Public visits to the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory (ORM)  are currently available.

They will be permitted only if the operation of the telescopes and weather conditions permit.

The programme of visits does not entail any economic activity or benefit for the Observatory nor for any of the national or international organizations with telescopes at the ORM. The ORM recei ves visitors as a part of its activity of Corporate Social Responsibility reflecting its commitment to society.

There are three different types of visits, depending on the specific public interest: visits of private individuals, visits of social and educational centres, and visits by the communications media. Each type requires a different procedure to request a visit.

Private visits

Private visits are led by specialized guides, called “Starlight guides”.

People who want to visit the ORM must reserve their visit in advance throuhg the web of the Starlight Foundation.

MAKE YOUR RESERVATION HERE

The Starlight Foundation, with the collaboration of the IAC,  trains and qualifies these professionals with the aim of providing the visitors with  good quality information which is, undestandable and instructive about the installationsl, their history, their use, and their scientific output.

The guides also have sufficient knowledge about the security measures to be observed in the installations, so it is obligatory to follow their recommendations

Because of rhe working conditions within the telescope buildings the visits are organized in small groups, during daylight hours. The estimated length of a visit is 1 hour 30 minutes.

The meeting point for this guide will be the Visitor Centre. A visit to the Centre before the visit to the telescopes is recommended because it gives general informaton about the Observatory and some basic knowledge of Astrophysics.