Private Tour
AuthenticAs Star Gazing -Nightscape Portrait Photography Tour
Overview
Available languages
2 hours
Mobile ticket
Whether you live here or are visiting we have found the best places to take you on Stargazing. We collect you in our 4WD land rovers, choosing from many of our dark sky locations to guide and photograph you under the Southern Night Sky. Come along with us NZ Astro tourism Academy qualified Guides this Summer 2023/4 and discover star navigation, the meaning and language of our constellations and using our Unistellar EVscope and night binoculars we choose the most interesting features viewable that night for you to see close up. We professionally shoot your portrait with the galactic core as a backdrop. Often snow will be under our feet. NZ Award winning photographers, we deliver you with a set of images from your experience to cherish along with images from our telescope that we viewed together live. Customers love this tour who are also budding astrophotographers -ask us for tuition and bring your camera/ tripod is also an option. We are the only Queenstown bespoke star gazing tour.
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Cancellation Policy
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
What‘s Included
Private transportation
Professional photography taken of you supplied digitally as a Pixieset Collection
Permitted 4WD location on Department of Conservation land
Hot Chocolate and Cookies (please let us know if there are any food allergies)
Health & Safety audited and full public liability insurance
4WD Land Rover pick up and drop off
Southern Night Sky Tour by a Aotearoa Astrotourism Guide
Optional astrophotography tuition with your own camera/tripod or iphone
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
What To Expect
Queenstown
We hold Department of Conservation permission to access Dark Skies close to and/or within the Wakatipu Basin /Queenstown /Tahuna area. We particularly love to take our visits into the Mountains often snowy in Wintertime , with ease of access and down alongside Lake Wakatipu. We try our best to use bespoke locations planned for your needs or group wishes. We also have the ability to add in a Day into Night Tour and Authentic As Queenstown to this Starry Night Package so we can add in multiple locations.
Options
AuthenticAs Star Gazing -Nightscape Portrait Photography Tour
Pickup included
Reviews
52 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Amazing!
Catherine K,
Apr 17, 2025
- Viator
5.00Such a special highlight of our honeymoon. Simon is so knowledgeable, we loved learning about navigating stars and Māori culture, and received incredible photos of us with the night sky. Thank you!!
Out of this world experience
Donna N,
Nov 21, 2024
- Viator
5.00If you are in the Queenstown area and have even a mild interest in the sky at night, then this tour is for you. Our guide Simon met us at our hotel in town and took us to one of the peaks around Queenstown where we witnessed the most spectacular night sky that we have ever seen. Simon has a very interesting way of guiding you through the sky watch. He has an exceptional understanding of Māori culture and their spiritual relationship with the stars. He showed us the main star clusters in the Southern Sky and explained through various stories how their positions and relevance are so important to the Māori culture and history. Simon brought several optics with him including telescopes and cameras suited for viewing. He took several photographs of the night sky and sent them onto us the next morning. The photographs also captured us looking and pointing to the stars which will provide us with wonderful memories. Simon also brought spare coats, hot chocolate and cookies that not only kept us warm, but capped off a wonderful evening. Thank you Simon for your enthusiasm and guidance, making this one of our most enjoyable evenings in New Zealand.
Well worth the experience
Charlotta D,
Mar 8, 2024
- Viator
5.00The guide was wonderful and knowledgeable. Telling us about the Mauri history with the stars . Highly recommended and appreciated
Best Star Gazing-Nightscape Portrait Photography Ever
Sara R,
Jan 3, 2024
- Viator
5.00One of best experiences we had during New Zealand Trip. Simon is very professional and passionate about what he does. We learned so much about how to navigate the southern dark sky, saw too many incredible stars, images, also Māori culture. The Milky Way is absolutely stunning, the nightscape portrait is unmatched, we will value this experience, the photos are amazing, unbelievable! Thank you so much for this extraordinary tour! Highly recommend!
Starry night
Xiaozhu P,
Oct 24, 2023
- Viator
5.00Simon is just GREAT! He took good care of my husband and I. He made sure that we were safe, warm and comfortable. He is knowledgable, professional, and patient. I would definitely recommend this tour to my friends who would visit Queenstown. During the tour, we not only saw the amazing stars and the Milky Way, but also the splendid aurora! YES! AURORA! Thank you Simon for the unforgetable tour!
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