Sunrise hikes, early morning forest bathing, and sprawling breakfast buffets are wonderful ways to spend the AM hours. Who doesn’t love a leisurely lunch and an afternoon by the pool or a posh afternoon tea at a swanky hotel? Shopping and gallery-hopping are the perfect way to pass the hours before golden hour. As for post-sunset, sometimes one — like so many travelers — often longs for more than a memorable meal and perhaps a few cocktails (or, if you’re feeling really zesty, going out dancing).

For many travelers (night owls, in particular, but anyone trying to cram an itinerary), the evenings present an opportunity to do much more than go out or sleep. According to Booking.com, “noctourism” (a portmanteau for nocturnal tourism) is one of the biggest travel trends for 2025. Wayfairer Travel reported a 25% increase in demand for nocturnal experiences and excursions. Stretching the sightseeing past sunset allows visitors to make the most of every waking moment, avoid daytime crowds, and see a different side of a destination.

Photographers and bucket-list travelers have long voyaged to Northern Finland and Sweden for the chance to witness the breathtaking wonder of the northern lights. The Isle of Rum was recently named Scotland’s first Dark Sky Sanctuary.

Over the last few years, astrotourism has skyrocketed. More people than ever are chasing dark skies in search of shooting stars, meteor showers, celestial bodies, and other astro phenomena. Stargazing no longer means camping out in a sleeping bag. DarkSky now puts its stamp on approved lodgings — ranging from hotels and resorts to domes and cabins — “that promote ecotourism or astrotourism and are situated in dark sky locations.” A far-flung escape to do an overnight in an off-the-grid Kestrel Nest EcoHut is a bucket-list experience. For something a bit more accessible, you can’t beat ULUM Moab.

But there’s more to noctourism than just stargazing. And travelers don’t have to haul to the far reaches of the globe for memorable nighttime adventures. Something that’s so exciting about the rise in trend is that vacationers have more options for evening entertainment than ever, whether in a big city or the wilds of the Atacama Desert.

The Louvre in Paris stays open until 9 p.m on Wednesdays and Fridays for private guided tours and crowd-free admiring. L.L Bean Outdoor Discovery Programs hosts moonlit kayak tours in Freeport, Maine. Similar excursions are available in Boston, Hocking Hills, and the Chesapeake Bay. The Okavango Delta in Botswana (stay at Baines’ Lodge, an A&K Sanctuary), Ruaha National Park in Tanzania (book through Go2Africa), and Satpura Tiger Reserve in India (check out Bori Safari Lodge) are just a few of the incredible destinations for drives through the bush after dark to spy nocturnal critters and the twilight drama that goes down in the animal kingdom between dusk and dawn.

Sea Island is a safe haven for threatened loggerhead sea turtles. During nesting and hatching season (May to October), local naturalists lead an educational night experience that brings visitors to the beach (with turtle-safe flashlights, of course) to search for emerging hatchlings and nesting mother sea turtles.

Hotels are dialing up the after-dark offerings, too. At Rosewood Mayakoba, guests can trade revelry for restoration thanks to the newly launched Akbal Series—an exclusive moonlit spa program, available nightly from 8 PM to midnight— at Sense Spa. Rooted in ancient traditions, rituals include breathwork, sound healing, restorative yoga, vibrational massages, and cacao ceremonies beneath the stars. Sundance Mountain Resort, founded by Robert Redford in 1969, encourages guests to get outdoors after the sun sets with owl snowshoe tours presented by the Great Basin Wildlife Rescue. Most people associate New Orleans with revelry along Bourbon Street. At The Roosevelt, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel, the PM programming takes an immersive approach to a night out through a historic jazz-focused walking tour led by local musicians.

Private rooftop stargazing and meditation sessions in the Dark Sky Lounge are on the menu at Ambiente, an adults-only resort and member of Leading Hotels of the World in Sedona. Also for the cosmos curious, Scribner’s Catskill Lodge, located just two and a half hours outside New York City, supplies self-guided constellation-spotting using a high-tech Unistellar Smart Telescope and Six Senses Kanuhura offers a mindful stargazing journey that blends astronomy with moonlight meditation.