Open Doors Days

Wednesdays and Sundays
from April to September 

11am to 4pm

From April to September on Wednesdays and Sundays, between 11am and 4pm, some of the buildings will be open, with volunteers on site to welcome anyone wanting to visit. Our volunteers have been busy working on artefacts in the Cinema and Fire Station, and creating displays to bring the site to life. Recently acquired photographs of day-to-day life at the airfield will be on display, as will information and artefacts relating to all aspects of the wartime aerial activities in Orkney. Volunteers will be continuing work on restoring and displaying more objects and material, and will be on hand to chat to any visitors.

Entry is by donation – all proceeds go to Birsay Heritage Trust and help towards developing the site.

Please note for safety reasons the Control Tower will only be accessed during guided tours.

Guided Tours

One of our expert guides will meet you at the Bryameadow Road entrance (see map) for a guided tour lasting just over an hour. On the tour we will share with you the history of the airfield and what life was like for the men and women who served there.

Your guide will take you inside the Fire Station, Cinema and Control Tower.

The Control Tower is only accessible during a guided a tour.

For the guided tour we suggest a donation of at least £8 per adult, £5 for U-18s.

Tour times

April to September

Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 2pm

There is no need to book to come on a tour –  just ‘turn up & go’.

Please meet your guide at the Bryameadow Road entrance (see map) –  just inside the second set of brick gateposts up the Bryameadow Road – please note there is no road sign off the main road at the moment, so please check the map page!

For tours at other times and other info please email info@hmstern.co.uk

See http://hmstern.co.uk/find-us/ for directions.

The tour lasts just over an hour.

This means you should allow about 90 minutes altogether, including time taken to get back to the car parking area by the Bryameadow Road entrance.

Please note: there are toilet facilities at HMS Tern – these toilets are for visitors to the site only and will only be open when volunteers are on site – Weds & Suns 11am to 4pm, and for those on scheduled guided tours.

Access

Most of the site is open to the public BUT some buildings are dangerous and should not be entered. Please do not attempt to explore the surrounding farmland without the permission of the landowners – there will be livestock and crops for most of the year so please respect this and stick to the main area between the Bryameadow Road entrance and the Control Tower – do not climb over any fences!

Most of the site is accessible but there are some parts of the site with which some visitors with mobility problems may have difficulty. Please contact us if you have any queries about accessibilty.
Most of the tour takes place outdoors and the site is very exposed to the elements, so please bear this in mind in less clement weather!