A Dragon-tastic Summer Festival Has Launched at WWT Washington Wetland Centre

A dazzling line-up of dragonfly-themed activities is ready to be discovered by attendees of the first ever WWT Dragonfly Festival at WWT Washington Wetland Centre this summer.

Launched on 21 June by WWT, the charity for wetlands and wildlife, the summer celebration of dragonflies offers a unique chance for festival-goers to make special memories and begin a lifetime of connection with this magical and exotic world.

Visitors, young and young-at-heart, will be welcomed to WWT Washington, marking the start of an immersive experience in wetland nature where they can pick up a festival kit, including spotter sheets and challenge cards, to get their imagination running wild and ready for adventure.

From there, they can wander through a wildlife-filled wetland world, uncovering the secret lives of dragonflies that dwell in these blue spaces. Discover the wonderful world of minibeasts living below the surface during interactive pond dipping sessions and take part in dragonfly challenges along the way.

WWT Washington has been designed to get people up-close to nature and visitors will discover that there’s much more to wetlands than meets the eye. They’ll embark on a dazzling dragonfly adventure while enjoying a dragonfly safari on foot. While on hot days, young adventurers can cool off with a splash around the water-based play areas, and for those who’d rather be a dry fly there’s an opportunity to clamber, climb and scramble to their heart’s content in the adventure playground.

Further memory-making moments and fun headline events are also being offered to festival-goers, who can take part in special family fun days over the summer holidays where dragonfly-themed stilt walkers and bubbleologists join forces to entertain the crowds, while face painting adds colour to the day and interactive activities bringing the nature vibe to visitors of all ages. There’s a special silent disco weekend planned too – a fantastic family experience all round!

Gill Pipes, Centre Manager at WWT Washington, said: “Dragonflies play an important role in our wetland ecosystems, so a summer-long festival is a fitting way to celebrate these fantastic creatures of the natural world. We have a wonderful line-up of exciting activities!”

John Gowland, Reserve Manager at WWT Washington, adds: “Dragonflies are some of the stars of our site during the summer months and at we have twenty of the UK’s native species living here.

“Our dragonfly and damselfly hot spots are down at our amphibian ponds where on a sunny day they can be seen flitting, feeding and resting around the water’s surface. But on good days, they can even be seen around the Stream Channel from the café windows!”

Gill added: “The WWT Dragonfly Festival offers a great opportunity to both have lots of fun this summer and learn everything there is to know about these wondrous winged insects and the wetlands we passionately protect, for them and all the other amazing creatives that thrive here.”

Participation in the WWT Dragonfly Festival at WWT Washington is included with the price of admission and is free to WWT members. More information, including line up announcements and online ticket savings for the WWT Dragonfly Festival and its summer celebration of the wonderful world of dragonflies can be found at: https://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/washington/whats-on/dragonfly-festival-at-washington-wetland-centre