Astro Tourism is the latest travel trend to dominate 2024 and, to help tourists find the perfect locations for a stargazing holiday, new data from travel booking site, Omio, has revealed the top locations in Europe.
Assessing a number of factors of 1,400 worldwide locations, including Bortle Scale, light pollution rating and transparency rating, Omio ranked the best spots in Europe for stargazing and found Ireland to be the clear winner, with 8 out of the top 10 places in Europe all being located there.
The only other countries in Europe to make the top 10 list are Scotland and Spain, with Ireland dominating with the most locations that are the ideal places for astro tourists.
The top 5 locations in Ireland featured the best scores across all factors analysed, including a Bortle Scale rating of 1, followed by scores of 1 for transparency and light pollution, as well as being rated ‘good’ for clearance.
Scotland’s Murray’s Monument was ranked the 8th best place to enjoy an astronomy-based holiday, gaining the top scores for light pollution and transparency, and a 2 for the Bortle Scale rating.
The Spanish observatory, the ICAstronomy, also made it in the top 10, ranking the 9th best place to visit on astronomy-themed travel itineraries in Europe.
