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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Sean Murphy

The best stargazing destinations in Scotland named ahead of Valentine’s Day

For those of you looking to do something extra special this Valentine's Day, a date beneath the stars could be just the ticket.

Scotland has an abundance of ideal spots for stargazing and there's nothing more romantic than snuggling up beneath a blanket of glittering stars as far as the eye can see.

With that in mind, the sleep experts at TheDozyOwl.co.uk decided to take a look at the best locations around the UK to go stargazing with your significant other and unsurprisingly, with Europe's first Dark Skies Park and top Dark-sky Communities aplenty, Scotland features heavily.

And of course, there's also the chance you could also spot the Northern Lights to make the night even more special.

Coming up top for Scotland and second on the overall UK list is Glen Brittle on the Isle of Skye (with a rank score of 99.33) which is an area of the famous remote Scottish island well known for its natural beauty.

Glen Brittle has a SQM reading of 22.00, the highest possible score for this metric, meaning the area has no light pollution at all.

In joint third place (and second for Scotland) is Loch Lomond with a rank score of 95.26.

Fort William in the Highlands also made the top ten (in tenth place) with a score of 89.05.

The research team used measurements such as the Bortle scale – a classification system that uses astronomical observations to measure light pollution on a scale runs from 1 (best) to 9 (worst) – and SQM (Sky Quality Meter), an instrument used to give a reading on the luminance of the night sky.

The 10 Best Romantic UK Locations for Stargazing

Rank Place Country Stargazing quality score out of 100

1 Tresco, Scilly Isles England 99.38

2 Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye Scotland 99.33

=3 Loch Lomond Scotland 95.26

=3 Lindisfarne Castle, Northumberland Coast England 95.26

5 Llanddwyn Island Wales 93.17

6 Tintagel Castle, Tintagel England 93.13

7 Portmeirion Wales 91.09

=8 Stratford-upon-Avon England 89.05

=8 Giant's Causeway Northern Ireland 89.05

=8 Fort William Scotland 89.05

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