Orford Ness National Nature Reserve

Internationally important coastal nature reserve, with a fascinating 20th-century military history

Take a short boat trip to this wild and remote shingle spit, the largest in Europe.

Follow walking trails through a stunning landscape and a history that will both delight and intrigue.

Discover an internationally important nature reserve littered with debris and unusual, often forbidding, buildings from a sometimes disturbing past.

Please note: Access is only via the National Trust ferry Octavia from Orford Ness. There is no access on foot or by vehicle via Slaughden. There is a charge for ferry  to Orford Ness (including members). Tickets are limited and must be booked in advance. No bikes or dogs (assistance dogs welcome) allowed.

National Trust Ferry Octavia

Start your visit on board as we ferry you across the River Ore via our ferry Octavia. Keep an eye out for wildlife including occasional harbour porpoises and seals. Don't forget to book your ticket in advance, space is limited.

National Nature Reserve

Three walking trails (two open only seasonally) take you through coastal grazing marshes and out to the vegetated shingle. Home to numerous wetland and wading birds, Chinese water deer and hares.

Atomic Weapons Research Establishment Site

One of the few sites in the UK with purpose-built facilities for the testing of components of nuclear weapons. Comprising of six 'labs', these buildings now form impressive backdrops on the shingle. Only Lab 1 is open to the public, the remainder have exterior access only on guided tours.

Vegetated shingle

International rare and delicate landscape, consisting of shingle ridges and valleys, deposited over centuries by the sea. 20% of Europe's vegetated shingle is found on Orford Ness. Incredibly fragile, one single misplaced footstep can destroy structures that have taken centuries to form.

Airfield Marshes

What was once a former World War One and World War Two Airfield, is now a rich grazing marsh, providing a home for birds and deer.

Radar Receiver Building

First World War building, adapted in the 1930s, for early work on Radar is now home to the Island of Secrets exhibition. The exhibition tells the story of 80 years of top secret research on 'the island'.

Bomb Ballistics Building

Built in 1933 as the centre of an experimental bombing range. The roof now provides a panoramic viewing platform giving stunning views across the entire site.

Black Beacon

An unusual building, erected in 1928 to house an experimental rotating-loop navigation beacon. Now home to exhibition and views across the vegetated shingle.