Your guide to noctourism and the best places to experience it

As far as travel trends go, noctourism is pretty cool. As the name suggests, this is a type of travel which focuses on the dark and the night, but what specifically is it? Why is it rising in popularity? And where are the best places to experience it?

Let’s discover the nocturnal world together.

What is noctourism?

Short for ‘nocturnal tourism’, noctourism is just that! It’s a travel style which involves a focus on night-time activities and selecting destinations perfect for them. While the world is beautiful by day, it’s mysterious and completely different by night, and there’s a real appetite for globetrotters to discover this. 

What kind of activities can you do?

While most of the world is diurnal, life continues on well after twilight, and in fact certain parts only really come alive under the glow of the moon. There are plenty of activities to fill your evenings of noctourism, and here are some of our favourites:

• Stargazing
• Chasing the Northern Lights
• Night safaris
• Midnight markets
• Parties
• Light festivals

Best places to experience noctourism around the world and what to do

1. New Zealand

New Zealand’s vast landscapes are stunning by day, but especially awe-inspiring at night. Home to five dark sky reserves – including a dark sky sanctuary on an island! – there are plenty of opportunities for you to crane your neck up to the sky and gawk at a field of stars. Aoraki Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve is the most popular destination.

Not only that, but New Zealand’s Māori New Year, Matariki, is all about celebrating the stars, and you can travel the country during this time to learn about the festivities and perhaps participate in a few.

Finally, the North Island’s Waitomo Caves are filled with a treasure that comes alive at the setting of the sun: bioluminescent worms! These creatures live in the caves and come night they glow a brilliant neon blue. Walking into the caves at this time is like entering a portal to a magical world.

2. Switzerland

Country of chocolate and the Alps, Switzerland is filled with bliss, and skiing is a favourite pass time in the colder months. A real treat is descending those snowy slopes under the stars by engaging in night skiing!

Not all ski stations offer this experience, but if you’re staying at one that does you cannot miss it. The mountains and trees and snow take on an entirely different allure in the evenings, and the slopes will be dotted with little golden lights carried by those descending with you – like fireflies.

3. Nepal

Stargazing is pretty mesmerising as an experience in general, but it becomes doubly (even triply) so when you do it at Everest Base Camp in Nepal. Under the shadow of the world’s highest peak, you can camp out with other brave climbers and enjoy a few evenings in the snow under the stars. You’re so high up, in fact, that it feels like you’re part of the sky!

The camps are dotted with headlamps keeping everything under a warm glow. This is definitely an activity worth adding to your bucket list, if not for the view then for the bragging rights.

4. Thailand

If you’re searching for some of the best nightlife in the world, Thailand’s Full Moon Party will blow your mind. Taking place in Koh Phangan on Haad Rin Beach, this party of momentous proportions happens every month under the full moon (duh) and it’s the biggest beach party in the world. One of the more full-on noctourism activities, expect electronic music, neon body paints and lights, fire shows, and plenty more.

Bangla Road in Phuket is also famed for its vibrant nightlife and the constant party. Lights, music, food, drink, and heaps of good people. Thailand is just the perfect place to celebrate!

5. Norway

Norway’s northern city of Tromsø has become very popular with the rise of noctourism because it’s one of the best places in the world to catch sight of elusive auroras! Dancing lights pass through the sky in ribbons of green, pink, purple, or blue due to magnetic storms in the sky. Though far more common around the Arctic Circle, spotting one is still a matter of chance.

Tromsø is also home to Norway’s Sámi community, and you can spend the night watching lights in the company of the reindeer they keep. 

6. Costa Rica

If you love sea turtles (and I mean, who doesn’t?) then visiting Costa Rica for a spot of noctourism has to become part of your plans. Sea turtles’ nesting season happens between the months of May and November, and if you plan your trip right – and stay a respectful distance away – you can witness both the laying and hatching of eggs in the sand under a full moon. Touching and breathtaking, the best place to see this is in Tortuguero National Park.

7. Patagonia

Surrounded by pristine mountains and aquamarine glacier lakes, accompanied by unique wildlife, Patagonia is probably the best place in the world for stargazing. Not only is Patagonia one of the most mysterious and jaw-dropping places on Earth, it’s also so remote that the night sky shines as bright as the day.

Travel between February and October and you can even spot the Milky Way spilling over the expanse of space! Many members of Patagonia’s wildlife are nocturnal as well such as the armadillo, the hog-nosed skunk, and even pumas. So keep your eyes peeled!

8. Canada

With so many National Parks and open spaces, much of Canada’s light pollution is at a low, making it another really beautiful place to go stargazing and spot some ethereal auroras. You can also head for some night skiing at one of the country’s many fantastic ski resorts. Noctourism is well suited to Canada’s natural wonder and if you think it’s beautiful under the sun wait ‘til you see it at night.

9. Jordan

Embrace nomadic culture in Jordan’s brilliant Wadi Rum desert and go camping Bedouin-style. Not only a noctourism activity which promises excellent stargazing, this is also a fully immersive cultural experience where you get to slip out of your life and into that of another for a while. Set up camp in the sand and dine on traditional Jordanian foods, maybe go sand-boarding (Dune style), and gather around a camp-fire.

Alternatively, the ancient city of Petra’s Treasury is lit up by candles three times a week, giving the already amazing site and even grander allure. Traditional Bedouin music and poetry accompany the show.

10. Namibia

Another one for the desert-dwellers, Namibia is home to NamibRand Nature Reserve, one of the most popular Dark Sky Reserves in the world. Part of Namibia’s 55-million-year-old desert, the light pollution here practically doesn’t exist at all and the sky is insane. 

Hot sand between your feet, dunes on all sides, and just the big sparkling midnight sky. Few things are as absolutely flooring as this kind of beauty. You can also take astronomy tours and glance through telescopes to get a closer look at the stars and the planets, and learn about space from an actual galaxy guide.

11. The Maldives

Diving is such an alien experience as the world below the water is so different to our own. But during the night it takes on an even more extraterrestrial vibe. The nocturnal world of the ocean reveals new species you wouldn’t otherwise see in the day, as well as peculiar new behaviors from those that do.

In the Maldives, along the Maaya Thila reef, you can go night diving! Swim (safely) alongside whale sharks, manta rays, and other bioluminescent organisms which will paint an otherworldly picture right before your eyes.

12. Italy

Known for mouth-watering food, Italy is filled with culinary experiences and delights. One such delight takes place under the winking eyes of the stars. Truffle hunting!

The Piedmont region, famed for the procuration of decadent white truffles, is one of the only places in Italy which allows nighttime foraging. Truffle hunting is generally more fruitful at night as the sniffer dogs have fewer distractions and the soil aeration makes the truffles more fragrant. Join a professional crew and their truffle-hunting dogs and participate in a moonlit hunt for these little treasures. It’s one of the most unique experiences you can do, noctourism or not!

13. Laos

Laos is known for its intricate textiles and hand-made crafts, and if you want to purchase a few to bring home, why not do it at Luang Prabang’s night market? This open-air flea market is open every day between 5 and 11pm and you’ll find stalls selling anything and everything you could ever dream of! It’s a great place to support local businesses and artisans, and it’s also just crackling with pure good vibes and energy. Food stalls will be dotted around so you can snack on Lao treats as you go. 

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14. Singapore

Singapore is home to the world’s first nocturnal wildlife park. Located in Mandai, Night Safari is one of five Wildlife Reserve parks, and this one has the unique advantage of hosting a menagerie of nocturnal animals. Start with a sit down talk and show where you can learn about these animals, then take a drive through the open air space to spot the likes of tapirs, tigers, ocelots, and even panthers and jaguars. 

15. United Kingdom

Gilded in old crumbling castles, ruins, and plenty of gory history, what better place to visit for some haunting ghost tours? Of course, these have to take place at night to keep up the spooky vibes! Between the Tower of London which used to be a prison, the ghosts of Henry VIII’ss executed wives, and Jack the Ripper’s legacy lingering in Whitechapel, London alone is teeming with eerie tours. But the winding cobblestone streets of Edinburgh which fill with mist of cold winter nights is also an ideal place to book yourself on a ghost tour. Just make sure to bring your bravest friends with you.