We booked a personal SkyNights program for our small family to celebrate our Father's life. Will…read moreand Chase were both incredibly helpful, extremely knowledgeable, and hilariously entertaining, making our tour of the night sky an unforgettable experience. We started with a view of the sun and moon, then watched the amazing sunset over Arizona. They asked us for requests (both for sky viewing and accompanying music). We saw numerous galaxies, clusters, nebulae and planets. The jewel of the evening had to be the extended view of Saturn and Titan. They not only showed us the universe, but they also educated us on the history, science and current global initiatives to better understand the cosmos. We really appreciated all the pre-event communications, clear instructions and overall coordination. Thank you, Will, for all your help in that! We highly recommend this experience for all citizens of planet Earth!

Our two guides for Sky Nights - Travis and Aaron were incredibly knowledgeable and friendly. You…read morecould tell they love what they do.

I went with my brother, his wife and sister on Saturday 4/11/26. It was a amazing experience…read more The only problem was our tour guide. Her name was Marsha. My brother has a hard time walking. I was talking to another guide and a man that works there. They said they could take us in the van. Which was perfect. Marsha made such a big deal out of us riding in van, that it was interrupting her tour. She made 3 or more comments to the group of people about him being in the van. It made my brother feel self conscious and bad. The guy that drove us told us not to worry about her. But the observatory is great. Thank you Mary Jo Faber

"Mars 'aint the kind of place to raise your kids." But, Kitt Peak National Observatory is the kind…read moreof place you want to take someone who is a kid at heart to. (*I know, I know...I just broke the rule about not finishing a sentence with a preposition, and it sounded a bit awkward. My bad. I'll try to write more-gooder from now on.) Captain's Log: Star date May 1st, 2026. The entire crew of the Star ship, "Wait for the Western Wind*" thoroughly enjoyed the experience. (*That's is the name that I christened to the van that we rented) We have now returned safely to home base, and our journey of exploration can only be described as a success. All mission-objectives have been achieved...the goals of having fun, joining together for a little family camaraderie, and fulfilling a quest for knowledge were all clearly met. Sadly, I must report that I did fail at one of the mission's intended targets...that being: my finding a way to work-in a joke about the 7th planet from the G2V star located in the Arm of Orion, in the "Via Lactea" (latin for Milky Way) galaxy. As I get older, I have found that discretion, indeed, is the better part of valor. So, when our guide (Sam--who was wonderful) asked the group that she was leading if there was anything that we hoped to see that night, I pulled my hand back down quickly... realizing, at that moment, that a joke about "Uranus" would most-likely, "land" like the 1967 Apollo 1 tragedy. The carbon-based humanoid life forms that inhabit the rocky crevices of I'oligam Du'ag possess advanced intelligence. As they spoke about the numerous telescopes, history of the area, and shared their deep knowledge of the wonders of space, they all exhibited kindness and patience, as well as a passionate enthusiasm for the work being done there. I also observed, on a number of well-timed occasions, that they were prone to "launching" some corny paternal-space-exploration humor. The one about being careful to not put Saturn in a bathtub--because it might leave a ring...(Ha!) that one would cause a, "super-nova of laughter" from here to Andromeda (M31): "Ground control to Major Tom". Here are two bits of advice to fellow travelers who might choose to boldly go where no human (in your family) has gone before (to the Kitt Peak Observatory)... Dress warmly and maybe bring a blanket. It was a balmy day in Tucson, but at 6,880 ft up, you will find yourself beneath the night sky of the exposed high desert and quick drops in temperatures happen as the Jackson Pollack-painted sky comes to light. Secondly, don't be like the guy who, as the night was wrapping up, got into his car, turned on his car lights, and pulled away from the presentation prematurely. What a, "back side of a black hole" move! There are easy-to-follow guidelines that have been set up to protect the experiments from white lights. If we all show a little cooperation, we all succeed. That kind of behavior is not to be tolerated, so we all agreed that the laser-guided missile launch that followed was completely justified. (I'm kidding!--we just watched as he drove away and his tail lights disappeared on the horizon--wondering to ourselves, "What kind of parents raise a person like that?") I will now close by putting our experience into a, summarized "capsule": "It was was a 'blast'!" The night indeed, was very memorable and enjoyable-- on many levels. And, I am glad that we signed on for the mission. So...fellow Earth beings, Take your protein pills and put your helmet on (Ten) Ground Control (Nine) to Major Tom (Eight, seven) (Six) Commencing (Five) countdown, engines on (Four, three, two) Check ignition (One) and may God's love (Lift off) be with you Oh, one final shout out. Back in the late 1950's, the Tohono O'odham Nation, (meaning "Desert People,") graciously allowed for the construction and use of the observatory on one of their most-treasured and sacred mountains. This should be acknowledged and respectfully appreciated as one travels there.

Out of this world! Offered daily, the 90-minute tour of the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab begins at…read moreSteward Observatory, where two university hosts meet the group (12 people in ours) and begin with a quick introductory talk and video session, to describe what you'll see in the lab. Our outstanding guides, Adrian and Sage, were friendly, informative, and engaged, encouraging questions and offering interesting insights about the telescope-mirror production process as well as the U of A's astronomy program as a whole. Next, it's a short walk to the lab, housed within the infrastructure of the football stadium. From various catwalk vantages, visitors can photograph the rotating furnace apparatus used to melt the Ohara E-6 borosilicate glass and also view the extensive grinding, cleaning, and polishing processes. The lab is currently in charge of fabricating the seven 8.4-meter spin-cast mirrors that will form the heart of the Giant Magellan Telescope, which will have capabilities up to 200x more powerful than today's best land-based telescopes and is expected to take images 10x sharper than Hubble. It's amazing to hear about the innovation involved in this project that spans decades, and it's even more dazzling and inspiring to see it in person -- a stellar opportunity that will leave you starry-eyed!

Optics geek or not, the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab tour is a fantastic way to spend an…read moreafternoon. Even if the only mirror you've ever seen is the one you look at to fix your hair, the tour guides make it very easy to appreciate the astronomical investment in time, money, effort and sheer brain power that goes into creating each and every one of these massive mirrors. We had ample time to ask questions and the tour guides had good answers for everything we asked.

Took my grandson who is majoring in Astrophysics, my wife , and 3 daughters here for a night of…read morestargazing. It was super. We had our own astronomer and a 12" telescope. Saw stuff that was millions of light years away. You have to make reservations in advance. Well worth it.

This was a GREAT experience and a great value…read more We did the AstroPhotography session Robby. Robby was very knowledgeable and personable. He coached us through a combination of camera ISO and shutter to take pictures of stars, constellations, and nebula. Book it, you won't be disappointed!

The Mt. Lemmon Sky Center is one fo the "gems" of Tucson! Visitors from around the country, the…read moreworld and locals with them, enjoy viewing many celestial objects through the research grade 32 inch Schulman Telescope from its 9,157 ft. summit is spectacular! The stars, planets, nebula and galaxies come into sharp focus on any starry night! Presentations by very knowledgeable astronomers or serious amateurs on staff who create interesting programs are terrific! Expand your horizons! Definitely, put this on your "bucket list" - of "things to do" when in or near Tucson!

SkyNights was an unforgettable adventure! Credit the breathtaking sky island setting, ideal for…read morewatching both the sunset and the stars, and our engaging and knowledgeable guides Jeronimo and Will. And we got lucky: Clear skies and the first two-comet night these two had ever experienced (including Comet Lemmon, just discovered here). I would recommend this engaging and information-rich experience to anyone.

They had their grand opening today and it was fantastic. The day was filled with hands on…read moreactivities with organizations they partner with, including the mirror lab, the steward observatory, the lunar lab, and sky island. Then when the sun went down they had 6 different high powered telescopes set up to view the moon, stars, Jupiter and Saturn. The clarity was so great that you could see rings around Saturn, moons for Jupiter, and your eyes hurt after looking at the brightness of the moon. They had a ton of people on hand to point all of this out to us novices. They even found the satalite that was launched yesterday and we were able to track it across the sky. So incredibly cool. Currently it is normally just a store, with really neat items including photos, shirts, astronomy pieces and more. They plan on starting to hold events there, including lectures and more stargazing parties. Get on their mailing list so you'll know when it starts to happen. Very excited to have this in our neighborhood

Have seen a couple of shows here. Highly recommend getting the areas with seating upstairs if…read moreyou're over 40. For Ani Defranco there was standing area near the stage and although fun to be in the mix. I'm too old for that now. Happy to pay 10-20$ more for cushioned seats. Saw a comedy show and the folding chairs in the (usually) standing area were packed together and uncomfortable. All in all a great theater. Parking across the street. Many good restaurants nearby.

This was an incredible venue -- I've only heard great things! The space was open and it seems like…read moreany view is a great view. If given the option, try to grab aisle seats! I believe they only have quick snacks like popcorn and nachos, and we didn't get any drinks so I can't speak to prices. Water bottle was $3 which isn't bad comparatively. The show was truly incredible, and I'd definitely visit Rialto again AND go see Postmodern Jukebox again!!