![]() The Cumeada Observatory is open every night from Tuesday to Saturday year-round, and travellers can come to observe the Moon, the stars and the Sun using binoculars and telescopes. Unlike the coastal areas that have long been developed, the Portuguese backcountry remains scarcely populated and undisturbed, which makes it much easier to pick up light sources from outer space without interference." "Luckily here we have excellent weather, very little cloud cover and a lack of light pollution or heavy air traffic, which makes it perfect to shoot the sky. "To get good images you need very specific conditions," he said. These are things that can look faint and underwhelming to the naked eye or even through an eyepiece of a telescope but explode with colour and detail when photographed. "Dark Sky Alqueva is the astronomical equivalent of the giant wave 'discovered' by surfers in Nazaré – something that had been hiding in plain sight, waiting for people with the right sensitivity to take a closer look."Ĭlaro is a deep-space specialist, and when he is not taking groups on night-time stargazing expeditions, he spends his time photographing far-away objects like nebulae, galaxies and star clusters. "Portugal is waking up to this immensely unique and valuable natural resource that has long been underappreciated," Claro said. Here we met Miguel Claro, a guide and Dark Sky Alqueva's official photographer. My friend and I began our intergalactic journey 300km south of Serra da Estrela on a particularly dark night in the village of Cumeada, where a school has been transformed into Dark Sky Alqueva's observatory, which hosts stargazing sessions and astrophotography exhibitions. This status celebrates the region's ideal viewing conditions (low levels of light pollution and an average of 286 cloudless nights per year, which result in some of Portugal's darkest skies), but also the wider tourism infrastructure it has inspired, which is set up to cater specifically to stargazers.ĭark Sky Alqueva is also the starting point for a stunning three-hour road trip that takes you through some of the least light-polluted parts of Europe, winding along the area's Dark Sky Route (a curated collection of activities and accommodations), and rising all the way to Portugal's highest peak, fittingly called the Serra da Estrela, or "mountain of stars". In 2011, the reserve was certified as the world's first Starlight Tourism Destination by the Starlight Foundation, a Unesco-supported international organisation that promotes science and tourism. Over the past decade, Portugal has gained recognition for being one of the top places in the world for travellers to observe the night sky, thanks to the creation of the 3,000 sq km Dark Sky Alqueva reserve, in Portugal's central Alentejo region. Not only is this mountain a popular spot to watch golden sunsets, but for those who stay later, it offers a glimmering night-time fresco that covers the heavens, made up of millions of white pinpricks scattered in glorious imperfection. ![]() However, the real spectacle comes as the sun starts to drop. ![]() The peak rises 1,993m above sea level, and although its actual name is Torre (tower), most people just call it by the same designation as the range it lofts over: Serra da Estrela or "mountain of the stars".īy day, the drive offers wonderful views across the undulant landscape of this narrow country – from the red hills of Spain in the east to the blue Atlantic Ocean in the west. A long twisting road leads up Portugal's highest mountain, and here, unlike many other European summits, visitors can drive right to the top.
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