11 Cruises Where You Can See Eclipses, the Northern Lights, and the Milky Way

11.09.2023 - 17:48 / matadornetwork.com / Cruises

The key to seeing any celestial phenomenon is pretty obvious: You must be in the right place at the right time. While the exact location and time changes with every astronomical event, the right place is undeniably somewhere far away from any light pollution. These days, unless you make your way to a dark sky park, finding a spot on land that’s far away enough from civilization isn’t easy, so why not take to the seas? In the middle of the ocean, chances of street lights ruining your stargazing experience are very thin, that’s why cruise lines are ramping up their astronomy at sea offerings, including northern lights cruises, solar eclipse cruises, and more.

Photo: gorZh/Shutterstock

Holland America’s Koningsdam leaves on April 5, 2024, on a solar eclipse cruise for 22 days. The sailing will start from San Diego, California, and continue south to Cabo san Lucas, Mexico, where passengers will spend the entire day of April 7. The next day, April 8, 2024, is the day of the solar eclipse and the ship will remain at sea between Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta to be right on the path of totality (the area where the eclipse is visible.) Passengers will don their protective eye glasses and be able to enjoy the four-minute spectacle starting at 11:07 AM PDT from the deck. The Moon will pass between the Sun and the Earth and block the face of the Sun, darkening the sky. After the event, the ship will stop in Puerto Vallarta for one day before making its way to Hawaii. From Hawaii, the ship sails towards British Columbia, Canada, where the voyage ends on April 27.

Professor of astronomy and astrophysics Adam Burgasser from the University of California San Diego will be on board this very special cruise to give lectures about the astronomical phenomenon and help passengers make their own protective viewers so they can see the eclipse safely. Of course, he’ll also be on the deck during the eclipse, sharing his knowledge with the passengers.

Price: Starting at $2,779

Princess cruises has organized two sailings to see the 2024 total solar eclipse:

Price: Starting at $2,968

Price: Not currently available

In April 20, 2023, parts of Indonesia were treated to a total solar eclipse and SeaTrek, a company that organizes adventures on wooden sailing ships in Indonesia, took its guests to see the celestial spectacle. The 16 guests and the crew made their way to a remote island on the path of totality where they watched the eclipse in a very intimate setting. SeaTrek also took their passengers to see the February 2017 solar eclipse and plans to curate voyages around the next solar eclipses in Indonesia: in 2028, 2031, and 2042.

Eclipse or not, Seatrek’s sailings take passengers to remote places with very little light