Eclipse travel planner
Where to stand for the big eclipses of 2027, 2028 and 2030, how long you’ll get, and what to sort out before you go.
Ask the eclipse trip planner
Tell it where you’d start from and what kind of trip you like. It answers using our NASA-based eclipse data. AI suggestions can be wrong: check local times with the calculator on each eclipse page.
2 August 2027: Eclipse of the century
Total up to 6m 23s · Morocco, Spain, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Somalia
Luxor & the Nile valley, Egypt
Near the point of greatest eclipse: the longest totality of the decade with the Sun almost overhead, next to Karnak and the Valley of the Kings. August is extremely hot; plan shade and water.
Southern Spain & Gibraltar
Cádiz, the Strait and the Costa del Sol are inside the path with 2–4½ minutes and the Sun about 38° up in the morning. Easy to reach from Europe, but book very early.
Northern Morocco
Tangier and the Rif coast get over 4½ minutes. Typically dry in August, and a short ferry from Spain.
Libya, Saudi Arabia & the Red Sea
Benghazi and Jeddah are near the centre line with about 6 minutes. Check current travel advisories before planning.
Eclipse cruises
Mediterranean and Red Sea cruises can reposition on the day to dodge cloud, a real advantage over a fixed hotel.
| City | Totality | Sun |
|---|---|---|
| Luxor | 6m 20s | 82° |
| Benghazi | 6m 09s | 68° |
| Jeddah | 5m 59s | 76° |
| Tangier | 4m 51s | 38° |
| Gibraltar | 4m 27s | 38° |
| Cádiz | 2m 55s | 37° |
| Málaga | 1m 52s | 39° |
26 January 2028: Americas-to-Iberia annular
Annular up to 10m 27s · Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Suriname, Spain, Portugal
Seville, Cádiz & Valencia, Spain
A 6–7 minute ring of fire just before sunset. Needs a clear low south-western horizon.
Galápagos & Ecuador
The ring crosses the islands in the morning with over 5 minutes of annularity.
| City | Ring | Sun |
|---|---|---|
| Seville | 7m 15s | 7° |
| Valencia | 7m 02s | 2° |
| Cádiz | 6m 41s | 8° |
| Barcelona | 6m 16s | 0° |
| Palma | 5m 18s | 0° |
| Málaga | 4m 57s | 6° |
| Gibraltar | 4m 04s | 7° |
22 July 2028: Sydney totality
Total up to 5m 10s · Australia, N. Z.
Sydney, Australia
Totality right over a major city: about 3m48s in the early afternoon, in the Australian winter.
The Kimberley & Northern Territory
Remote outback with the highest Sun and typically the driest dry-season skies. About 3½ minutes near Wyndham.
Queenstown & Dunedin, New Zealand
About 3 minutes with the Sun low late in the afternoon; winter weather on the South Island is changeable, so stay mobile.
| City | Totality | Sun |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney | 3m 48s | 29° |
| Wyndham | 3m 24s | 53° |
| Queenstown | 2m 54s | 10° |
| Dunedin | 2m 51s | 8° |
1 June 2030: Mediterranean-to-Japan annular
Annular up to 5m 21s · Algeria, Tunisia, Greece, Turkey, Russia, n. China, Japan
Northern Greece & Istanbul
An early-summer ring of fire of around 4 minutes over classic cities.
Hokkaido, Japan
The annular path ends over Sapporo in the evening.
| City | Ring | Sun |
|---|---|---|
| Istanbul | 4m 32s | 26° |
| Sapporo | 4m 18s | 21° |
| Athens | 4m 02s | 20° |
| Tripoli | 3m 55s | 9° |
25 November 2030: Southern Africa & Australia totality
Total up to 3m 44s · Botswana, S. Africa, Australia
Durban & KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Coastal totality of about 2½ minutes in the morning.
Namibia & Botswana
Desert and safari country in the path, with around 2 minutes and a lower Sun near the start of the track.
South Australia
The path makes landfall in the evening; look at the calculator for exact times near Ceduna and beyond.
| City | Totality | Sun |
|---|---|---|
| Durban | 2m 26s | 34° |
| Windhoek | 1m 52s | 17° |
Planning checklist
- Choose the eclipse, then the region. Duration, Sun height and typical weather matter more than a famous city name.
- Check your exact spot with the calculator on the eclipse page or the path map: a few km can decide whether you see totality at all.
- Book refundable accommodation early, ideally with a car so you can move on the morning of the eclipse.
- Buy eclipse glasses from an AAS-listed supplier and a front-mounted filter for any camera. See the safety guide.
- Rehearse your photos with the exposure calculator, then decide how much of totality you want to spend just looking.
- On the day, watch cloud forecasts and satellite images from dawn and be ready to drive towards clear sky.
Questions
Where is the best place to see the 2027 total solar eclipse?
For maximum duration, the Nile valley around Luxor, Egypt (about 6 minutes 20 seconds). For convenience from Europe, southern Spain (Cádiz, Gibraltar area, 3–4½ minutes) or northern Morocco (Tangier, over 4½ minutes). August skies across North Africa are typically among the clearest of any eclipse location.
When should I book an eclipse trip?
As early as you can. Accommodation inside a totality path in accessible places tends to fill a year or more ahead, and prices climb. Choose refundable bookings where possible so you can switch sites if long-range weather looks poor.
Is an eclipse cruise a good idea?
Ships can move tens of kilometres on the morning of the eclipse to find a gap in the clouds, which is a genuine advantage. The trade-offs are a moving platform (hard for long-lens photography) and higher cost.
What should I pack for an eclipse trip?
ISO 12312-2 eclipse glasses for everyone plus spares, a hat, water and sun protection, a folding chair, a printed list of your local contact times, a solar filter for any camera or binoculars, and offline maps in case mobile networks are overloaded.
Do eclipse tours make sense?
Tours handle logistics, a site on the centre line and weather-based relocation, which helps in unfamiliar countries or remote areas. Independent travel is cheaper and easy in places like Spain or Australia if you book early and plan a backup site.
Durations and Sun altitudes are computed from NASA/GSFC Besselian elements (F. Espenak). Weather remarks describe typical seasonal patterns, not forecasts.