ABBADIA-LE CHÂTEAU-OBSERVATORY

Owned by the Conservatoire du Littoral, this 66-hectare natural site takes visitors back in time to 80 million years ago, when the sea still occupied what is now the Pyrenees mountain range. The site is characterized by steep cliffs, coves and 2 famous rocks, "les Jumeaux", which bear witness to the retreat of the coastline.

Classified as a Monument Historique in 1984, the château has been the property of the Académie des Sciences since 1901. In fact, Antoine d'Abbadie, himself a member of the Académie, bequeathed his château in return for a special clause: the Académie des Sciences had to undertake to continue the astronomical work he had begun. Until 1975, the observatories continued to survey the corniche's night skies, then the instruments were abandoned in a cellar until 2000, when the Académie asked for an inventory of the astronomical heritage. 80 objects emerged. Today, this old and exceptional instrumentation makes Abbadia the^1st and only decimal observatory in France. A tour of the building will speak for itself, from the vestibule with its monumental staircase and astonishing stained-glass window, to the chambre d'honneur with its heavy baldachin, the reception rooms and the chapel with its exceptional roof structure. Everywhere a quotation calls out: Antoine d'Abbadie's motto "More to be than to appear", "Don't throw a stone into the well from which you drink the water", and so on. Château Abbadia lifts the veil on Antoine d'Abbadie's genius with the Pavillon Accueil.

Restoration of the park: work has been completed on the park's redevelopment, an interpretation by Eugène Bülher (the landscape architect who designed the park), based on historical elements. The redevelopment was carried out with preservation and enhancement in mind, to encourage contemplation and understanding of the various landscape scenes. The park has been restored to its former glory. The landscape composition and exotic plantings evoke Antoine d'Abbadie's many travels. An English-style landscape park incorporating natural elements (mountains, ocean, trees...). An invitation to discover interpretation points, the history of the site, the owner's scientific experiments, the species planted and the Arragorry house where Virginie played the piano...

A true biological reserve, bicycles, dogs, picnics and sampling are prohibited.