A Country Park on the Welsh borderlands is attracting a new type of visitor that’s looking for pristine night skies devoid of light pollution.

‘The Retreat’ at Rockbridge is a new development of affordable holiday lodges and caravans set in breathtaking countryside on the Herefordshire and Powys border.

Located in an unspoilt valley surrounded by rolling Radnorshire hills abundant with wildlife, holiday home buyers have a new expectation for their rural idyll. Dark Skies are now high on the tick box agenda.

Rockbridge Country Holiday Park is situated just outside the town of Presteigne, which in 2024 became the first community in Wales to be designated an International Dark Sky Community by DarkSky International.

It’s attracted great interest, drawing in people wanting to escape the bright lights of towns and cities. The area's Dark Skies Community Leader, Leigh-Harling Bowen says it was a long hard slog to achieve such status. "The Presteigne & Norton community has worked tenaciously over the last six years to highlight the benefits of becoming a dark sky community. ‘The Retreat’ at Rockbridge will now be able to offer visitors the opportunity to see unparalleled views of the dark, clear, unpolluted skies of Mid Wales.”

Discover Parks owners, Glenn and Hannah Jones have invested in reducing light pollution and sky-glow from the park by installing well designed, low level lighting. They’ve also created a transparent viewing dome, complete with professional telescope and have plans to educate visitors on how to ‘stargaze in style’ with the help of the the local Marches Astronomy Group.

“The development’s taken longer than we would have liked, but in hindsight it’s given us time to create something that compliments the unique landscape which surrounds the park and we’re bowled over by the interest so far,” says Glenn. “We’ve been extremely careful not to create light pollution in an area that’s been awarded for its dedication to maintaining unpolluted night skies, and that, we feel, is being greatly appreciated.”

James Evans, MS for Brecon and Radnorshire, said: “Astrotourism is a huge part of the economy now. Businesses being forward thinking and innovative and reinvesting in their sites here is really important to bringing that tourism in. I want to see a thriving tourism business here. It’s not a great environment at the minute for businesses, and taking the plunge like they have is to be commended.”

Though he is concerned on how the proposed tourism tax will impact local businesses like Rockbridge. “I’ve always been very clear, I don’t want to see a tourism tax at all, because what I don’t want to see is one part of the United Kingdom played off against another. Being on the border people make choices, if it’s £30 a week more expensive to stay in Wales when you could stay just across the border in England where it’s cheaper, especially with the cost of living, we do need to make sure people can make those choices and come here to Wales. I don’t want Powys County Council to implement it. I’ve been lobbying them not to introduce it. If they do decide to introduce it we need to make sure that that money is reinvested into the tourism economy. I want to see it invested into places like Rockbridge to upgrade footpaths, upgrade our town centres. It needs to be used to support the tourism economy here.”

Dafydd Wyn Morgan runs a star gazing business called Serydda, working with accomadtion providers to promote their stargazing experiences. He’s travelled the world to see the dark skies, and says that Rockbridge in Presteigne offers an incredible experience. “It was so dark. I have travelled the world to visit dark places like Tenerife and Namibia. This was very close to the experiences I’ve had in this countries. It’s good for them as a business, but also the local economy. I’ve already spent over £100 in Presteigne, and I haven’t even been here yet 24 hours.”

Rockbridge Country Holiday Park is designed to allow visitors, who’re made up of people with touring caravans and motorhomes, campers, those staying in self catering accommodation on park or people who’re investing in holiday homes on the new Retreat development, to make the most of its superb location realising that the vast dark skies and stunning untouched countryside on the Welsh/English borderlands is not something the average person gets the chance to experience.