Night Sky Telescope Tour

Join us on our popular Night Sky Telescope Tour. This low-intensity tour takes you on a deep dive of the night sky, as you sit back and relax in our comfortable, purpose-specific, recliner-style stargazing chairs. This is the only tour we offer that provides the opportunity to stargaze through our impressive digital telescope, the Unistellar eVscope 2! Enhance your knowledge and identify even more constellations, while also observing and learning about our neighboring planets, and deep-sky objects like star clusters, nebulae, and distant galaxies!

Difficulty Rating: Easy
Duration: Approx. 2.5 hours
Price: $109 per participant
Maximum 12 participants allowed
Minimum 3 participants required
Suited to participants of all ages and fitness levels.

What’s included in the Tour?

• Personalized tour commentary provided by professionally-certified, knowledgeable, friendly, experienced local guides
• Complimentary shuttle transport with pick-up and drop-off at the location of your choosing
• Comfortable, purpose-specific, recliner-style stargazing chairs
• Access to our Unistellar eVscope2 Telescope
• Binoculars (upon request)
• Warm Blankets (upon request)

What to Bring / Wear

• Whenever you are taking part in outdoor activities in the mountains, it is a good idea to dress in layers appropriate for the weather (e.g. Tops: base-layer t-shirt, long-sleeve shirt, sweater or fleece, outer-layer jacket; Bottoms: shorts, long underwear, pants)
• Appropriate outerwear suited for the weather (a good windbreaker, rain jacket, or winter jacket - depending on time of year)
• Wear good, sturdy walking shoes or hiking boots
• Appropriate headwear (hat, bandana, warm toque, if desired)
• Gloves
• A small backpack (with rain-cover, if you have one)
• Your own headlamp with required red-light setting (if desired)
• A blanket (if desired)
• Any medications / allergy prevention
• A Sense of Adventure and an interest to learn!

What to Expect

This tour begins with a shuttle bus pick-up from your accommodation in the Waterton townsite, and a short ride to the area of Waterton Lakes National Park that the guide deems most appropriate, based on weather and sky conditions.

The focus of this tour is not so much the journey, but the destination. On the short drive away from civilization, we will help you to become familiar with Waterton Lakes National Park, the night sky, nocturnal creatures and the issue of light pollution.

Once at our stargazing destination, we will set up our comfortable, purpose-specific, recliner-style stargazing chairs for you to sit back, relax and gaze out at the universe overhead. We will set up our digital telescope, the Unistellar eVscope 2. Your guide will point out some noteworthy features (depending on what’s visible that particular night) and help you learn to navigate your way around the night sky, while enhancing your knowledge and ability to identify even more constellations. You will also be able to observe and learn about our neighboring planets, and deep-sky objects like star clusters, nebulae, and distant galaxies! Please understand that weather conditions (e.g. wind, clouds, etc.) may influence our ability to utilize our telescope to its fullest.

Before you get cold (or begin to fall asleep in your comfortable recliner chair) we’ll pack up and return to the bus. From there, it’s just a short return trip to your accommodation.

Please note that we do NOT cancel tours due to poor weather; this tour will go ahead regardless of the weather. However, if the weather is not conducive to stargazing outdoors, we will provide a memorable indoor / virtual experience whereby we simulate the night sky inside of our inflatable dome planetarium. This is a unique guided interpretive planetarium experience NOT otherwise available to the public at the Waterton Planetarium. It will be a live, real-time, guided interpretive experience led by our guides, making use of the planetarium’s ability to replicate the night sky as we would see it on that particular night, if it were clear skies. For additional details about our poor weather plan, click here. If you would rather try to reschedule to a subsequent night with clear skies, instead of taking part in the indoor planetarium experience, it is up to you to contact us in advance and request to reschedule (subject to availability).