Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre

Address: RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre, Inner Promenade, Lytham Saint Annes FY8 1BD

Grid ref: SD340273

What3Words: swells.grounding.abacus

Situated on the edge of popular Fairhaven Lake, the RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre is run in partnership with Fylde Borough Council and is the gateway to exploring the Ribble Estuary - one of the most important wetlands in the country and home to more than 250,000 birds.

Plan your visit

Visitor Centre and shop
Open daily, 10am-5pm (April-October)
Open daily, 10am-4pm (November-March).
Refreshments: takeaways available in line with above opening times.

Festive Opening times

Christmas Eve: visitor centre and shop open, 9am-3pm.
Christmas Day: visitor centre and shop closed.
Boxing Day: visitor centre and shop closed.
27-30 December: visitor centre and shop open, 10am-4pm.
New Years Eve:visitor centre and shop open, 9am-3pm.
New Years Day: visitor centre and shop open, 10am-4pm.
All other days in the festive period are open our usual winter opening hours as above.

Free entrance to RSPB members: Yes

Adults: Free, but donations are very welcome

Children: Free, but donations are very welcome

Car park cost

Parking is available very close by on Inner Promenade and at both ends of Fairhaven Lake at Stanner Bank and St Paul’s car parks. These car parks are available 24 hours.

These are not RSPB car park; they are run by Fylde Council. Please see their website for details.

There are also 3 electric vehicle charging points very close by the centre on Inner Promenade.

Facilities

Visitor centre
Car park
Toilets
Accessible toilets
Baby changing
Pushchair friendly
Refreshments
Picnic area
Binocular hire
Guided walks
Viewing point
Nature trails
Shop
Educational facilities
Play area

Accessibility

How to get here

By train

Trains run from Ansdell and Fairhaven station on the half-hour to and from Preston and Blackpool South. Turn right outside the station onto Woodlands Road. Continue to the bottom of the hill. At the mini roundabout turn left onto Clifton Drive and them immediately right onto Marine Drive. After 50metres you reach and the Inner Promenade. Crosse the road into the Car Park and take the lake-side path to the right to reach the Centre after 50 metres. The walk takes about 10 minutes.

By bus

Buses run all year round every 20 minutes on Line 7 from Blackpool, St Annes and Lytham. The nearest stop is at Lake Road. Walk down Lake Road, cross the Inner Promenade and the Centre is next to Fairhaven Lake.

By road

From the south end of Blackpool, take the A584 Clifton Drive southbound towards Lytham. Continue straight on through St Annes. Turn right onto Lake Road; at the bottom, turn left onto the Inner Promenade. Parking is available on the roadside alongside the Lake or at the car parks at the opposite ends of the Lake opposite the Marine Drive and St. Paul’s Avenue turnings.

Sat nav POI file: If you have a satellite navigation system that can accept POI files, please see our POI page for a download link and instructions.

Get directions from Google Maps

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RSPB reserves on Google Earth

Dogs on leads are welcome at Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre. Please keep your dog on a lead and under close, effective control at all times.

For more information on where you can walk dogs around Fairhaven Lake, and where leads are required, please see Fylde Council's webpage.

We know that the countryside is a dog walking paradise. It’s important to remember the special surroundings here are wonderful havens for wildlife.

Even if dogs are very well behaved, wildlife can easily become startled by a loose dog they perceive as a predator. Disturbing wildlife does more than simply causing it to move away; it uses up their energy, decreasing their chance of survival regardless of season. Thank you for protecting the special wildlife here by keeping your dog on a lead.

Dog water bowls are available at the front of the visitor centre.
Dogs die in hot cars, please do not leave your dog in the car when visiting us.

Bringing a flock? We welcome group bookings.

Please notify us of your visit in advance by phoning 01253 796292.

For details of our exciting programme of curriculum-linked outdoor education sessions, visit our school trips information.

We offer a unique, hands-on and fun learning experience by the seaside, with opportunities for all key stages and abilities, including mud dipping which is exclusive to the Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre. With a suite of curriculum-linked sessions on offer, our qualified, enthusiastic learning team will help you uncover the secrets of the Ribble Estuary and the creatures that call it home.

We have a large learning space which provides the perfect base for your visit. Within easy reach of the centre is a variety of interesting habitats, making a trip to Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre a safe and exciting coastal visit.

To book, contact schoolbookings@rspb.org.uk.

Also, check out our fantastic range of resources for teachers, or take on the Schools’ Wild Challenge.

Contact Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre

RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre, Inner Promenade, Lytham Saint Annes FY8 1BD
ribble.reserves@rspb.org.uk
01253 796292
@RSPB_Ribble
Find us on facebook

What will you see?

Our star species

Curlew

In spring, you can hear their gorgeous, 'bubbling' song.

Mallard

Mallards are the commonest duck on Fairhaven Lake. From winter into spring, watch out for the males chasing females around, then later in the year, it's duckling time!

Redshank

Redshanks can be seen all year round and gather in tight-knit groups to roost at high tide.

Shelduck

You can see shelducks - big, black and white ducks - dabbling for food on the mudflats at any time of year.

Tufted duck

This diving duck is a breeding bird here. Look out for broods of brown ducklings in late spring and summer.

Nature spectacles

Take a stroll around Fairhaven Lake and spot a variety of familiar ducks and geese such as mallards, Canada geese, moorhens, coots and greylags. In winter you may also notice the arrival of pochards, scaup and tufted ducks. Cormorants can be spotted stretching out their wings, whilst a little grebe may plop below the surface in search of food. In spring, birdsong fills the air as robins, blackbirds, tits and finches tune up to impress a mate. Passage birds such as stonechat and wheatear stop off, using the estuary as re-fuelling points, and the aerial displays of meadow pipits are unmissable. In summer, minibeasts crawl and flit among the flowerbeds whilst an evening stroll brings the chance of spotting pipistrelle bats feeding overhead.

On the far side of the lake, the sea defence wall and promenade give rise to a fabulous vista over the whole estruary. With its vast mudflats, saltmarsh and sand dune network, it is one of the most important areas in the country for birds. Some stay all year round, whilst others stop off to refuel on migration in spring and autumn. Swirling flocks of knot, great numbers of redshanks, curlews, dunlins and black-tailed godwits are among the distinctive birds you can see here. In winter, watch for the pink-footed geese flying in V-formation and the shelduck dabbling on the mudflats.

On the lake, look out for the first ducklings of the season. Bird-song can be heard in the trees as robins, blackbirds and a variety of tits and finches are in full tune. Linnets feed in the gorse bushes in the sand dunes, you can’t miss their noisy twittering. On the estuary, you'll see huge flocks of wading birds on migration, including black-tailed godwits, knots, dunlins, sanderlings, ringed and grey plovers, whilst wheatear and stonechat refuel on their way through.

Ducklings and goslings are on the lake and newly-fledged blackbirds and tits and finches are exploring the gardens. There may be fewer birds out on the estuary, plenty are passing through as well as those that nest here – look out for redshanks, oystercatchers, shelducks and eiders.

The dunes are a hive of activity with swallows and martins streaming over and blackcap, chiff chaff and whitethroat all nesting. Lookout for dragonflies over the ponds in the Japanese Garden and a variety of butterflies flitting around the bushes around the lake and promenade.

The estuary is alive with flocks of wading birds returning to spend the colder months here or passing through on their way to Africa. Curlew and godwit numbers increase dramatically and skeins of pink footed geese fly over regularly. On the lake, wintering ducks arrive, with tufted ducks and pochards joining the more familiar mallards and coots.

Noisy flocks of geese fly overhead and the calls of curlews and redshanks can be heard on the mudflats. Elegant pintails can often be seen up-close when tides are high. The lake hosts winter visitors like cormorants, great crested grebe and kingfisher. You may also spot peregrines, sparrowhawks and kestrels hunting along the shoreline.

About Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre

Habitat

Mud – it might not sound appealing to us, but wetland birds love it. It's what draws a quarter of a million of them to The Ribble Estuary. Packed with shellfish, worms and tiny, tasty creatures (for birds anyway), the mudflats here are a buffet for hungry wading birds. Curlew, redshank, godwits, knot, dunlin and oystercatcher are among the diners, as well as colourful ducks like wigeon, shelduck and pintail.

But it’s not just about food, The Ribble Estuary is also a place where lots of different kinds of birds stop off on their migration journeys. Pink-footed geese come to rest over the long winter nights and stonechat, wheatear and redstart come to refuel on their way to and from their breeding grounds in autumn and spring.

There are lots of habitats besides the mudflats to discover, as the reserve covers a huge patch of land all the way from Lytham St Annes’ to Southport. The nearby sand dunes and saltmarshes are also home to unusual plants and interesting creatures.

Fairhaven Lake is a great place to start your explorations of the wider Ribble Estuary. Down at the water’s edge, you can see what different kinds of ducks and geese get up to. Look out for tufted ducks as they dive under the water for their food while the mallards, coots and mute swans glide serenely across the surface.

Conservation

The Ribble Estuary is a key feeding and resting place for migrating birds. Many of the birds here have flown thousands of miles from breeding grounds in the Arctic and may continue their journeys as far as Africa.

We do everything we can to ensure the reserve is a peaceful haven for the birds that use it, whether their stay with us is long or short. Part of this work is sharing ways that visitors to the site can enjoy the reserve in harmony with the wildlife that lives there.

If you’re visiting us, here’s how you can help the birds and avoid disturbing them:

Look out for any flocks of birds at high tide and keep well away from them.
Always keep your dog on a lead when near high tide bird ‘roosts’ so there is less danger of alarming the birds.
Keep well away from the water’s edge at all tide levels, as this is the area where the birds do most of their feeding.
Don’t fly model aircraft or kites over the saltmarsh.

Unfortunately, the birds here are often unintentionally disturbed by activities such as dog walking, model airplanes and kites which the birds perceive to be predators.

These disturbances may be very brief, but they can have a lasting impact on the birds. When forced to fly away after an incident like this, it uses up the bird’s energy reserves and reduces the time they have available to feed. Birds will remain alert after being disturbed – they don’t settle easily back into sleep. All of this can significantly decrease their chances of surviving the winter.

Partners

Thanks to our partner-sponsor Fylde Borough Council.

Site information

At The Ribble Estuary, we work in partnership with Natural England to create the ideal conditions for wildlife.

The Ribble Estuary is recognised as one of the most important places for birds in Europe. It is protected as a Special Protection Area (SPA) and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Much of the estuary is part of the Ribble Estuary National Nature Reserve (NNR) In 2017, the NNR grew to include the RSPB reserves at Marshside and Hesketh Out Marsh on the south side of the estuary.

To learn more about what these designations mean, head here.

Latest blog posts

read our blog

Activities and events

Activities for children and families

We love to welcome families to the RSPB Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre! With our new interactive displays and free downloadable app, there’s loads to do. You can even grab a coffee and snack before or after you explore.

There’s the Arts Council-funded trail sculptures all around the lake too, see if you can spot them all. The trail will help you discover more about the wonderful wildlife of the Ribble Estuary.

Seaside and park activity backpacks are available all year round, to really make the most out of exploring the area.Taking a walk down the new sea wall promenade is rewarded with the panoramic view across the estuary, seeing Southport where our sister site Marshside is based and on clear days all the way to North Wales.

Themed activities, interactive displays and badge-making are available and we offer a programme of fun, nature-themed, family events in the holidays.

For more information on events and to book tickets, please visit events.rspb.org.uk/fairhavenlake

Leisure activities

Come along to one of our seasonal events, where our friendly, knowledgeable team will help you learn more about the rich variety of wildlife on the estuary and around the lake.

Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre