Andorra
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More
than most winter sports countries, Andorra invites
generalizations. Because it's such a small country, all
the resort villages are remarkably similar, having almost
all the same pluses and minuses: low prices (including
duty-free goods), ugly villages, lively bars and clubs,
good ski schools, fairly reliable snow, young clientele, a
lot of Brits, mainly easy, well groomed, and often busy
slopes with plenty of snowmaking facilities and mediocre
mountain restaurants, are all fairly typical of Andorran
resorts across the board.
There's
an immediate temptation to compare Andorra to Eastern
Europe. Some of the above pluses and minuses would be
appropriate to Borovets and company, too. But Andorra
really is in a different league. It is somewhat more
expensive (though still cheap by Alpine standards), has
much better lifts and other resort infrastructure, much
livelier nightlife, attracts a mostly young and lively
clientele rather than families, and has more reliable
snow.
In
recent years there has been substantial investment in
efficient, modern lifts and this year's reporters have
been extremely complimentary about the new lifts and the
high standard of piste maintenance and grooming.
Boarding
As with most places that draw a young crowd, boarding has
a big following in Andorra. Most of the resorts now boast
fun-parks and half-pipes amongst their facilities, and
many areas are installing more chairs and gondolas.
Tuition is excellent, and there is a lively après-board
scene, with good cheap bars and pumping clubs.
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What's
Great
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What's
Not-So-Great
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+
Cheap packages; duty free prices in resort
+ Excellent choice for beginners and early
intermediates, with resorts that offer good tuition,
good piste grooming and mountains that won't
frighten
+ Lots of efficient, modern new lifts
+ Lively nightlife with cheap drinks and
generous measures of spirits
+ Resorts close enough to each other - and
some are now linked - so you can sample at least one
other during a week
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Fairly limited slopes, with little to challenge
experts
- Most resorts have little in the way of
charm, and Soldeu and Pas de la Casa are sited on
the busy main road through the country
- Nightlife tends to revolve around booze and
clubs - not much variety and can get rowdy at night
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Learn
more about Andorra
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