Tours at Palomar Observatory
Please click on the links below for information about our guided tours. We do not offer guided tours every day that the Observatory is open to the public. On most days, visitors are welcome to look around the designated public areas on their own, at their own pace.
To make your visit a bit easier, we do have a podcast that
explains what can be seen.
Click here to
listen (right click to save to your computer) to the 10 minute
(11.3 mb) audio tour. Updated June 30, 2010
The observatory also offers educational guided tours and group tours:
Please note that the interior of the 200-inch dome is kept at nighttime temperatures (for an elevation of 5,500 feet!). Temperatures inside the dome are often in the 30s & 40s from October - May. Dress accordingly. High-heeled shoes are not recommended. The Palomar Observatory is a research facility.
There is no viewing through the Hale Telescope as a part of the tours.