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The best stargazing sites are high, dry, and dark. Here are a few with stellar conditions.
A dormant, sometimes snow-tipped (yes, in Hawaii) volcano that's home to the world's largest collection of observatories-13
High: 2.46 miles
Dry: 325 clear nights a year
Dark: After sunset, the staffers at the peak don't even turn on their headlights
The astronomer guides at Mauna Kea Summit Adventures (888/322-2366; maunakea.com; 7-hour tour $185 per person; minimum age 13; parka, meal, and hot chocolate included) can't get you into the observatories-they're open only to pros-but they'll take you to the peak at sunset, just as the mammoth domes open like the eyelids on some prehistoric nocturnal creature. The group then descends to the rocky, red, Mars-like terrain at 9,000 feet for an eyeful
Stay at: Hilton Waikoloa Village (800/445-8667; hiltonwaikoloavillage.com; doubles from $199)
The world's largest collection of telescopes-26-assembled in one the driest deserts in North America
High: 1.3 miles
Dry: More than 300 clear nights a year
Dark: The nearest large city, Tucson, is almost 50 miles away
The observatory (520/318-8726; noao.edu/outreach/kpvc/) offers visitors the chance to play with powerful telescopes. Reservations are a must. Closed during the rainy season, July 15 to September 1
Stay at: JW Marriott Starr Pass Tucson Resort & Spa (888/236-2427; jwmarriottstarrpass.com; doubles from $299)
You can gaze through the same lens founder Percival Lowell used more than a century ago to search for canals on Mars
High: 1.4 miles
Dry: 245 clear nights a year
Dark: Out of respect for the observatory, Flagstaff shielded its street lighting and became the first "International Dark Sky City"
The observatory (928/774-3358; lowell.edu) offers nightly telescope sessions. Also on view: real-time night sky shows in the just-opened McAllister Space Theatre
Stay at: Radisson Woodlands Hotel Flagstaff (1175 W. Rte. 66; 888/201-1718; radisson.com; doubles from $129)
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