Look Up and Get Lost – Group Stargazing Experience
Tour Overview
Your Good Heavens’ group stargazing experience takes place in a beautiful location on pristine Aotea Great Barrier Island, a scenic 90kms, 4.5 hours by ferry from Central Auckland or half an hour by plane from Auckland Domestic airport.
During your stargazing experience, you will hear the waves lapping on the beach below while you look up and get lost in the stars. One of our passionate Good Heavens guides will illuminate you on this magical display, while you familiarise yourself with the night sky, and gain astronomical knowledge.
Lean back comfortably in a moon chair to look up and see the thousands of stars visible in a Dark Sky Sanctuary. The island’s Sanctuary status means that our dark sky is certified magnificent. Plus, Aotea is warmer than many other New Zealand stargazing places, too.
Our guide will draw constellations and tell a range of multicultural stories and interesting astronomical facts. So enjoy a cup of hot chocolate or herbal tea, while you memorise what’s in the sky in a light-hearted and fun way.
Stargazing does not get more enjoyable than this!
Use our telescope to look at special stars and deep sky objects. Many of these are unique to the Southern Hemisphere. And they look truly dazzling in our super dark sky. A great opportunity to take a closer look at the Milky Way, or maybe a planet or our crescent moon. Spot a satellite, a meteor or a distant galaxy. Marvel at the stars with us. There is so much to see!
If you are keen for our Moon to take centre stage during your group stargazing experience, then please book our Moon Walk Experience. Or if you have larger group or small children we recommend a Private Experience.
Make the most of your time on our beautiful island, by adding on this activity after dark. Our guides love the excitement they feel when we look up and get lost in the stars. They are looking forward to sharing this feeling with you.
Our small groups of up to twelve participants ensure a personalised experience.
Min. 4 participants.
For the purpose of your booking, a child is under 13 years old.
An overnight stay on Aotea Great Barrier Island is required to come stargazing with us.
We recommend you stay at least two nights, to increase your chances of a clear sky, and to enjoy more of what our beautiful island has to offer in the daytime, too.
(main photo: James Rua @visitauckland)
Terms & Conditions group stargazing experience
- Full payment of your experience is required at time of booking.
Upon payment, you agree to and accept Good Heavens’ Terms and Conditions and Cancellation Policy, as outlined below. - Participants must accept that we are unable to guarantee full clarity, ideal skies, or visibility of certain objects. Experiences operate in a marine environment where the weather can change rapidly.
- Where the Experience is cancelled by Good Heavens either prior to or during the experience, due to the weather conditions, a full refund will be given.
- Periodically, experiences may be subject to partial cloud cover for some or all of the tour, or to full cloud cover for some of the experience. In this event we will continue the tour using the sky which is visible and/or available. We may also make use of a multi-media presentation.
- Please arrive at the time and location stated on your confirmation email. The experience will start on time. Arriving late disturbs the other participants and means that you miss out on a portion of the experience. If there is any reason for the time and/or location to change, we will contact you in advance of your experience.
- Translators may not operate on group experiences due to the disturbance to other guests.
- Please be aware your experience is not subject to partial refunds or discounts for any reason, including the weather (see Cancellation Policy below)
- Good Heavens reserves the right to cancel or change the duration and/or location of the experience in response to weather or environmental conditions.
- If you have any questions regarding the likely format of the experience and/or weather, please ask us prior to the experience occurring.
- Customers are informed that participation in group photos is purely voluntary. These images may be made publicly available through Good Heaven’s website and/or social media pages.
Cancellation Policy
- In the event of rain or poor weather conditions, experiences may be cancelled by Good Heavens. A full refund will be issued, minus the dining component where applicable.
- If you cancel your booking more than 4 days prior to your experience’s departure, you will be reimbursed the full fee.
- If you cancel your booking less than four days prior to your experience’s departure, we cannot issue a refund.
- Refunds will be processed within ten working days whenever possible. Where possible they will be made in the same form as payment was taken.
- If you made the booking through a booking/travel agent or any other third party for your tour, the cancellation policy will follow the agent’s regulation. It is then your responsibility to approach them directly for a refund.