The Hunstanton Observatory
Off Lighthouse Close, Hunstanton PE36 6EL
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The venue is primarily designed for local tourism businesses to hire the Observatory space in collaboration with astronomy, wildlife or other relevant leads to provide their visitors with unforgettable bookable clifftop experiences – especially during out-of-season times to support all-year-round tourism, though the space is bookable all-year-round for suitable events. We strongly recommend event organisers book at least 1 month in advance of the date they require, and it is currently completely free to book the venue for periods of single day/night uses during this trial period.

The Observatory venue also provides a great opportunity for other night-time activities such as nocturnal wildlife observation, as well as activities such as solar astronomy (observing and photographing the sun), wildlife watching, educational events and classes (the 10-man venue contains a large flat screen for presentations), surveying hub and environmental awareness events.

The astronomical observatory building itself features a rolling roof, whereby the entire roof of the building is able to be rolled away onto the adjacent support structure in order to permit viewing the sky from inside the building. The roof is rolled away only whilst the observatory is in use and is otherwise locked closed. The building is now bookable online by appropriate event organisers.

Booking Form for Events, Activities and Class Organisers – to book the Observatory venue for your event

The Hunstanton Observatory Booking Form

The Guidelines & Terms of Hunstanton Observatory bookings need to be read before booking, and can be found here.

Please do get in touch with us if you are a tourism business needing inspiration and local contacts to help make your Hunstanton Observatory event happen!

Events at the Hunstanton Observatory

‘Stars on the Cliff‘
Saturdays, November 22^nd and November 29^th 2025
From 6pm until 10pm
The Hunstanton Observatory
Off Lighthouse Close, Hunstanton PE36 6EL (please use the Clifftop Car park for parking)

Calling all amateur astronomers, local tourism businesses, night sky enthusiasts – and the simply curious!
Visit West Norfolk has teamed up with Neil Phillipson from Outsideology to deliver two exciting, FREE, night-time events at the Hunstanton Observatory in November, showcasing the venue’s great facilities.

On two successive Saturday nights from the 22^nd November you are invited to come along for a tour of the Observatory’s newly upgraded facilities. There will also be refreshments and an evocative series of historical night sky exploration stories titled “Sailors’ Navigation By the Night Sky”.The team is hoping for a large turnout and previous similar events elsewhere have attracted hundreds of people, eager to see the stars and planets up close.

Everyone is welcome: families, visitors, and local businesses who may wish to book the observatory for future visitor-facing events. If you’re a budding astronomer or part of a group or club, bring your telescope along! And if you have a pair of binoculars grab those and turn up – it’s amazing what can be seen.
There will also be several telescopes on site for people to use. Experienced volunteer astronomers are especially welcome to bring their own telescopes to share views of the cosmos and can contact publicity@West-Norfolk.gov.uk for more information about getting involved. If the sky proves to be less than optimal for viewing purposes, don’t worry because knowledgeable astronomers will be on hand to talk about what can be seen on clear nights, particularly during the autumn and winter months.

NO RSVP or booking necessary – simply come along, park up at the clifftop car park, and join us from 6pm-10pm at either/both of the two Saturday events in November!

Please note: If rain or other adverse weather conditions are forecast these outdoor events will have to be postponed, so keep an eye on the Visit West Norfolk social media pages for up-to-the-minute information.

The observatory venue can host a wide variety of events – not just for stars and the night sky!
Recent events at the Hunstanton Observatory have included:



Nature’s Glow: A Biofluorescent Night Walk
Tuesday, April 2 · 20:00 – 21:30 Link to event.

An exploration of the skies in Old Hunstanton
Wed, 10 Apr 2024 19:30 – 22:00 Link to event.

Night Exploration and Norfolk Tales
Fri, Apr 12, 19:00 Link to event.

Stargazing and Storytelling
Mon, Apr 15, 20:00 Link to event.