To experience the full body of the night’s sky, you must be willing to venture out into the darkness. Away from cities, the velvety black skies are a milky swirl of celestial galaxies. As the Earth slowly turns each night, a blanket of stars creep across the inky depths. Contrasted to the dark, it’s like handfuls of sugar spilled across the sky and the faint floury stain of the Milky Way scattered overhead. With your neck craned all the way back, you might feel dizzy trying to take in the immensity of it all.

The Warrumbungles National Park, NSW, Australia 

A five or six-hour drive from Sydney, this is an official dark sky site in Australia. The Milky Way galaxy sparkles brightly in all its celestial wonder when you’re stargazing in the iconic Warrumbungle National Park, with its own observatory. No matter whether you are amateur or not, with your eye you will be able to see it all. This is the first Dark Sky Park in Australia. Gazing up at the galaxy of stars, some resident kangaroos may even gather nearby.

Phillip Island Observatory, Victoria, Australia

Discover the amazing world of the cosmos and astrophotography with the Phillip Island Observatory. Take a guided night-sky tour, watch a movie in an immersive, state-of-the-art 360-degree outdoor planetarium dome in high definition. There is a laser light guided tour of the night sky where you can discover the planets with uninterrupted viewing through high tech telescopes. Bookings are essential at this private observatory.

Lake Tekapo, South Island, New Zealand

Lake Tekapo is in in the centre of the South Island with clear skies and its surroundings are one of the best places in the world as a Dark Sky Reserve. The heavens appear closer to earth here. If you come in winter, either July or August, you might be lucky enough to catch the clear winter night sky and the symphony of the colour of the Southern Lights. Purple, green, yellow and blue, they collision and swirl together across the night sky.

Queenstown, South Island, New Zealand 

The beauty of the Queenstown's night sky is stunning, hundreds of thousands of stars surround you appear in the surreal bursts of the southern hemisphere. with a plethora of accommodation options, you can turn off the lights, sit back and relax, soak in the luxury of the open-air hot tub, look out on snow-capped mountains and a star-studded night sky. After the long summer days, dark winter nights provide an idyllic setting for galactic views. Stargazing in New Zealand is a captivating experience and whether you’re an astronomy enthusiast or not, Queenstown is a fantastic place for stargazing on a clear night. You can journey up the Skyline Gondola and perch high above Queenstown to experience their fascinating stargazing tour. Or you can ski under the Milky Way surrounded by snow-capped mountains.