Looking to plan a spectacular stargazing vacation? Leave the lights of the city behind and check out our recommendations for cabins, farmstays, and home rentals where you can spend your nights looking up at the stars, planets, and even the milky way.
HomeToGo has incredible rentals for Stargazing Vacations, with retes as low as $77 per night.
in the USA, large groups should consider Cabin since they fit 7 guests.
There are many Cabin and Cabin that are perfect for Stargazing Vacations.
Looking to plan an out-of-this-world vacation? HomeToGo is excited to share its 2022 Stargazing Index to help celestially curious travelers identify the top spots to visit for marveling at the stars, just in time for the peak of the Perseid meteor shower on August 11 - 13, 2022.
This index takes into account Dark Sky Places from all over the country, recognized by the International Dark Sky Association for their exceptionally dark and starry nights. Here, visitors can escape the bright lights of the city and marvel at views of the major constellations, spectacular supermoons, planets and even the Milky Way. By comparing the size and population of each Dark Sky Place, the average cloud cover, the number of vacation homes available in the vicinity, and the median price per night thereof, HomeToGo identified and ranked the top 22 destinations for stargazing in the United States.
The results show that starseekers need not travel lightyears away to see some out-of-this-world celestial displays!
Borrego Springs is a haven for stargazers due to its isolated location, the surrounding mountains and open space. The town limits its nighttime lighting to preserve the views of the night sky. Travelers can enjoy star parties, which feature dinner and drinks, as well as guided stargazing, or are more than welcome to stargaze with their own telescopes.
Sedona, home to a population of over 10,000, is great for viewing the night sky year-round. Located within the Coconino National Forest, the town has a lack of big lights which makes for an excellent stargazing experience. Locations within Sedona such as Dry Creek Road and Fay Canyon give the opportunity of a lifetime to view these stars perfectly.
Westcliffe and Silver Cliff is Colorado’s first and only International Dark Sky Community, and the highest altitude IDSP-designated community in the world. With an estimated combined population of 1,155, these two towns are home to some of the best stargazing the country has to offer. The valley west of Westcliffe and Silver Cliff is a great place to see the stars due to its high altitude of 8,000 feet, creating a more united land and night sky experience.
Torrey is Utah’s first International Dark Sky Community and a top destination for gaining a true stargazing experience. As a gateway town to Capitol Reef National Park, Torrey affords the same night sky benefits as Capital Reef, which takes great measures in reducing its light population within its boundaries, offering some of the clearest and darkest night skies in the U.S.
Flagstaff was designated the world’s first International Dark Sky City in 2001, which means the city holds a high standard when it comes to lighting and reducing this exposure to enhance the quality of stargazing. Locations within Flagstaff such as Sunset Crater Volcano and Lowell Observatory – the spot where Pluto was first discovered in 1930, offer unique experiences in observing the night sky and all that it contains.
We used information from the International Dark-Sky Association to collate a shortlist of Dark Sky Places for which the geographical coordinates are publicly available. In order to rank these Dark Sky Places, we researched 4 data points: the size and population of the Dark Sky Place, the average cloud cover of the area, the number of accommodation offers in the area and the median nightly price thereof. After obtaining the raw data, we assigned each data point a representative numerical value between 5 and 10, with 5 representing the lowest data point and 10 representing the highest data point. The hypothetical "perfect score" would be 40 out of 40. We used the following equation in order to calculate this for every factor:
Score(i) = 5 · (x(i) - xmin ) / (xmax - xmin ) + 5
Solitude: We used data from the International Dark-Sky Association to determine the size of each Dark Sky Place and population data from census.gov for the area or nearest town. The place with the lowest ratio of people per square mile was given a score of 10, and the remaining areas were awarded a score of 5 or higher.
Cloud Cover: We used historical weather data from Visual Crossing Weather to analyze the last year (July 1st 2021 - July 1st 2022) of data from the nearest weather station to each Dark Sky Place. The area with the lowest average cloud cover over the last year was given a score of 10, and the remaining areas were awarded a score of 5 or higher.
Accommodation Offers: We used HomeToGo inventory data to find the number of accommodation offers in the vicinity of each Dark Sky Place. The area with the highest number of accommodation offers was awarded a maximum score of 10, and the remaining areas were awarded a score of 5 or higher. Data was collected in July 2022, availability is subject to change.
Accommodation Price: We used internal HomeToGo data to find the median price per night for a vacation rental in the area between July 1st 2022 - December 31st 2022. The area with the lowest median price per night for a vacation rental was awarded a maximum score of 10, and the remaining locations were awarded a score of 5 or higher. Data was collected in July 2022, prices are subject to change.
