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ANDORRA: Europe's Forgotten Nation

Principality of Andorra
Principality of Andorra

I don't normally do these sorts of MyTakes, but since so many of my followers are inquiring about my visit to Andorra, I thought I'd just write a MyTake on it. If you don't know, I visited Andorra for a few hours in mid January, as part of a day tour through the Pyrenees.

Quick Facts

In case you haven't heard of it, and chances are you haven't, Andorra is that tiny round thing on the map between France and Spain, in the Pyrenees Mountains. It is believed to have been founded by Charlemagne, at the beginning of the 9th century. It is the 6th smallest nation in Europe, and is home to just over 77,000 people, some of whom only live in Andorra for part of the year. The nation is also home to the highest capital city in Europe, the largest spa in southern Europe and the world's longest living people, with an average life expectancy of 81 years. The country was virtually isolated from the outside world, until the early 90s, when a new constitution was drafted. The country has progressed significantly within the past 20 years. Today it is a popular skiing and shopping destination and has been accused, even by locals, of being incredibly boring. The country has no airport or train station, so if you're planning to visit Andorra for your next holiday, you'll have to fly into Spain or France, then either rent a car or take a bus.

Map of Andorra
Map of Andorra

History and Politics

As I mentioned previously, this tiny principality is sandwiched between Spain and France. SPAIN and FRANCE! The country's which together colonized nearly 50% of the world's territory. So the first thing you're probably wondering is, "How the hell has Andorra not been conquered?" Well, even for me the reason is difficult to understand. In Lehman's terms, way back in the day Andorra made a deal with Spain and France that they would allow them to keep their sovereignty, provided they had some say of what went on there. So to this day the country is officially ruled by a Prime Minister, but also the current Bishop of Urgell (the original ruler of Andorra when the nation was first established ), and the French president. All three officially have a say in what goes on here. In the 1930s, Russian author and adventurer Boris Skossyreff, proclaimed himself the King of Andorra, but was quickly deposed by Spanish authorities.

If you're really interested, this video explains it in full detail.


Being sandwiched in between France and Spain and being co-governed by the French president, you would think Andorra would be a member of Schengen and the European Union, but it's not. Our guide explained that the two main reasons for this are, they don't want immigrants (it's basically impossible to get residency here), and they don't want to be bound by EU tax laws. However, the official currency of Andorra is the Euro. All this means that "officially" you need a passport, and in some cases a multi-entry Schengen visa to enter the country. Unofficially however, these laws aren't really enforced, especially if you're an EU resident or traveling as part of an organized tour. However, an Andorra passport stamp is still a cool souvenir to have, and it's always a good idea to stop at an official border crossing. That being said, even if you don't have a multi-entry Schengen visa, you probably won't have any issues visiting Andorra for a day trip, as French and Spanish customs officials know this is common, and are mainly interested in what you're bringing back. Which leads us to the next topic.....

A Shopping and Tax Haven

Our guide seemed to be the only one who was aware that Andorra is about more than just shopping and skiing, but ask most people about Andorra and "shopping" is what you'll hear. This is due to the fact that Andorra has no sales tax and almost no income tax. Most of the nation's income comes from advertising and exportation of electricity. Many foreigners take advantage of the duty free laws to shop for high quality products, which can be bought for a cheaper price than in neighboring Spain and France. You often hear that Andorra's capital is basically a large shopping mall. This is fairly accurate.

Shop selling authentic Persian rugs
Shop selling authentic Persian rugs

Andorran Culture

Andorra is a very multicultural country. The people we call "ethnic Andorrans" are really just Catalans, and make up only 49% of the county's population. The second largest ethnic group are Spaniards, followed by Portuguese and French. Generally speaking though, Andorran culture is basically Catalan culture. In the capital, there is a sculpture of Salvador Dali's melting clock, as well as museums devoted to other Catalan artists and historical figures. The official language is also Catalan, though Spanish, French and Portuguese are widely spoken. The only thing that is considered uniquely Andorran are the country's stone churches, which are defined by their semicircular rotundas and prominent towers.

Church of Sant Esteve
Church of Sant Esteve

My Visit

The Border Zone

We entered the country at Pas de la Casa, which is the only official border crossing between France and Andorra. I had visited border towns before, in Europe and North America, and this was byfar the strangest one I had ever seen. Pas de la Casa is basically a modern day ski resort town. The architecture here was unlike anything I had seen in Europe, and seemed very out of place in a mountain setting. I honestly don't understand why they built a ski resort on the border, as the snow in France is exactly the same. And I honestly don't know if the area is more popular with French or Andorrans, but obviously someone knows something I don't, because the slops were quite busy. I thought our guide would give us some time to walk around, but I didn't complain when he just drove through. There is nothing here except modern hotels, restaurants and apartment buildings. Not the most interesting place I've been, and I was just hoping the rest of the country wouldn't be like this.

Border Town of Pas de la Casa
Border Town of Pas de la Casa

Rural Andorra

A rural settlement near Soldeu
A rural settlement near Soldeu

As our journey continued into the interior of the country, the barren snow covered mountains gave way to pine forest. This was more like it. After about 40 minutes of driving, our van pulled into a rural settlement on the outskirts of Soldeu. Okay, there was a giant restaurant here, and it was just outside a fairly decent sized town, but it was as rural as we would get on this trip. Here we got a chance to see what Andorra was like in the old days. Well, sort of. The stone walls which served as property boundaries were the only old thing here. The few stone buildings scattered around the valley were clearly modern buildings built in a traditional style, but at least it fit with the landscape. Unfortunately we couldn't walk up to the buildings, because they were on private property, but it was still nice to see a different side of the country.

The Modern Capital

Modern Streets of Andorra la Vella
Modern Streets of Andorra la Vella

After another hour of driving, we arrived in the country's capital and only major city, Andorra la Vella, which simply translates to "Andorra the Town". Not surprisingly we were greeted with more modern shops and apartment blocks. The streets of the capital felt more like the streets of Manhattan than a European city. Once again, the whole thing seemed out of place in this mountain setting. One cool thing about the capital though, is that it is the highest capital city in Europe, at around 3500 ft. Another interesting thing our guide pointed out, was the traffic lights that shined onto the sidewalk, so people walking and texting could know when it's safe to cross the street. I guess millennials are the same everywhere.

The Old Capital

ANDORRA: Europe's Forgotten Nation
Andorra's Barri Antic

I had no interest in looking at modern shopping malls, so when our guide offered a walking tour of the Old Town (Barri Antic) as an alternative, I was the first to raise my hand. I am sad to say that there isn't a whole lot left of the Old Town. The area was filled with older buildings, but the ones that people were living in had also been painted and renovated. The actual Old Town was very small, and the only attractions were a Romanesque church (half of which was built from modern materials), an old watch tower, and the former building of the general council. I made sure to explore every nuke and cranny. Basically this little street you see in my picture was the old part of the Old Town that looked traditional. Although the Old Town wasn't as exciting as I had hoped, it was still far more interesting than the modern shopping district.

Conclusion

ANDORRA: Europe's Forgotten Nation
Sign In The Capital

So, based on my brief visit, what would I say about Andorra? Does it offer more than just shopping and skiing, NO QUESTION. Is it really as boring as people say? Well, based on the things I was shown, I would say YES! Maybe if I explored on my own, I would come back with a different perception of it. Or maybe I wouldn't. I really don't know. What I CAN say is that Andorra doesn't have anything unique that you can't find in other European countries. The only reason I came here, is because I have OCD and want to visit every country in Europe. So yes, I basically just went so I could color in that little spot on my travel map. That being said, I would only visit for a day or two if you're close by. I wouldn't book a 10 day vacation here.

THANKS FOR READING. If this MyTake made you want to visit Andorra, avoid Andorra, or if you somehow managed to discover racism in it, leave me a comment.

ANDORRA: Europe's Forgotten Nation
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