5 year validityOn all experiences and vouchers
Free exchangesOn all voucher purchases
4.6 star ratingFrom 114k+ customer reviews
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Escape the city lights and spend the evening gazing up at the illustrious night skies above Mt John Observatory, situated in the heart of an International Dark Sky Reserve. Expert astronomy guides will share their profound knowledge as you peek through sophisticated optical telescopes.
Become dazzled by a pristine starlit canopy above you during this premier stargazing experience in Tekapo. Situated in the heart of the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve, you'll discover Mt John Observatory, the world's southernmost research observatory. Expert astronomy guides will share their impressive knowledge about the iconic southern skies as you gaze through sophisticated 16 inch optical telescopes. Become enlightened with the mind-blowing research happening onsite and enter areas not open to the general public.
This experience is part of the Responsible range as it holds a Qualmark Enviro-Gold endorsement.
Children under seven years old are not permitted on this tour.
Once this experience has been confirmed, changes are at the discretion of the experience provider and arranged directly with them according to this policy:
Takapo has its own unique alpine micro-climate and can change without notice. Weather predictions are often inaccurate so please allow enough time in the region. The expert guides tailor content to what is visible on a given night. In the case of full cloud cover, they will offer an alternative option.
Warm clothing is essential for all our outdoor experiences regardless of the season. The Mackenzie region is an alpine environment which means it is cold at night, even during the summer months. An ECW (Extreme Cold Weather) jacket will be offered to guests on all outdoor experiences (please note: we are unable to provide these under the Red and Orange Covid-19 Protection Framework levels), however, it is the responsibility of guests to wear suitable clothing. The following is a minimum guide only: - Flat, warm and comfortable footwear suitable for walking on uneven terrain - Wind-proof jackets, thermals and full, warm pants - Hats and gloves Please note: glowing, flashing or light-up shoes or clothing is strictly prohibited due to light pollution issues.
This experience takes place at the University of Canterbury Mt John Observatory in Tekapo.
RedBalloon is your one-stop shop for experiences and curated gifts. We’re so confident you’ll love what you get from us, we’re offering this promise to you…
We want you to have the most enriching experience possible, so if this means swapping your jet boat experience for wine tasting then we’ve got you covered. Simply exchange online or contact our Customer Experience Team and we’ll do the work for you.
Not only do we handpick the best experiences for you, we also guarantee you’ll pay the same as you would buying direct from the experience provider. If you find the same experience advertised at a lower standard price on the same day by the same provider, simply take a screenshot of the experience advertised at the lower price and tell us within 30 days of your purchase and we’ll match it.
We understand life gets busy, which is why all vouchers and gift cards purchased have a 5-year expiry. The only exception to our expiry terms is if the experience has already been booked in. We honour the purchase price of our experiences for 18 months. If you book your experience after this time and the price of the experience increases you can either pay the difference or exchange it for another experience free of charge.
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