The fashion for extreme bridges, crossings and observation decks continues.
China already has several glass suspension bridges over the abyss and glass walkways along the cliffs. And recently, another transparent glass observation deck appeared, protruding from the edge of the mountain at an altitude of 768 meters above sea level. An extreme terrace near Beijing rises 400 meters above a picturesque valley.
Photo 2. 
However, crowds of adrenaline junkies know no fear, and the observation deck is already breaking all attendance records. This is the most large area of this type in the world, which has already become famous throughout the world. Tourists from all over China, and not only, come here to admire unique view and test your willpower.
Photo 3. 
The Glass Platform is located in the tourist spot of Shilinxia in the Pinggu district near Beijing. Width suspension bridge is 32.8 meters. The length is 11 meters longer than that of a similar structure in the USA - in the Grand Canyon. On this moment it is the longest observation platform in the world.
Photo 4. 
The futuristic design fits well into the picturesque gorge - as if a flying saucer had landed here. Stunning views of the mountains and forest are open to brave tourists, but not everyone dares to set foot here. Navigating a glass floor is not for the faint of heart. The glass platform is absolutely safe - it is made of titanium, steel and bulletproof glass that has passed all the necessary tests.
Photo 5. 
It really can be called a crime if you come here without a camera. Therefore, tourists use every second to take stunning pictures above the abyss. The glass floor and fence give the feeling of flying in the air. It’s worth overcoming yourself and your fears and walking along the circular bridge across the valley, admiring the villages, mountains and forest, and feeling like a part of nature.
Photo 6. 
By the way, Acrophobia is the fear of heights. When at altitude, a person suffering from acrophobia experiences nausea and dizziness.
Photo 7. 
Photo 8. 
In May 2016, the world's largest glass observation deck was opened 70 km from Beijing. The total area of the Pingu platform is 415 m2, and it is located at an altitude of 400 m. Moreover, all parts, including the floor and side rails, are made of glass. However, you should not be afraid of such an engineering solution. The platform is built of high strength glass with the addition of titanium alloy. The developers are completely confident in the absolute safety of this attraction.
Kinds
The glass platform is located on a 400-meter mountain peak and retreats 33 meters from the edge of the cliff. Right under the feet of tourists there is a breathtaking view of the famous Shilin Stone Forest and the Jidong Gorge. The place is truly picturesque: majestic mountains, rapid river, waterfalls. The many steep limestone cliffs resemble a real stone forest. Shilin is even called a wonder of the world. It's hard to believe that this was done by nature.
Thanks to its glass structure and incredible views, Pingu has even been compared to the Skywalk over the Grand Canyon in the United States. The “Heavenly Path” is located at an altitude of 1.2 km, but is extended from the edge by only 20 m and has a smaller area.
Impression
The Pingu observation deck is shaped like a closed circle and resembles a UFO. Everyone can walk along the platform and take a close look at the local beauty. However, for tourists, the glass floor becomes a test of courage and, in a sense, a cure:
- At first, guests experience an adrenaline rush. It’s not easy to see the abyss under your feet. The brain refuses to believe that it is possible to hold on and not fall down. The sensations are compared to a parachute jump.
- Then absolute relaxation sets in. A person begins to feel as if he is floating in the air or in zero gravity. The effect relieves stress and nervous tension, which is especially useful for residents of big cities. Even yogis come to the site in search of nirvana. And some visitors simply lie down on the transparent floor for maximum relaxation.
The glass observation deck is never empty. Crowds of tourists walk along it in search of beautiful views, enlightenment or a good angle for a photo. After all, what could be more original than a shot over an abyss.
In the south of China, another creepy glass bridge has opened over a cliff, along which only the bravest and bravest tourists walk along the cliff to the mountainside rugged with caves.
The bridge, called "Writhing Dragon", which leads to Tianmen Mountain, opened to the public on August 1. Length glass path- 100 meters, width - just over one and a half meters. Tourists can see a truly dizzying view of the valley on the other side of the mountain range. The bridge hangs at an altitude of 1500 meters above the ground. This is the third such bridge on the same mountain. More recently, it was an ordinary wooden path.
This mountainous area is very popular among tourists due to its incredible natural scenery, as well as a relatively new attraction - glass bridges.
The photographs show how the first visitors to the opened bridge carefully walk along the mountain, holding on to the wall, some trying not to look down through the transparent floor and over the railings.
The first glass bridge in the national mountains forest park Zhangjiajie opened in November 2011 and has since attracted tourists eager to experience what it's like to walk on the very edge of an abyss. The glass floor was then only 2.5 inches (6 cm) thick, and visitors were visibly nervous when they stepped on it.
Second glass bridge across the canyon in national park opened in May of this year. It reportedly cost approximately $3.5 million to construct.
For those who want a more intense sensation, here you can bungee jump into the abyss.
Glass bridges are now a popular trend in China. Usually local authorities perceive them as an opportunity to increase the influx of tourists. These ambitious projects typically involve bridges, bluff paths, or observation decks.
Below are the five most popular glass bottom designs in China.
The observation deck with a glass floor is located on the territory of the famous Shilin stone forest, 70 kilometers from Beijing. Its height is 400 meters above the ground, and its area is 415 square meters. It opened in May 2016.
The glass bridge, 300 meters above Zhangjiajie Canyon in Hunan Province, was scheduled to open in July 2016. Its length is 430 meters, height is about 300 meters.
"Hero's Bridge" lies 180 meters above the ground and is located in Shinyuzhai National Park in Hunan Province. It opened last fall.
The 260-meter-long Yuntai Mountain Trail passes at an altitude of more than 1,000 meters above the ground. It was also opened in September 2015.
The Yunduan Glass Observation Deck is located more than 700 meters above the ground. It opened in the summer of 2015.
Here is a short video about how tourists manage to walk across such bridges. Spoiler alert: they're a little worried.
We are already accustomed to glass panoramic walls, but what if there is a glass floor?
What if this floor is at an altitude of 100 or 1000 meters?
The glass cube is located on the 88th floor of the Eureka Tower in Melbourne.
The observation deck “sticks out” from the high-rise building by 3 meters.
The deck is located 300 meters from ground level.
Skywalk platform observation deck in Sydney, Australia
Outdoor observation deck at Sydney Tower.
The outdoor observation deck is at an altitude of 268 meters, and at an altitude of 250 meters there is a closed observation deck with a regular floor.
Five Fingers observation deck in the Austrian Alps
The Five Fingers site is located above Lake Hallstatt in Austria.
Each of the “fingers” protrudes 4 meters above the abyss 400 meters deep.
All “fingers” have their own flavor.
there is a frame on the first finger so that visitors can take a photo portrait as a souvenir;
the second finger has a floor made of transparent glass so that visitors can literally “hang over the abyss”;
the third (central) finger is shorter than the others and is closed to visitors - this symbolizes the inaccessibility and freedom of the mountains;
at the fourth finger there is a hole in the floor through which you can observe the cliff below;
a free telescope is installed on the fifth finger.
Observation deck in Triassic Park, Austria
The coral-shaped observation deck is located in Triassic Park, Waidring, Tyrol.
The floor on the site is partially glass.
Tower Bridge in London, UK
The glass floor of the gallery at the top of Tower Bridge is 42 meters high, 11 meters long and almost 2 meters wide.
Visitors can watch the bridge being raised and see ships sailing along the Thames.
AlpspiX observation deck in Germany
The AlpspiX observation deck is located above the "Hell Valley" in the Bavarian Alps.
The platform consists of two crossed platforms. One of them is “pushed” into the abyss by 13 meters, and the other by 11 meters. The length of each platform is 24 meters and the width is 3 meters.
The floor, however, is not glass, but lattice, but still transparent, everything is visible.
Observation deck in Jasper National Park,
Alberta, Canada
In Canada's Jasper National Park, located in Alberta, there is an observation deck called Glacier Skywalk.
It is located at an altitude of 280 meters above the Sunwapta Valley.
Observation deck on the TV tower in Calgary, Alberta Province, Canada
The observation deck is located on the television tower in Calgary.
Height above ground - 191 meters
Suspension bridge in Hunanpijang village, Hunan province, China
The bridge is located above the gorge at a height of 180 meters.
The bridge is constantly swaying in the wind!
Bridge on Tianmen Rock, Hunan Province, China
In Hunan Province, China, on the sheer cliff of Tianmen, 1430 meters high, it was built observation bridge from glass.
The length of the glass section is 60 meters, the width is about a meter
Tourists are given cloth galoshes to walk along the glass walkway, which is 2.5 inches thick.
There are also cantilevered viewing platforms. There is glass under your feet, and under the glass there is an abyss.
Yunduan Bridge in Chongqing, China
The bridge is built on top of a steep cliff.
The length of the suspended platform is 26.68 meters, and the depth of the gorge under it reaches 718 meters. The structure was designed to withstand an earthquake of up to magnitude 8.
The Yunduan Bridge can accommodate up to 200 people at a time: the structure is designed for loads of up to 9 tons per square meter.
Glass corridor and observation deck in Shanghai, China
The glass corridor and observation deck are located in the Shanghai World Financial Center.
The floor is not solid, but consists of individual glass inserts. The height above the ground is 474 meters.
Observation deck on the Ostankino TV tower, Moscow, Russia
The observation deck of the Ostankino TV tower is located at an altitude of 337 meters.
Each of these elements is designed to support a weight of up to 10 tons.
Grand Canyon Skywalk, USA
Skywalk Observation Deck is the world's first horseshoe-shaped cantilever glass bridge, soaring above the Grand Canyon at an altitude of about 1200 meters and at a distance of 21 meters from the edge of the abyss.
No cables or brackets limit the 720° view. The bridge's 10 cm thick transparent floor and its entire open glass structure make it possible to "step off the edge" Grand Canyon", look at this amazing miracle of nature from a bird's eye view.
The Skywalk bridge is 3 m wide, 42 m long, and the walls are 1.5 m high. Today, the Grand Canyon SkyWalk is the tallest building in the world and the first structure of its kind in the world, and the reinforcing bars holding the bridge are the largest in the world. Interestingly, no cranes were used during the construction of this engineering miracle.
"Infinity Room" over the abyss in the USA
The Infinity Room is located in Wisconsin.
The "endless" room has 3,264 windows and ends with a glass floor above the treetops.
Glass balcony in Chicago, Illinois, USA
The glass balcony is located on the 103rd floor of the Sears Tower in Chicago. In total, the skyscraper has 110 floors.
There are 4 glass balconies and each of them can withstand a load of 5 tons.
The height above the ground is 412 meters, the width of the balconies is 1.22 meters.
Observation deck “Step into the Void” in the French Alps
Observation deck "Step Into the Void". located at the top of the Aiguille du Midi mountain in France
The glass room has five transparent sides, each of which consists of three heavy-duty glass layers.
And under your feet - 1035 meters of alpine air and glaciers, ahead - a magnificent view of the French, Swiss and Italian Alps.
For many years now no one has been surprised by glass walls and roofs. But there are also many structures in the world in which transparent is floor. Most often these are buildings that are related to tourism. And today we will talk about 10 most beautiful and unusual similar cases from all over the world.
Glass balcony in a Chicago skyscraper
On the 103rd floor of the Sears Tower in Chicago is one of the most unusual observation decks in the world. Its most interesting element is the all-glass balcony that protrudes outward. Even the floor in this architectural element is made of strong transparent material, which gives it a special extreme.
For five years it was believed that this glass floor was absolutely safe for visitors. But recently an emergency occurred - the strongest glass in it burst. There were, of course, no casualties. But the company that operates this observation deck in the Sears Tower has taken measures to ensure that this never happens again - it has installed even stronger and thicker glass.
And if the Sears Tower skyscraper was put into operation in Chicago in 2009, then in Moscow there has been an observation deck with a glass floor for several decades. It is located at an altitude of 337 meters in the Ostankino TV tower.
But this is not a balcony. The glass floor on the observation deck in Ostankino is built in separate blocks into a regular floor. Each of these elements is designed to support a weight of up to 10 tons.
Observation deck over the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River
The Grand Canyon is one of the most popular and most visited tourist attractions in the United States of America. And in 2007, a very unusual object opened on one of its slopes - the Grand Canyon Skywalk observation deck.
What makes it unusual is that this horseshoe-shaped structure, hovering over the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, has a glass floor. And people walking along it are essentially walking over a 350-meter abyss of one of the most beautiful places on the ground.
Statistics show that about 10 percent of Grand Canyon Skywalk visitors, after seeing this glass floor with their own eyes, refuse to walk on it, even though they have already paid money to enter the site.
Even more terrifying for some visitors is walking along a scenic path in the Tianmen Mountains in Hunan Province, China. After all, about seventy meters of the path pass through a structure with a glass floor. And this is at an altitude of 1.2 kilometers!
However, several years ago the path in this place was even more terrible and dangerous. After all, the modern tourist path is located on the site of the old path of the monks who lived in these mountains. And they didn’t have any glass floor or safe railings - they walked along separate ledges, clinging to hooks driven into the rock and ropes stretched between them.
The futuristic-looking Apple store in New York became the first building of a huge network that later entangled the whole world. It has spawned many imitations all over the planet. And not only the walls and ceiling, but also the floor are made of glass in this building. True, the latter is slightly foggy so that people on the lower floors cannot “admire” from below the intimate parts of the body of store visitors walking on the level above.
A glass floor inside a building is possible not only in tall skyscrapers or multi-story stores. It is quite appropriate to do it in . Especially if it is located somewhere in the Maldives and stands on stilts in the middle of the warm azure ocean.
One of the buildings of the LUX* Maldives hotel boasts such an interior. In the living room of this bungalow, a coffee table stands on glass floor, and armchairs and sofas are located around it.
There are similar design elements in other hotels in the Maldives. For example, in Water Villa on Nunu Atoll.
The Sky Tower radio tower, like the Ostankino TV tower, boasts an observation deck with glass floor elements located at an altitude of more than 300 meters above the earth's surface. But still, another similar element of the Sky Tower design is more interesting to us.
When ascending to the above-mentioned observation deck in the Sky Tower, the tourist rides in a high-speed elevator, which has part of the floor also made of glass. True, he has to admire not the panoramas of the city of Auckland, but the elevator shaft of the tower.
In some booths cable car Ngong Ping 360 in Hong Kong, even those people who, in principle, are calm about heights, are afraid to sit down. But they also cannot travel in a trailer flying through the sky, which has strong, bullet-proof glass installed instead of the usual floor.
These cabins on the Ngong Ping 360 cable car are called Crystal Cabins, and travel in them costs more than in ordinary cars with a metal floor.
In another Chinese metropolis, Shanghai, it's not the cable car cabin that has a glass floor, but the pool at the Holiday Inn. Moreover, this part of it is a balcony located on the twenty-fourth floor of the building.
This is one of two cases in this review, When best views They open onto the glass floor not from above, but from below. A person swimming in such a pool will look like an airplane flying across the sky to others.
The Sundial Bridge over the Sacramento River in the Californian city of Reading is known throughout the world for two facts. Firstly, it was built according to the design of one of the greatest architects of our time - Santiago Calatrava.
Secondly, the surface of this pedestrian bridge completely covered with transparent glass, which allows you to achieve incredible visual effects both during the day and in the evening.
