors until further notice.
This means we will close car parks, toilets and playgrounds to the public, in Northern Ireland that means that all access to RSPB Portmore Lough is now closed, access to the hides at RSPB Belfast’s Window on Wildlife is no longer available and the planned opening of RSPB Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre will not go ahead at present. These measures are on top of the existing closure of our visitor centres, cafes and shops. It is with great sadness that we ask people to refrain from visiting RSPB but we look forward to welcoming you back in future.
Our efforts will now move to helping the millions of people spending time at home. We are determined to do our bit to try and help connect people with the amazing wildlife to be seen in gardens or from balconies or windows and offer some hope and joy in these difficult times.
Over the coming days and weeks, we will also be helping people to share their wildlife encounters and provide ideas for things they can do for wildlife close to home.
Take care,
The RSPB NI team.
Monday 23 March
Statement from the RSPB Board:
"We will keep our sites open, where it is safe to do so. This includes toilets, hides and carparks. We have had to close some sites because it has been unsafe to keep them open in terms of being able to maintain social distancing and therefore keep our staff, volunteers and the public safe. We are keeping this under constant review. For us to be able to continue to do this, we urge you to please be responsible and continue to practice government guidelines on social distancing. We also ask that you stay local and only visit those places near to you in order to help us manage capacity, as well as limit unnecessary travel.
We will be updating any changes to the status of our reserves on our website and through social media, so please do check before you go."
Friday 20 March
As announced on Wednesday, RSPB NI has now closed visitor centres following government advice, but we’re keeping elements of RSPB Belfast's Window on Wildlife and RSPB Portmore Lough reserves open as long as possible so you can still enjoy these free and amazing places for wildlife.Belfast’s Window on Wildlife
We encourage those that continue to visit Belfast’s Window on Wildlife to do so whilst following the government’s advice on social distancing. As advised on the reserve signage please maintain at least 2m from other people and follow government guidance on personal hygiene.
For more information on Belfast’s Window on Wildlife you can visit our website or for directions access Google Maps.
The observation platform and the lough side bird hide are currently open. The bird hide can be accessed along a 500m boardwalk. Toilets are open every day from 9am to 5pm.
The wildlife garden can only be accessed either via the hard path from the car park or via the grass path opposite the community room building. Follow the path through the trees and around to the pond. Visitors should return via the same route.
We encourage those that continue to visit Portmore Lough to do so whilst following the government’s advice on social distancing. As advised on the reserve signage please maintain at least 2m from other people and follow government guidance on personal hygiene.
For more information on Portmore Lough you can visit our website or for directions access Google Maps.Keep in Touch
Keep informed here on our blog or via @RSPBNI Facebook and Twitter accounts and join our dedicated Facebook groups for Rathlin and Belfast’s Window on Wildlife.
Wednesday 18 March
Following the latest government advice, the RSPB has made the difficult decision to close all our visitor centres, cafes and shops to visitors by the end of the day on Friday 20 March 2020. This is to prioritise the health and welfare of our staff, volunteers, supporters and members of the public.
These are difficult and unsettling times for all of us but we hope that nature can provide a welcome respite in whichever form and wherever you may encounter it. We want to do everything we can to help people and communities safely experience nature at this time, which is why we will keep our reserve trails and car parks open where possible. Therefore, all car parking and entrance charges at RSPB reserves will be waived so people can enjoy these sites at no cost.
We hope that visitors will continue to enjoy these amazing places for wildlife while observing physical distancing measures.
If you are unable to get out into nature physically, then we will be here providing updates, news, photos, blogs and more, to help you keep connected with nature over the coming weeks. Remember you can follow us on @RSPBNI on Twitter and Facebook, join our dedicated Facebook groups for Rathlin and Belfast’s Window on Wildlife or read this blog.
Our staff and volunteers will be continuing to work tirelessly to save nature on our reserves and through conservation projects and campaigns. More than ever, your support for nature is vital, and greatly appreciated.
You can find the RSPB’s latest response to coronavirus on our website
And the latest government information and advice on coronavirus can be found on the Department for Health and Social Care’s website.
Most importantly, keep safe and look out for one another.