Star Safari runs guided stargazing and astronomy experiences from a solar-powered observatory on Ponatahi Road in the Wairarapa Dark Sky Reserve, between Martinborough and Carterton. The website says it is about 10 minutes' drive from Martinborough and about 80 kilometres from Wellington airport. Sessions use two 16-inch telescopes, an 8-inch refractor for planets, and VR and e-astronomy, with family sessions, astrophotography add-ons and private stargazing. Starting times vary through the year with sunset. Children under 16 come free, and each adult can bring two young people free. The website says the reserve has around 70 per cent clear nights a year and is listed in Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2026.
Hosts include an astronomer, an astrophysicist and an astrobiologist, with amateur astronomers on the team, and the website says beginners are shown what to do and photographers can bring their cameras. The listing gives a Houghton Bay address, but the website places the observatory in the Wairarapa.