Andorra Travel Guide: Skiing, Hiking, Caldea & Shopping

CountryAndorra
Capital altitude~1,023 m
From Barcelona~3 h by bus
Stay3–5 nights

Andorra is a co-principality ruled jointly by the Bishop of Urgell and the President of France, and one of the smallest countries in Europe. It has no airport and no railway, yet it welcomes millions of visitors a year, drawn by its ski slopes in winter, its hiking in summer and its low-tax shopping all year round. Catalan is the official language, but Spanish, French and plenty of English are spoken, and the euro is the currency.

Andorra la Vella and Escaldes

At around 1,023 metres, Andorra la Vella is the highest capital city in Europe. Its small old quarter, the Barri Antic, holds the stone Casa de la Vall, the former parliament building. The main shopping streets run on into neighbouring Escaldes-Engordany, home to the glass spire of the Caldea thermal spa.

Winter: skiing and snowboarding

Andorra has two big ski areas. Grandvalira in the east links Pas de la Casa, Grau Roig, Soldeu, El Tarter, Canillo and Encamp into the largest ski area in the Pyrenees. In the west, Pal Arinsal and Ordino Arcalís are quieter and popular with families. Ski schools teach in English, and lift-and-hotel packages are often good value.

Summer: lakes and high trails

The Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape, is a glacial valley of shepherds' huts and old paths.
The Estanys de Tristaina above Ordino Arcalís are three lakes on an easy loop.
Ski lifts at Soldeu, Canillo and Arinsal open for hikers and mountain bikers in summer.
The Romanesque churches of Sant Joan de Caselles and Santa Coloma are among the oldest buildings in the country.

Getting there

Buses run to Andorra la Vella from Barcelona city and airport (about 3 hours) and from Toulouse (about 3 hours). By car, you enter from Spain via La Seu d'Urgell or from France via Pas de la Casa and the Envalira tunnel.

Customs: Andorra is not in the EU customs union. There are limits on how much tobacco, alcohol and other goods you can take back into France or Spain, and checks at the border are common.