Are you an avid stargazer? If so, we’ve got great news. One place in the UK now boasts one of the darkest and most remote night skies in the entire world. That’s right: in the entire world.
The place in question is Ynys Enlli (also known as Bardsey Island), which sits two miles off the Llŷn Peninsula in northern Wales. Ynys Enlli is the first site in all of Europe to be awarded an International Dark Sky Sanctuary certification. Only 16 places around the world have such status, which is awarded to places with the least polluted night skies.
Keen stargazers might note that this isn’t the only place in Wales with a Dark Sky certification. However, Ynys Enlli is the first place designated as a ‘sanctuary’, rather than a Dark Sky ‘reserve’ or ‘place’. Sanctuary status is much rarer. Brecon Beacons, Snowdonia National Park and the Elan Valley Estate are all recognised as having Dark Sky importance.
Other International Dark Sky Sanctuaries around the world include spots in the Kalahari desert in South Africa, the Elqui Valley of northern Chile and the Pitcairn Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. In other words, Ynys Enlli is in highly esteemed company. You can find the full list of sanctuaries here.
If you’d like to go stargazing on the island, it is, perhaps unsurprisingly, quite difficult to get to: you’ll have to take a small boat from the fishing cove of Porth Meudwy. And if you want to stay there, it’s home to only a limited number of overnight rentals, which you can find out more about here.
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