Sedona Stargazing Jeep Tours at Night

The three night rides side by side

The Private UFO Night Jeep Tour runs longest at 2.5 hours and holds a 5 rating from 17 reviews. The Private Stargazing Jeep Tour at Night holds 4.6 from 15 reviews. The Hummer Stargazing Off-Road Tour also shows a 5 rating, but from a single review, so treat that score as a first impression. It is also the only one of the three that needs 48 hours notice for free cancellation.

Expect a ride, not an astronomy class. Red Rock Jeep Tours, for one, says plainly that its 2-hour stargazing jeep tour is naked-eye stargazing with stories and lore, not a telescope or astronomy tour.

Ride or telescope

A night jeep tour solves the transport problem in one step. Red Rock Jeep Tours, for example, takes its 2-hour stargazing tour into the seven canyons area for naked-eye stargazing with stories and lore, and also runs a full moon jeep tour in West Sedona.

If you want planets through an eyepiece, a telescope session is a different product. Evening Sky Tours shows a minimum of 6 celestial objects at a site in Big Park VOC, about a 20 minute drive from central Sedona. It provides no transport, so you drive yourself, and the site needs a walk of 200 yards on dirt and grass.

Moon phase rules the sky

A bright moon washes out all but the brightest stars. Evening Sky Tours tells guests to avoid the 4 nights leading up to the full moon, including the full moon night, for star-filled skies. The same logic applies to a naked-eye jeep ride. Book from just after the full moon through the moonless stretch.

The season matters less. Sedona Stargazing runs dark sky sessions every clear night of the year, so any month works as long as the clouds stay away.

Start times shift with the season

Darkness arrives later in summer, and night tours move with it. Evening Sky Tours publishes its own start times as a guide: October 8pm and 9:30pm, November to April 7:30pm and 9pm, May to August 9pm and 10:30pm, and September 8:30pm and 10pm. Expect a later night jeep departure in summer and an earlier one in winter.

What the local operators show

Sedona Stargazing was established in 2003 and runs a fleet of 20 Celestron 1100 telescopes, with dark sky sessions every clear night of the year. The observing site Evening Sky Tours uses in Big Park VOC is only about 20 minutes from central Sedona, so you do not need to travel far for a dark sky.

Guests back this up. Reviewers single out the well done setup, the informative presentation, the quality of the telescopes and the six objects they saw in one evening.

Pick by group

Sci-fi fans and anyone who wants the longest night out get the most from the Private UFO Night Jeep Tour at $247. Couples who want a classic quiet ride under the stars should look at the Private Stargazing Jeep Tour at Night at $219, rated 4.6 from 15 reviews. Travellers watching the budget should take the Hummer Stargazing Off-Road Tour at $140.

If what you really want is planets through an eyepiece, a jeep tour is the wrong product. Book a telescope session such as the one run by Evening Sky Tours, which shows at least 6 celestial objects.

Cancellation and cloud rules

The Private UFO Night Jeep Tour and the Private Stargazing Jeep Tour at Night allow free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead. The Hummer Stargazing Off-Road Tour needs 48 hours. Check the forecast before that deadline, not on the evening itself.

Telescope sessions work differently. Evening Sky Tours tries to reschedule a cloudy night on a space available basis, otherwise it refunds 100 percent. At its observing site alcohol, smoking and pets are prohibited, and the walk of 200 yards on dirt and grass means it is not handicap accessible. Travellers with limited mobility do better on a jeep ride, where the vehicle does the moving.