13 Micro-Adventures for When Time Isn’t on Your Side

7. Instead of Camping in the Sahara, Try a Desert Stargazing Night

The Sahara Desert is one of the most otherworldly landscapes on Earth, offering vast dunes, dramatic sunsets, and skies so clear they reveal the Milky Way in stunning detail. If you dream of a desert camping adventure, you don’t need to travel to North Africa—you can find similar remote, starlit landscapes in desert regions, canyons, or dark sky reserves closer to home. If you’re in the U.S., head to Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, Death Valley, Utah’s Canyonlands, or the Mojave Desert for a Sahara-like experience. In Spain, the Bardenas Reales Desert offers a stunning backdrop, while the Pinnacles in Australia and Chile’s Atacama Desert offer some of the clearest night skies in the world. Even if you’re not near a desert, you can find a Dark Sky Park or remote national park for an epic stargazing adventure. If you want to go all in, book a night at an eco-lodge, desert yurt, or remote campsite, where you can experience the solitude and wonder of the Sahara—without the long-haul flight.