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Officially one of France’s darkest places, the Pic du Midi observatory opens to the first of its expected 120,000 visitors on June 1 and ties in its Dark Skies experience with an exhibition alongside its planetarium, Europe’s highest.

With its view to the Massif Central, the site at Bigorre at 2,877m in the Pyrénées also opens a ‘bridge over the void’ that features a 12m pier over a 1,000m drop... fitted with a glass floor.

It is part of a facelift for the Pic du Midi that builds on its past as a scientific observatory – that remains in full use – and offers a new look at the world of science and discovery.

The site was France’s first dark skies park, Réserve Internationale de Ciel Étoilé, and offers beautiful sunsets, clear skies above the clouds for star-gazing, and a sunrise breakfast for visitors who book a night’s stay.