a cosmohub in ladakh pic astrostayspaul savio ceo and cofounder of starscapes that facilitates stargazing and other activities across india says this trend is catching on across the country it is a niche but rising sector in tourism what has made it quite a trend is the growing interest in space sky stars fueled by the talks of space tourism provided by some companies in the west states paul whose company provides equipment and setup to hotels resorts and homestays in remote areas with clear skies he adds another observation to it post pandemic travel has been all about trying new experiences going on the greatest of all time trips etc astro tourism caters to such travel aspirations and even the hotels resorts homestays etc are seeing potential in it they have been reaching out to us providing sessions equipment and curated activities on their premises to tap into the trendastro tourism can be a life changing experience say travellersthe travel trend has caught the fancy of tourists from across generations school children are the most interested group for this kind of travel followed by gen z who love to travel for new experiences says paul there are also many who have been taking dedicated astro tours noidabased it consultant abhinav pratap singh who has gone on several astro tours to remote villages says since i was a child i was always interested in stargazing and celestial events in the past 45 years my passion for capturing the night sky in all its glory has been revived and i started going on astro tours ive travelled to remote villages in rajasthan ladakh himachal pradesh and uttarakhand for this tech that you need for astro tourismsrini ravikumar a freelance graphic artist from bengaluru adds i always save pictures of the milky way and put it up on instagram page finally i decided to go and witness its full glory in ladakh on an astro tour it was truly a life changing and humbling experiencewish upon a shooting star at dark sky reservesby the end of the year hanle in ladakh will be set up as indias first dark sky reserve according to the international darksky association ida a dark sky reserve is a private or public land that features exceptional quality of starry lights and a nocturnal environment such areas are specifically protected for their natural scientific or educational value or for public enjoyment such dark sky reserves have a core area that meets the minimum criteria for natural darkness and sky quality it also has a peripheral area that lends support to the preservation of the dark in the coreindian destinations for astro tourisminternational destinations for astro tourismwhat makes a destination ideal for astro tourism access to clear dark skies little to no light pollution situated at a higher altitude