A new visitor centre owned by Eastside Partnership has officially opened in east Belfast.

Delivered by Landmark East the centre aims to increase visitor numbers to the area and provide a boost to the local economy.

The EastSide Visitor Centre was part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the European Sustainable Competitiveness Programme for Northern Ireland, administered by TourismNI, with financial support from Belfast City Council and the Northern Ireland Executive's Delivering Social Change fund through the Social Investment Fund.

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Located on the Newtownards Road, the centre is adjacent to both Connswater Community and Comber Greenways, a series of pathways which connect to green and open spaces throughout the EastSide and to the city centre.

Visitors to the centre will access information on the city's attractions from interactive digital screens, interpretative panels and a wall map revealing EastSide's famous faces, places and industries.

The centre includes a coffee bar named after EastSide's most famous author, C.S Lewis.

Lord Mayor of Belfast, Alderman Brian Kingston, said: "This is the latest in a number of positive improvements to the infrastructure in east Belfast, building upon the great work delivered through the Connswater Community Greenway project, for which the council has been at the forefront.

"As one of the biggest recipients of our Local Investment Fund, with an award of £250,000, this visitor centre has the potential to make a real and lasting difference to this part of our city, offering a ‘one stop shop’ from which visitors can then explore the rich environment and heritage of east Belfast."

(CD)