The Mayland Earth to Sky Park is located in Burnsville, NC. It is off the beaten track so look for…read morethe Mayland Earth to Sky Park signage along the way so that you find it. Mayland is named for Mitchell, Avery and Yancey Counties. The park is not complete yet but the Bare Dark Sky Observatory, visitor's center and planetarium are open. The park is operated by Mayland Community College. When you arrive the road will narrow. There is limited parking in front but a larger lot in the back, just be careful driving back there as traffic is two-way. There is a walkway to get to the visitor's center. The staff is friendly and helpful. But the time changed on my ticket to Beautifica. I bought a 3pm ticket and was told to arrive at 2:30 but my ticket changed to 2pm. Thankfully I arrived in time as there was not a 3pm showing. I checked all my emails and didn't see any notification of the change in timing and coming from out of town this could have been a problem. The planetarium seats 61 and they have regular and VIP seating. VIPs can go in a few minutes prior. There are some permanent seats and others are zero gravity chairs. When those are opened, there isn't enough space between those and the permanent seats. The visitor's center has a few science exhibits and gift shop. Make sure to check out the garden as there are great views from there. If you buy a planetarium ticket, double check the time in case it changes.

Went to see Sounds of the Ocean. Show was great. The planetarium seating was comfortable and the…read moresound was very good. This is the second show we've been to here and will return again soon.