walk with us among the stars
star safari observatory
41°08'33" S, 175°31'3" E | 180m
1169 Ponatahi Road, Carterton, Wairarapa
Star Safari Observatory is only a ten minutes drive from Martinborough, on 1169 Ponatahi Road, perched atop a beautiful hill in the middle of the Wairarapa Dark Sky Reserve.
Not only do you get to see some of the fabulous landscapes of Wairarapa from up here, but the observatory’s location also boasts some of New Zealand’s darkest night skies, with a peak darkness reading of 21.87 on our TESS-W meter (as of November 2023) —a testament to the unrivalled clarity of our nights.
What we do here
Stargazing
Science
Education
New Zealand
One of the best stargazing places in the world
New Zealand has always been famous for its breathtaking landscapes, but it is its night sky that truly shines with the power of 40 billion stars at our galaxy's core going straight overhead on long winter nights. We can see more stars at this latitude here than from anywhere at mid-latitudes of Europe, Asia and North America. The air is clearer, and the night is so dark that the stars glisten brighter. That's what New Zealand is like.
Star Safari Observatory is our stargate to the Universe.
