STARGAZING TOURS

Broome's Astronomy Experience a 2 1/2-hour educational and entertaining mind bender using big telescopes, lasers and fun under some of the best stargazing skies on the planet. 

You'll find Greg Quicke running star shows for the public from April/May to October/November at the Astro Tours dark site, an easy 20 minutes drive out of Broome, Western Australia.

BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL

With a growing national and international TV presence, availability of Greg to run the public star shows in Broome is at a premium. We recommend that you check the online Event Calendar and book now to make sure to get in on the night that you want. We recommend that you make a booking for early in your visit to Broome (depending on the moon phase of course). This will give you some fallback dates in case of a cancellation due to weather or any other cause.

GETTING THERE

Showtime is 5.30pm to 8pm May through July and 6pm to 8.30pm August through October. Our beautifully dark bush setting is 13km out on the Broome Highway, right next door to the Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park, a must do while you are in Broome. You can opt for: A HOTEL TRANSFER, or save yourself some $$s with a 20 minute SELF DRIVE. It is an easy drive for any type of car on a sealed road except for the last 500m of hard packed dirt. Clear directions are delivered with your booking confirmation email.

RENTING A CAR IN BROOME IMPORTANT INFORMATION

BROOME BROOME CAR RENTALS, SUNRISE CAR HIRE, HERTZ and THRIFTY are our recommended car rental companies for you to drive the 13km of sealed highway from Broome to Astro Tours. Some of the other car companies will not cover you if you use your car after dark. You drive out to us in the daylight and return after dark.

CANCELLATIONS

You can cancel or change your booking via email on the Contact page or phone with no charge at any time with half a days notice.

STARGAZING BY THE LUNAR CYCLE

The moon regulates our life in Broome with the tides as well as the best times for stargazing. The moon is so bright in the week before full moon that we can only see the brightest stars and planets. The Milky Way is nowhere to be seen and the stargazing is very poor. We don’t run any shows this week so please check our EVENT CALENDAR before you book your trip to Broome.

DARK STARRY NIGHTS

After the day of the full moon, the moon rises nearly an hour later each night. This means that from 2 or 3 days after the full moon we have dark skies with no moonlight to spoil the view. Contrary to popular opinion, you don’t need to wait until new moon! Dark skies means lots of stars, planets, deep space and Milky Way magnificence running all the way through to almost 1st quarter moon, 2 1/2 weeks later. These are all equally the best nights in the stargazing month. The moon phases are marked on our EVENT CALENDAR.

MOONLIT NIGHTS

The crescent moon in the week following new moon is absolutely stunning in our telescopes. You will see craters, mountains and valleys in the mountains. There is so much detail from this closest-other-world that you can imagine driving your 4WD around to explore the moon. The small crescent moon in this first week of the lunar cycle doesn’t interfere with our stargazing and still allows us to access the many fine sights of deep space.

BRIGHT BRIGHT MOONLIGHT

The 2nd week of the lunar cycle begins with the 1st quarter moon phase. We have a waxing half moon in the sky that grows night by night taking out the stars one by one until we can only see the brightest ones. No star shows this week! Seven days after 1st quarter the moon aligns opposite the Sun. This is Full Moon!

STAIRWAY TO THE MOON

The next 3 days has the moon appearing over the wet mud flats of Roebuck Bay nearly an hour later each day to create Broome’s famous STAIRWAY TO THE MOON. Moonrise stairway times can be found on our EVENT CALENDAR for your convenience followed by our first DARK STARRY NIGHT star show in the next lunar cycle.

TUNING IN TO THE SEASONS

Coming out with us once will give you a snapshot in time of our continuous journey through space. Coming regularly will build on this and reinforce what we started together while adding in other elements that really can only be gained by you experiencing them through the passage of time. We measure this time with the very journey of our planet through space! To consciously experience this journey will literally take you time! Season Tickets are available.

WHAT ELSE WILL WE LEARN

While we are setting you up to watch the earth turn and to achieve Earth Turning Consciousness in your life, we'll teach you star names, constellations and where to find the planets. We'll reinforce this as much as we can throughout the night with the idea of you finding at least a few things in the sky the next night with confidence!

CHILDREN

Our starshows are directed at the ADULT MIND. The show is NOT SUITABLE for SMALL CHILDREN. If you choose to bring small children you will still have to buy them a ticket. If your child disturbs the proceedings you will be asked to take them away from the arena so as not to disturb other guests who have come to learn. This means that you will also miss out. There will be no refund in this case. Some parents choose to take it in turns to come on different nights giving them uninterrupted opportunity to absorb the whole experience with an older child or by themselves. Having said this and making it as clear as we can, (you might be able to guess what happened on last night’s show), your WELL BEHAVED CHILDREN with a good attention span are very welcome! They are some of our favourite people!

INCLUDED

We’ll set you up with a custom designed comfortable SWIVEL stargazing seat. Our significant telescope fleet ranges from 4 inch to 20 inch in diameter for your viewing pleasure. Greg is mic’d up through a beautiful sound system to ensure your journey through the heavens tickles all your senses. WE RECOMMEND that you enjoy a late afternoon snack or meal before you come and perhaps have a late supper organised for when you return home at the end of the night.

MERCHANDISE

We like to sell things that will be useful in your stargazing life. Greg’s two books, EARTH TURNING CONSCIOUSNESS - AN EXERCISE IN PLANETARY AWARENESS, and IS THE MOON UPSIDE DOWN? published by Penguin Random House, are both receiving amazing feedback in their effectiveness in tuning people in to the cosmos. Astronomy Yearbooks, beautiful Astro Himalayan wool blankets, stubby holders, glo-in-the-dark hats and T-shirts are available with card payments on the night and ONLINE. We have an amazing array of TELESCOPES and BINOCULARS that we can deliver to your door anywhere in Australia.

WITH HOTEL TRANSFERS

Adult: 135

Child (u/16): 115

Greg Quicke speaks from the heart in a way that people seem to appreciate. ‘When I first started talking about stars I thought I was saying stuff that everyone had already figured out.' ‘Keep talking was the immediate response,’ This let Greg know the importance of sharing the simplest things about the other worlds. We often hear things like, ‘wow, I never thought of it like that before’.

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS AUSTRALIA WIDE

Greg, also known as #SpaceGandalf since being dubbed by the BBC and ABC audience of Stargazing Live, is increasingly in demand to speak at events Australia wide, wether it be a few days at a remote North Queensland school, a corporate presentation at premium Sydney location, a talk at your local astronomical society or a guest appearance for a crazy bunch of old car enthusiasts on an outback jaunt. Greg can do this outside under the stars or in your 2500 seat auditorium.

We offer the following scenarios in Broome, although if you want them in other locations, we can talk about that too.

ASTRONOMY EXPERIENCE WITH THE LOT (BROOME)

You can have the lot with big telescopes, tables set with white linen under glorious Kimberley skies. Organise your own chef or choose one of our great Broome caterers while you listen to some home grown live music inspired by the very land you find yourself in! 

Coordinating the event, you’ll have access to Greg’s half-a-lifetime of experience living under the stars to entertain you with some mind blowing insights into our local area of space using electric green lasers to point out stars, constellations and deep space delights. A night of large and quality telescopes, your choice of food, entertainment and unforgettable memories that will exceed your expectations.

Starting at 18 000 plus live music, plus catering, plus GST at our awesome Broome observing arena. Double this price if you want this product outside of Broome as we will be closing Broome events to travel and set up your event.

EXCLUSIVE ASTRONOMY INTENSIVE (BROOME)

This is the one for your small group intent on having uninhibited access to Greg's powerful revelation inducing insights for a few hours or the whole night under some awesome Kimberley skies. We'll pull out the high-end telescopes and take the night in any astronomical direction you would like to take it, following up with some campfire time as the ideas start to flow.

You can eat before you come, after you go back to town, or organise your own chef or caterer so that you can settle in for the night. If you are really serious, bring a swag or we’ll provide one for you. A night sleeping directly under the stars is one sure way to change your life forever. Starting at 18 000 plus GST.

A SIDE ORDER OF ASTRONOMY (BROOME)

Greg comes to your event and walks on with lasers blazing and a presentation that will blow your mind. Telescopes are one thing. Finding out about where you are in the universe is another. You can have Greg for a quick 10 minute WOW around the sky or put him on for an hour with time for questions that relate to the nature of reality itself. We leave the telescopes home for this one so your set up costs are minimal with still enough punch to have you talking all night. Starting at 10 000 in Broome and 18 000 for the away from home gigs Australia wide, plus GST.

FLY, DRIVE, CRUISE

Fly Greg into your exotic or outback location with a selection of high-end telecopes for that special insight into some powerful country, sea and sky. A light plane, a 5 inch Apochromat Refractor (look it up) and Greg Quicke all to yourself. Starting at 18 000 plus GST plus extra days.

HOW MANY PEOPLE?

We can do all of the above Broome events for your group of 2, 6, 10, 30 or 200. Our 'Side Order' presentation easily caters for larger groups, occasionally running into the thousands at events like the Shinju Matsuri finale at the Cable Beach Amphitheatre, the Nannup Music Festival and other special events nationally and internationally.

TRAVEL AGENT GROUPS

Astro Tours caters for individual bookings for people who have deliberately chosen to join our events and to learn. They are amazing people in their own right. These are our customers.

In our experience, travel agent groups will always have people in the group who are simply in the group and have not specifically chosen to attend our events. Whilst many people in the group are amazing, there always seems to be someone who does not belong at our event. They have not specifically chosen our event, they have not come to learn and they bring instead a disturbing element. These are not our customers.

For this reason we do not accept group bookings from travel agents. If you are a travel agent and you have individuals who want to join us, please have them make their own booking. We offer no travel agent commissions.

Hi, I’m Greg Quicke and I’m delighted you are here on my site checking it out. 

I’ve had a few “ahaaa” moments about lots of things in my life, just as I’m sure you have. I’ve been sharing a few of mine about our place in the universe with groups of people for a few years now. I love watching peoples eyes light up when they have a few “ahaas” of their own and this is what tends to happen when we come together under the stars at Astro Tours. 

On my way to making a living as an astronomer, I’ve had lots of fun just doing whatever the next thing seemed to be. I went from high school to James Cook University to do Marine Biology. I got bored fairly quickly with looking in microscopes so I quit and went pearl diving in Broome instead. That was fun and I figured out how the tides work from watching the moon while I was at it. This was my first real astronomical step.

I like figuring things out and because I’ve always ridden motorcycles, I figured out how to keep them going. This ability extended fairly quickly into my next career as a mechanic fixing bikes, cars and trucks. I eventually ran my own business servicing Mack and Kenworth trucks, Harley Davidsons and heavy earthmoving gear. This work often took me out of Broome and into the wilder parts of the Kimberley region where standard sleeping arrangements are a swag under the stars. The only roof available and the only one needed for most of the year, was the Milky Way. I didn’t know anything about stars when I started although like anybody else, I was easily blown away with wonder and awe at the incredibly beautiful starscapes of the Kimberley.

I got to figuring things out again and started tuning in to the movements of the earth travelling through space. This really blew me away and the internal workings of a Harley v-twin started to look a bit too easy. I bought a telescope. It was big. Everyone wanted to look in it. I started talking, thinking that I was saying things that everyone already knew. “keep talking” was the response, so after a few years of encouragement from friends, fellow business colleagues and interested corporate and individual customers, I started Astro Tours in July of 1995.

The rest is history and Astro Tours continues to delight me in its ability to reach people in powerful yet simple ways while providing me with the means to continue sharing the simple insights that still pour quite regularly into the top of my head. I’m writing a book on a life spent amongst the stars, I’m running star shows, I’m presenting to school groups, corporate groups and to amazingly switched on groups of people who come together seemingly at random to join my regular shows.

I’m still riding bikes, surfing, I love my garden, chi gung on cable beach in the mornings and meditating in rhythm with the moon cycle. Amidst the chaos, the stars and planets are regular and display an amazing synchronicity, harmony and resonance with each other. It seems to me that everything is exactly in its right place, having exactly the right relationships with exactly the right timings so it may be worth considering that we are too.

Cheers