Best Open-Pit Mine Viewing Platforms
Some open-pit mines are so vast they are visible from space — and most large ones have dedicated viewing platforms for visitors who want to see industrial scale in real life.
Bingham Canyon, Utah, USA
1.2 km deep, 4 km across; visitor centre and viewing terrace.
Chuquicamata, Chile
A 1 km-deep open pit, viewed from a perimeter platform.
Erzberg, Styria, Austria
Europe's largest iron mine with Hauly-truck access to the pit floor.
Hull Rust Mahoning, Hibbing, Minnesota
America's first Mesabi range open pit, with a public viewpoint.
Mirny Open Pit, Russia
525 m-deep diamond pit in Yakutia; perimeter view.
Kimberley Big Hole, South Africa
Hand-dug 215 m pit with a glass-floor viewing platform.
Super Pit, Kalgoorlie, Australia
A 3.5 km-long, 1.5 km-wide gold pit with a Hannans North observation deck.
Toquepala, Peru
Public viewing platform over the Tacna copper mine.
Fushun West Pit, China
Asia's largest historic open-pit coal mine, with a museum and viewpoint.
El Teniente / Sewell, Chile
Mine-perimeter viewpoint adjoining the UNESCO town.
Plan your visit
Every site mentioned is plotted, with opening hours and accessibility notes, on our interactive map.
Explore on the map
Use the interactive map to filter by country, mineral and accessibility — or to find the closest mining heritage site to wherever you happen to be.