There’s a new stargazing experience to geek out over

The luxury lodge on Tasmania’s east coast has launched Saffire After Dark, a new one-hour astronomy experience that promises a considered deep dive. Set against some of the clearest skies in the country, the experience pairs high-powered telescopes with guided storytelling, giving guests a proper look at what’s actually going on up there.

It starts with a walk along a softly lit path to a purpose-built outdoor amphitheatre, where astronomer guides map out the southern sky before handing things over to the tech, including Celestron telescopes and a Pegasus Smart Eye device for close-up views of nebulae, star clusters and distant galaxies. There’s a fireside setup, a calm pace, and just enough structure to make it feel immersive without being overly technical.

Timing depends on the season. Winter (May to September) brings peak Milky Way visibility and the chance of spotting the Aurora, with sessions running before or after dinner. Summer keeps things simple with one post-dinner session under warmer skies.

Guests can handle rare meteorites, including fragments from Mars.

It wraps with a more hands-on moment – guests can handle rare meteorites, including fragments from Mars – before heading back inside with a digital pack of images captured on the night and a custom star chart.

It’s all included for guests staying at Saffire, which makes it a pretty easy sell: step outside, look up, and actually understand what you’re seeing for once.