The 5 Best Visitor Centers in Tyne and Wear, England

Reached between the tides via a short causeway, St. Mary's has all the fascination of a miniature, part-time island. The Lighthouse, completed in 1898 on a hazardous coast for shipping, remained operational until 1984 when it was superseded by modern navigational techniques. Since then the Lighthouse and former keepers' cottages have been operated as a visitor centre by North Tyneside Council. The surrounding Nature Reserve contains an area of rockpools, clifftop grassland, a beach and newly created wetland habitats.Wherever possible we are open seven days a week between May and September, and during weekends and school holidays in the winter. However, it is not possible for us to open on some days because of tidal conditions. The stated opening times can also be subject to variations on occasion due to weather affecting the times of the tide.

Rainton Meadows is just one of 35 nature reserves owned and managed by Durham Wildlife Trust. The visitor centre and children's WildPlay area area open seven days a week from 10am – 4.00pm. The centre has a range of facilities including toilets, a classroom, meeting rooms and a fantastic coffee shop. There is an excellent network of accessible pathways linking viewing areas that look across the lakes and wetlands, with areas of grassland and woodland completing the habitats on site. Rainton Meadows has developed into a significant area for wildlife over the last 20 years. The wetlands and grasslands support a wide range of birds and over 200 species have been recorded. Waders such as redshank, oystercatcher, lapwing are regularly seen and also more unusual species such as little ringed plover. All five species of UK owl can be seen at different times of the year and there are good numbers of warblers, finches, tits and farmland birds. Stoat, weasel, brown hare and roe deer are regularly seen and the wetlands attract numerous dragonflies and damselflies. Butterfly numbers are also high, particularly grassland species.

The Word, National Centre for the Written Word is South Tyneside's state-of-the-art cultural venue which has a lot to offer! The building is brimming with exciting new experiences, activities and facilities for people of all ages to engage and enjoy. From the Digital Media Wall, to the FabLab - there is also an impressive, immersive storytelling experience in StoryWorld which hosts regular events over school holidays as well as interactive touch-tables, telescopes, Kids' Activity Area, Creative Play Area and a Gaming Zone. There is also a Shop/Visitor Information Centre and a Café. The building is home to 70,000 books as well as OpenZone, who provide digital learning and ICT to schools during term time. At its core The Word celebrates the written word in all its forms through a rolling programme of events, exhibitions and workshops and it also aims to become a home for north-east writers.