Andorra

OK, so there’s not much there beyond a tax haven and some beautiful Pyrenees scenery. But it’s a pretty, friendly, weird little mini-country where everyone speaks Spanish, French, and Catalan with about equal fluency, so Bravo!

Andorra la Vella is quite interesting to see, the rest is just ski resorts and agglomerations of huge duty-free stores calling themselves towns. If you’re into that, ok… But be advised that, if you don’t book a return trip from Barcelona or Toulouse, they seem to do everything to prevent you from leaving the country. We tried for one whole day, starting at 4:30 am – the buses either didn’t go at the times we’d been told or they didn’t go at the places we’d been told or they didn’t go at all. We had to change our further travel plans and skip other things just because they’re not able (or willing) to provide any decent public transport. So I do think it was kind of interesting, but in the end it wasn’t worth the hazzle for me.

It is a very small but beautiful country, you have a lot of natural landscapes to enjoy and if you like snow, this is the place you have to go, also, the city (andorra la veia) is a very beautiful place to go for a weekend. Unfortunately it does not have an airport, but you can go from Barcelona or France.

I visit Andorra whenever I have opportunity (2-3 times in a year), not by ski or because the stores are free of rates (that also), maybe because I can breathe a special air there, as of freedom… I adore it! Maybe some day I will live in Andorra…

Went there for a few hours while on tour to France and Spain almost 20 years ago. It was and I suppose still is a beautiful little place on Earth… and cheap too (it’s a Toll Free Area :-)