Ynys Enlli off Welsh coast designated as a dark sky sanctuary

Bardsey Island is first site in Europe to receive certification, thanks to low light pollution and pristine night skies

The sunsets are wonderful but the night that follows even more spectacular. If it is clear, the moon and stars illuminate the tiny island vividly; when it is cloudy, the darkness is thick and unbroken, “bible black” to quote Dylan Thomas.

Ynys Enlli (Bardsey Island), two miles off the mainland of north-west Wales, has become the first site in Europe to receive international dark sky sanctuary certification, joining just 16 other spots in some of the most remote places in the world.