Visitor Centres

Lizard Heritage Centre | Cornwall

With the help of a generous grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Trinity House has renovated the Engine Room at Lizard Lighthouse, retaining some of the old engines. It now also features new exhibition material, an audio visual room and a number of interactive displays. The Lizard Lighthouse Heritage Centre was officially opened on the 13th July 2009 by HRH The Princess Royal.

Fun activities

Power up and sound a foghorn
Track ships in the local area
Find out about the weather and complete a weather log book
Build a lighthouse
Send a message using Morse Code
Learn about semaphore and signal flags
Climb the lighthouse tower
Discover the history and development of Safety at Sea
Identify the different shapes, colours and markings of buoys used to mark safe routes
Listen to Lighthouse Keepers' stories and learn about living and working on a lighthouse
And much more...

** Visit on Saturdays in August - special fun days with games and lighthouse shows in the cinema - commencing at 11am.

** Visit during International Lighthouse Weekend 21st and 22nd August 2010, when there will be story times, special talks and a chance to try your hand at knots and splicing.

Click here to check for any recent closures to Visitor Centres

For more information about the project please visit www.lizardlighthouse.co.uk

The distinctive twin towers of Lizard Lighthouse mark the most southerly point of mainland Britain. See displays depicting Trinity House's history, housed in the original engine room. It was commissioned in 1752. For over 250 years, the lighthouse has provided a welcoming landfall light to vessels crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

Location

The Lighthouse is signposted from Lizard village on the A3083 from Helston.

Map: click here for streetmap

Parking

National Trust car park next to entrance gate.

Opening Times 2010

April: 11am - 5pm, Sun - Thurs (closed Fri, Sat)

Open Good Friday & Easter Saturday: 11am - 5pm

May & June: 10.30am – 5pm, Sun – Thurs (Closed Fri, Sat)
July: 10.30am – 6pm, Sun - Fri (closed Sat) - Open Sat 24th & 31st
August: 10.30am – 6.30pm, Daily
September: 10.30am – 5pm, Sun – Fri (Closed Sat)
October: 11am – 4pm, Sun – Weds (Closed Thurs, Fri, Sat)
November & December: 11am – 3pm, Sun – Weds (Closed Thurs, Fri, Sat)

2011:

January - CLOSED

February & March: 11am - 3pm, Sun - Weds (Closed Thurs, Fri, Sat)

CLOSED FOR MAINTENANCE: 23-24 March Tower Closed; 1 - 4 June Tower Closed; 6 - 10 September Tower Closed; 28 Feb - 4 March 2011 Tower Closed

Admission Charges

Heritage Centre
Adult £4.00
Children (age 16 & under) £2.00
Concessions (Students/Senior Citizens) £3.50
Saver Child (with purchase of 2 adult tickets) £1.25
School Groups (pre-booked):

Children (age 16 & under) £1.25

Adult (2 free with each group) £3.50

Pre-booked Groups (10 or over):

Adult £3.60

Children (age 16 & under) £1.80

Additional Cost for Lighthouse Tour
Adult £2.00
Children (age 16 & under) £1.00
Concessions (Students/Senior Citizens) £2.00
Saver Child (with purchase of 2 adult tickets) £1.00
Pre-booked school groups:
Adult (2 adults free with each group) £2.00
Children £1.00

Pre-booked Groups (10 or over):

Adult £2.00

Children (age 16 & under) £1.00

'Life on the Rocks' exhibition / Discounted entry to the Heritage Centre

This exhibition opened 6 February 2010 at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, in Falmouth and runs for two years. The exhibition is being supported by Trinity House with the loan of a large number of artefacts, including the massive 4 tonne optic from Bishop Rock Lighthouse.

The exhibition is complementary to our own Heritage Centre at the Lizard Lighthouse. Visitors to the Maritime Museum will receive 10% off admission charges to the Lizard Lighthouse Heritage Centre. Visitors can also take a tour of the working lighthouse.

Click here to read more about the exhibition

Contact Details

Telephone: 01326 290202

2010 season information

Information relating to the 2010 season can be downloaded here

Health & Safety

We want everybody to have an enjoyable experience at our visitor centres and believe safety is a key contributor to people leaving with smiles on their faces. We have a few rules we enforce and would be grateful if you could take the time now to familiarise yourself with them.
Health & Safety Guidelines

Risk Assessment

Click here to download the visitor Risk Assessment for Lizard Lighthouse.

Specifications

Established	1619
Height of Tower	19 metres
Height of Light above Mean High Water	70 metres
Automation	1998
Electrified	1924
Optic	2nd Order Catadioptric Rotating Lens
Lamp	400 WattMBI
Character	One white flash every 3 seconds
Intensity	800,000 candela
Range of Light	26 nautical miles
Fog Signal Character	1 blast every 30 seconds

Tours of Lizard Lighthouse are organised under licence from the Corporation of Trinity House.

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