
Ambleside and Grasmere Big Switch Off 2025
Friday 28th March 2025 from 20:00pm to 21:00pm
Ambleside Parish Centre
Vicarage Road, Ambleside, Cumbria, LA22 9DH, North West England

The Annual Big Lighting Switch Off takes place in Ambleside and Grasmere on Friday 28 March, lights go out at 7pm.
Over 220 street lights will be switched off, alongside businesses, community buildings and residents all taking part and turning their lights off for the evening.
Before the lights go off you might be able to see one to two hundred stars and planets – but after look up and marvel as thousands of stars reveal themselves in the night sky!
In Ambleside’s Parish Centre there will be refreshments, a drop in event with examples of dark sky friendly lights, and a talk by Friends of the Lake District Dark Skies Officer Jack Ellerby.
The drop in session will run from 5-7pm and after the lights go off, from 7.30pm in the Centre, Jack will talk about the value of dark skies, the impacts of light pollution and showing the good practice lighting projects all around Cumbria. The talk is free, but booking is essential.
Event organiser

Friends of the Lake District is organising this event
Please contact Friends of the Lake District directly for more details regarding this event or, if appropriate, contact the event venue.
Email: [email protected]
Website: Friends of the Lake District
Twitter: @FriendsofLakes
Facebook: Friends of the Lake District
Event booking
For full details on how to attend this event, including how to book, please see the event's official website.
Visit event websiteEvent darkness
The below chart shows if and when the skies will be at their darkest during this event. Moonlight is shown in light yellow and the Sun's twilight in light blue. Midnight on the date shown is shown as a white line with sunset to the left and sunrise the next morning to the right. A black background with stars shows the best times for stargazing.

Fri 28th Mar
Local light pollution
Ambleside Parish Centre is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to asemi-rural semi-rural location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite.
-
Urban
-
Suburban
-
Semi-rural
-
Rural
-
Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.
Forthcoming events
Below is a list of events at Ambleside Parish Centre. View these events on our calendar, add them to your calendar or Google Calendar.
Stay and gaze nearby
Stay at one of these stargazing-friendly accommodation providers.