This month, employees at mountain lodges in Innlandet took part in an astro-guide course, high up in the beautiful Dovrefjell mountains under a clear and dark starry sky. This means they're ready to offer astro experiences from next autumn!
On the astroguide course, they learnt how to guide their own guests to use telescopes and explore space both with and without telescopes and binoculars. They learnt how to tell stories about space in a credible way, as well as how to stitch all the pieces together into a high-quality astronomical experience for their guests. Because in the darkness there is not only mystery and creepiness, but also the silence and tranquillity that more and more tourists to Norway are seeking.
The course was held at Muscovite stew in Dovrefjell, where the participants were gathered for a day of theory and practice. Here they were trained by astronomers from Solar observatory and Astronomen.no, Vegard Rekaa and Johan Carlsen, who shared their experiences with telescopes, astrophotography and how to guide large and small groups in the dark.
The course was just as much about what they could observe themselves, helping them to help themselves, so that they could also become good hobby astronomers who gain their own experience in observing astronomical objects. In this way, they develop their own expertise over time, with increased quality and focus on what they can pass on and show to their guests.
The key to being a good astro guide is to be able to both show and tell. In Norway, we have good access to the dark starry sky, and many mountain lodges, hotels and visitor farms are located in areas where they can easily show the clear and beautiful starry sky to their guests. But space is vast, and it's easy to get lost in subjects and objects that are not suitable for tourists.
The major trends in the tourism industry all point to the same thing: that the demand for experiencing the silence and darkness that we have in Norway is growing rapidly. Astrotourism is an experience that we as a nation can offer our guests, with a relatively small investment in equipment and expertise. We already have the most important investment for a good astro experience, in access to natural darkness and skilled tourism operators who know how to create good experiences for their guests.
Are you ready to take the plunge and become a astroguide?
Contact us for information about the next course.
Here you can see the beautiful pictures from the course in Dovrefjell:
