Private Events

All our services for groups are listed on our brochure here: Private and External Events Brochure.

Private Events at Kielder Observatory

Book out Kielder Observatory for your group and enjoy our unique and inspirational venue all to yourself. Choose between an early evening event, a prime-time night event or an event during the day. If conditions allow, getting your guests to make direct observations through our range of telescopes will always be the priority. Events which are not at nighttime can include solar observing if the weather permits. Private Event hire means you have the whole site for the duration and you’ll have our team of experience astronomers on hand to ensure your visit is informative and inspiring. Event content is up to you so we'll create a bespoke experience.

Early Evening Event

A shorter introductory event for two hours approximately 5-7pm (exact timing depends on our events schedule). Through most of the year this will be a daytime event, with the possibility of solar observing but through midwinter will take place in darkness. Your group will receive a full tour and short talks on astronomy and cosmology topics. Maximum 36 guests, available Mondays, Tuesday or Thursdays or where we haven't taken bookings yet other days of the week. You can check twilight hours here: https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/@2655958 Price: £1000.

Main Evening Event

The event is three hours long and has the maximum capacity of 36 guests. Your group will get the full observatory experience with a tour of the facility and all the equipment, science talks on the topic of your choice and plenty of observing through our telescopes if the skies are clear. All guests receive a complimentary hot drink. Timing is approximately 8-11pm September to April and slightly later in the summer month to account for the shorter nights. We run events every evening, generally at full capacity, so we can only offer the main evening times where we have not yet taken bookings. So it’s best to plan far in advance to ensure we have availability! Price: Sun-Thu £1250, Fri and Sat £1500.

Please note all observing is weather-dependent and our events go ahead whatever the weather (except when severe weather makes access unsafe). If it is cloudy then we have a well-rehearsed back-up plan of additional talks, activities such as handling real meteorites and we can bring the cosmos alive with a memorable imagery on our presentation screens. Full darkness will depend on the season, however we can make observations in twilight of brighter objects such as the planets or moon.

Bespoke Timing

Depending on staff availability, we are flexible to run events at any time of the day and night. Maybe you need a visit to work with a tour group itinerary, or within school hours? Just let us know what kind of content you'd like for your group and we'll arrange an inspiring visit.

Venue Hire

The observatory is also available as a venue to hire for your own event content. We can provide classrooms and audi-visual equipment in a unique setting in the Northumberland wilderness. Prices from £500.

External Events

Making the trip up to Kielder may not be an option for everyone, or your group may be larger than our capacity. We offer other services to make sure everyone can be inspired by astronomy. Most of our work is in the north east region, but for an additional fee we can travel to other regions, or we offer online options.

Guided Stargazing Session

If you are in a dark sky area in the north east, we can send an astronomer with a portable telescope to give an interactive workshop. This works best for smaller groups of up to 15 people. You will need to have an inside space available for the back-up presentation in the event of bad weather. £140 per hour session.

Astronomer Talk

We can send an astronomer to come and do a presentation and Q&A session at your venue – there’s not really a limit on audience size providing you have a large enough venue and projector equipment. This is usually an hour long and we’ve done talks in hospitals, schools, prisons and community groups. £140 per hour for up to 40 guests. For a bigger audience please just let us know.

Digital Session

You can book a digital session with an astronomer, with presentation and opportunity for questions. We have run sessions for schools, U3A groups, Scout troops, community groups and dark sky festivals. Price is £75 per hour.

Workshops

We have a full range of interacitve workshops that we deliver to schools and other venues such as fairs. These workshops can be adapted to all age groups, and we cover a wide variety of popular science topics - we'll bring the inspiration of space into your venue. Please see our education for more information on what we can offer schools.

Half day one staff: £290

Half day two staff: £395

Full day one staff: £350

Full day two staff: £500

Planetarium Visit

For an event with maximum impact, book a visit from our inflatable planetarium. We'll bring the wonder of the dark skies to your location and give immersive shows within the dome to your group. We'll send two astronomers; one with your guests inside the planetarium while the other leads fun science workshops outside the dome, so we can engage with as many people as possible during the visit. This is great for schools with large halls, but we also have also taken our planetarium to shopping centres and museums! Uniform groups: £650 per day, corporate customers £750 per day.

If you would like to enquire about booking a private event with us please download our Private and External Events Brochure here: Private and External Events Brochure

For any further questions and to book your event, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

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