Brecon Beacons Dark Skies

The Brecon Beacons National Park is an International Dark Sky Reserve. We are lucky to live in one of the darker areas.

International Dark Sky Reserve

The Dark Sky Reserve status is a prestigious award given by the International Dark Sky Association (IDA). This is a United States based non-profit organization founded in 1988. The award is given to only a handful of destinations that can prove they have an outstanding quality of night sky. You must also pledge to reduce light pollution which the park has been doing over the past few years. A major contribution from our local councils is replacing all street lighting with LED downlighters.

Stargazing from Aberyscir Coach House

We can therefore offer our guests a truely dark skies experience. Even if you live in a semi urban area the amount of light polution is very high. In the Brecon Beacons you can see many of the night sky features with a naked eye such as the Milky Way. You can even see the space station passing overhead. If you use binoculars, either your own or those we provide, the Milky Way transforms from a milky white streak into a million little lights.

You are welcome to bring your own telescope and set it up in one of our fields or take it up onto our local common. Alternatively just sit in the swing seat and watch the stars.

Organised Star Gazing Events

There is an observatory at the Mountain Centre Libanus, a short 10 minute drive from us, where you can join a star gazing evening to see even more through their telescopes. You can find details of events on the Go Stargazing website. Many of these courses are run by Dark Skies Wales Training.

Aberyscir Coach House – Brecon Beacons Guide