One of Europe’s largest linked ski areas, Grandvalira in Andorra promises much for snowsports enthusiasts. Does it deliver? We review Grandvalira and El Tarter.

The principality of Andorra sits in the Pyrenees mountains range, sandwiched between France and Spain. At around 470 square kilometers, Andorra is of a comparable size to cities like Glasgow and Greater Liverpool in the UK, or greater Tampa or San Jose in the USA. Most of the country is mountain, with settlements lining the main road that runs through the country. So of course, with all that mountain, Andorra is a popular place to go skiing or snowboarding…

We went to Andorra in early March 2020, which coincided with the escalation of the coronavirus pandemic. And, although it was starting to look a bit hairy, we did manage to enjoy the slopes before the country shut it’s borders (literally the day after we left).

In terms of weather, the 2019/2020 winter season had been a bit strange in the Pyrenees. The last snowfall had been in early February, with some intense storms hitting the south of Europe. However, just before we arrived, there was a solid week of snowfall, so we were looking forward to getting on the mountain to check out the fresh powder dump.

Our Grandvalira ski deal

We found a great deal on Snowtrex.com which included accommodation and lift pass for GB£209 (approx €240) per person for 4 days. Snowboard rental and bus transfers were extra, with rental costing about €70 for three days. Food was extra, of course.

My snowboarding buddy only stayed with me for 3 days, so after he left I found another deal on Esquiades.com. This was in nearby Ransol (just down the road from El Tarter) and included lift pass and ski rental for 2 days for €260. Ransol itself is up a steep hill, but my hotel the WUAU Segle XX offered a free transfer for guests to the lift station.

First impressions of Andorra

With the mountain landscape of this isolated principality, you might have an idealised image of what Andorra looks like. Arriving on the bus, the mountains are certainly beautiful, and catching sight of a snow capped peak is enough to lift anyones spirits.

As most of the country is built along the main road which connects Spain to France, much of Andorra looks quite modern and generic. Indeed, having been to several other snowsports hotspots, Andorra isn’t the prettiest mountain locale I’d visited (that’s a toss up between Zakopane in Poland or Mayrhofen in Austria).

Passing through Andorra la Vella, the capital, most of the constructions are modern and generally quite soulless. On occasion you’d catch a glimpse of an old house, or stone church on a hilltop, but by and large these were exceptions rather than the standard.

El Tarter

The village of El Tarter was to be our base, nestled next to the Valira river and the road from Pas de la Casa to Andorra la Vella. Most of the buildings seemed to be hotels, with most of them Pierre et Vacances (one of the biggest ski accommodation providers in Europe).

In fact, our apartment was at Pierre et Vacances Alba, a self catering complex in the middle of the village. Access was via a failry steep hill up from the main road, but the location was quiet and we had a decent valley view which was nice.

Our room was quite simple, with two camp beds, a TV, table and chairs and kitchen facilities. The heating was pretty efficient too which is always good in mountain resorts. All in all, it was a bit of a bargain, so was definitely not palatial and more on the side of functional.

El Tarter itself is a one high street town, with a small local shop (expensive) and a selection of restaurants and bars. Across the river, the Grandvalira lift station and ticket office was surrounded by a huge car park and a variety of bars, cafes and ski rental shops.

From El Tarter there is a gondola (8 person) leaving from the main station, and a smaller 6 (might be 4, can’t remember) person chairlift just a few hundred yards up the hill. From the mountain, you can ski or snowboard all the way back down to the base for a fun end of day (or during the day) return.

Grandvalira Review

OK, so what was the mountain like? Quite simply: excellent. On arrival from the gondola you’re dropped at the busy Pi de Migdia intersection which brings you to the beginning of the learner blue runs, and is a short ride to the lifts futher up the mountain.

My buddy was a beginner so we took it easy in the valley area before I eventually coaxed him up the mountain. There are several really nice blue runs back to the Pi de Migdia area, so it was easy to spend the first couple of days getting our snow legs back.

We were also lucky that on the second day we were there, we had a night and a day of snow which replenished the powder on the pistes. That was followed by a bluebird day, so all in all, perfect conditions.

Left on my own for about four more days, I got to explore Grandvlira at my leisure. Considering the ski area is something in the region of 210 kms, spread across four valleys, or thereabouts, I had plenty to keep me amused on my own. I’m not an expert by any means but I found most of the runs pleasantly long, suitably challenging, and big enough not to find yourself stuck in traffic. And with plenty of variety, it was easy to spend almost a whole day in one valley finding new runs. Very simply, I had an awesome time and explored every valley as much as I could.

Who is Grandvalira suitable for?

I’m pretty much an intermediate snowboarder, spending most of this trip trying to up my speed and land some jumps. My buddy is basically a beginner, having only ever snowboarded on an indoor slope. I think it’s safe to say that both of us found the terrain that we were looking for.

If you’ve never been skiing or snowboarding before, I think Grandvalira, and particularly the areas around Pas de la Casa and El Tarter, are ideal starter terrain. There are small learner slopes and some good options to level up.

Those who are more advanced will plenty of gems and even a bit of off piste to get stuck into. There were several snowparks too, although I’m definitely not that level yet…

Average costs in Grandvalira, Andorra

As you’d expect, it’s cheaper in the resorts and prices climb considerably on the mountain. Example prices for 2019/2020 season:

Pas de la Casa is at one end of the Grandvalira ski area, and has a great ski run from the mountain into town. I tended to lunch here when on my own as it was a lot cheaper and had much better options for food – plus shorter queues.

But, the quality of food on the mountain was not bad, but lunch times tended to involve huge queues and stressed staff.

Eating, drinking and apres ski

In El Tarter itself there were enough dining options to keep you amused for a week, although Pas de la Casa definitely had more options. Most food and bar options are on the main street in El Tarter, with a few on the lift/mountain side and a couple down near the Ransol roundabout/Manacor.

El Abarset: The apres ski bar just off the slopes, with a large outdoor terrace and screen showing sports highlights. A good spot to get the sunset, but seems to close for meal service at around 6pm.

Dylans: On the hight street, Dylans has a thin bar on one side and a restaurant serving pizza and burgers on the other. Got packed quickly but seemed to be the go-to place to hang out in El Tarter. Pizzas looked good, but we were just drinking in here…

Burger Brothers: Also on the El Tarter high street, this small gourmet burger joint was affordable and delicious. A simple menu and friendly service.

Trattoria San Pietro: We were walking down the El Tarter main street one evening when we saw the huge and generously topped pizzas and thought, oh yeah we’ll go for that. Great pizzas, reasonable price – A margarita was under €10 with some primo options for up to around €15.

Restaurant Manacor: This was on our list of places to eat, serving up generous Andorran meat platters and Catalan specialities. But, it was a bit of a walk down to the Manacor supermarket and restaurant and we didn’t end up going. But, it looks great, and reasonably priced too.

Self catering in El Tarter? On our first day we stocked up at the huge Caves Manacor which are about a 5-10 minute walk from the centre of El Tarter. Although it’s a bit of a tourist trap, with lots of local produce and free tasting samples, it’s a bit expensive although they do have pretty much everything you might need. As a duty free shop, it’s got a huge selection of booze (local and brands) and a a whole floor dedicated to tobacco products.

As my self catering tip for anyone visiting El Tarter or Grandvalira in general, I found that the petrol station had a great selection at much more normal prices. Just across the road from Manacor, a block of cheese could be bought for €2, as opposed to €5-10 in Manacor, and a pack of stuffed tortellini pasta was under €3, as opposed to €5-8 in Manacor.

Anyone staying in Soldeu and Pas de la Casa will find a lot more dining and shopping options. Pas de la Casa especially seemed more like a functioning town with independent and chain restaurants including MacDonalds, Burger King and Lizzaran (Spanish tapas chain which is highly recommended over the first two options).

A quick stop in Andorra la Vella

My trip back to Barcelona meant I got a bus from the capital, Andorra la Vella. Although quite small, it’s a densely packed town with lots of modern building and shopping centres scattered around.

I didn’t get to explore fully, but I did wander along the river and see some of the city. As we were starting to see the coronavirus pandemic scale up, I think people we’re doing their panic shopping, so my attempts to buy hand sanitiser for example fell flat. But, if you were planning to base yourself in Andorra la Vella and head to the Grandvalira ski area, the gondola from Canillo is the first access point, about ten minutes out of town on a bus.

There are lots of restaurants and bars, and it looks like a pleasant enough place to base yourself. But, if you’re serious about getting on the slopes with the least amount of hassle, choose one of the towns closer to the access points like El Tarter, Soldeu or Pas de la Casa.

Getting to Andorra

There is no airport or train station in Andorra, so the best way to get there is either to drive, or take the bus. We flew in to Barcelona from London and caught the AND Bus service, which took around 3.5 hours directly to our resort in El Tarter. Cost was around €45 one way, or €75 return, with pickup from Barcelona Airport.

There is also the option for an Alsa Bus service from Barcelona and other Spanish cities such as Zaragoza and Girona, which is cheaper than the AND Bus. It cost me €25 to go from Andorra la Vella back to Barcelona.

You can also connect to Andorra by bus from Toulouse or Lourdes in France.

There are three main ski areas in Andorra: Grandvalira (the biggest by far), Vallnord Pal-Arinsal and Ordino-Arcalis which is the smallest of the three. Passes for Grandvalira often include Ordino-Arcalis too, but it’s not linked and is quite far away so you’re probably unlikely to go there unless you are in town for a long time.

Transfers will take you direct to your resort, usually the main road nearest your hotel where you’ll need to make your own way. However, the towns are all pretty small, so you won’t need to walk far.

How does Grandvalira compare to other ski resorts?

If you’re weighing up the best place to go skiing or snowboarding, and Andorra is on your shortlist, then this might help you decide.

In 2019, I went to Avoriaz which is part of the Porte du soleil ski region in France and Switzerland. It was, frankly, excellent with a nice big area and lots of selection of slopes. Avoriaz has shorter transfer times (1 hr 45 ish) from Geneva, is more snow sure and is better for apres ski. Read the full review of Avoriaz and Snowboxx festival here.

However, Grandvalira has a bigger linked area of lifts and slopes.

Mayrhofen is one of the most popular ski areas in Austria, and is part of the huge Zillertal ski area. With your Zillertal pass you can access different mountains all the way down the valley, meaning you’ll probably not even get to explore all of the valley even in a full season. Fresh snowfall is more likely in the Austrian Alps, with the season often running into May. The transfer from Innsbruck is also much quicker (around 1hr 30), with options for public transport (the train service is very good). And also Mayrhofen’s apres ski scene is legendary.

Read the full review of Mayrhofen here.

However, on it’s own merits, Grandvalira is excellent and highly recommended, especially if you’re a beginner or learner. Over 200 kms of linked pistes, a more Spanish/Catalan vibe (including that great food and better beer than France) make Andorra and Grandvalira a solid choice.

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