Stargazer Friendly

Dark skies adorn the Manx landscape when night falls, opening up magnificent views of the astrological constellation island wide. If you’re planning a visit to the Isle of Man to take in its incredible dark skies, you can take advantage of the registered 'Stargazer Friendly' accommodation to help make your stay more comfortable.

Each hotel, guest house, or self-catering property listed has elected to be a part of the Stargazers Welcome Scheme, offering a range of additional facilities and services. You can take advantage of useful items such as binoculars, a torch, portable folding chairs or waterproof picnic blankets which are available on request for you to take out on your stargazing adventures. In addition, you’ll find somewhere warm and dry to hang wet clothing overnight, a place for your muddy boots, maps, guide books, details of our dark sky sites, and information on public transport to and from the sites closest to your chosen accommodation.

The UK Campaign for Dark Skies carried out an analysis of the best places in the British Isles for stargazing, factoring in both light pollution and cloud cover. Whilst cloud cover is an issue throughout the British Isles, the clarity of the sky and the almost total lack of light pollution make the Isle of Man unique.

The Island is also ideally placed on occasions to see the magnificent sight of the Northern Lights. The Northern lights are normally only seen from Northerly locations such as Alaska, Norway and Iceland, however the crystal clear Northern horizon from the Island’s north eastern coast means this fascinating phenomenon can often be seen from the Island. The Isle of Man now has an incredible 26 dark sky discovery sites across the length and breadth of the nation.