A website crashed after guests scrambled for tickets to an event at a popular nature reserve.

Visitors were eagerly awaiting the open days at RSPB Dungeness on Romney Marsh, where they can tour the iconic Sound Mirrors, relics of a pre-Second World War acoustic defence system.

However, technical issues initially scuppered their plans when booking slots opened on Monday.

Bosses stated the ticketing site crashed due to the “high volume of traffic” and the popularity of some events that have recently gone on sale.

One hopeful attendee, Jacqueline Hunt, said: “I’ve been trying to find out when there are open days for the Sound Mirrors at Dungeness, but I just keep ending up on the same web page.

“I’ve gone down to 448 from a position of over 1,000.

“I just wanted to know the dates and haven’t had this issue in previous years. I’d drive over to the visitor centre, but of course, that is shut down.”

The issue caused issues throughout yesterday afternoon but appeared to have been resolved by this afternoon.

The Sound Mirrors were first established as an early warning system to detect the reverberating sounds given off by enemy aircraft crossing the Channel.

Scattered along the British coastline, the 200ft curved concrete structures amplified sound by directing waves in a certain direction and played a crucial role in the Second World War and Britain’s aerial defence.

Although the Sound Mirrors became obsolete after the invention of modern radar systems during the progress of the war and were left to decay, they have become a popular tourist destination in recent years.

On each date, 300 visitors gain access to the secluded island at Lade Pits in the nature reserve. This is the only place in the world where visitors can view all three designs together.

Despite the technical issues, bosses say tickets still remain for this year's dates.

A spokesperson for the RSPB said: “The Sound Mirror open days are not sold out just yet. Unfortunately, there was an issue with a ticketing site the RSPB reserves often use for events.

“We believe that the site crashed due to the high volume of traffic, which is due to the popularity of some events for which tickets have gone on sale recently.”

Last month the charity closed the “loss-making” shop at the popular nature reserve after revealing it could no longer afford to run it.

The decision to close came after a review of operations across the UK “to ensure longer-term sustainability”.

A spokesperson added: “The RSPB is working on getting the visitor centre open, but no dates have been set yet.

“We will be meeting with site volunteers in due course to discuss how the centre is best used following the shop closure.”

The dates for the Sound Mirror open days in 2025 are Saturday, March 8; Saturday, July 12; Sunday, July 27; Saturday, August 9; Sunday, August 24; Saturday, September 6; Saturday, September 20 and Saturday, October 4.

Each event takes place from 11am to 3pm.