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Resort Guide

Suitability	Resort height: 1780m
Families:		[Yes]
Glacier:		[No]
Beginners:		[4]
Intermediates:		[4]
Advanced:		[2]
Snowboarding:		[3]

A long standing favourite with north European visitors, Arinsal is today part of a larger group of ski villages in Andorra that have called themselves Vallnord. Vallnord (which also includes the ski areas of Pal, to which Arinsal is linked by ski lift, and Ordino-Arcalis, to which you need to take a bus) shares Andorra with Grandvalira, which is made up of the ski villages of Soldeu, El Tarter and Pas de la Casa. All can be skied in five days on a Ski Andorra pass if you like, or there is the local Vallnord ticket which will satisfy most people.

Although Andorra, and particularly Arinsal, has something of an Ibiza image as a lively, relatively down market destination, that image is now long out of date. For more than a decade Andorra has been improving the quality of its ski holiday product and alas it’s not as cheap as it used to be either. That said, Arinsal’s lift tickets and the cost of an evening out still compare favourably with most ski areas in the Alps, it’s just that the savings today are more marginal than they were in the 1970s and ‘80s.

However, the quality of Andorran skiing has undoubtedly improved. There has been a beautification process in resort so that buildings are now largely stone clad and very attractive in an under-stated, almost Swiss, kind of way. On the mountain there has been large scale investment in state of the art lifts and snowmaking, with recently installed gondolas linking ski areas, together and village centres to ski areas where once a bus ride was required between your hotel and the ski slopes. But Arinsal does remain a rather strung out resort sloping for about a mile downhill from the gondola base station, so if you don’t want an uphill walk or to take a bus at the start of the day, be wary to check the location of your chosen accommodation before you book.

Beginners

An excellent choice for beginners, Arinsal has a good beginners area right at the top of the easy to use gondola. Here it has installed modern conveyor lifts so your first encounter with a drag lift can be postponed until you are steady on your feet. The snow playground for children is nearby so it’s easy for first time families to learn close to each other – which is handy for drop-off and pick-up of the kids too. The ski school also has a high reputation as one of the world’s friendliest and most professional with many British, Aussie and Kiwi teachers.

Intermediates

Although not one of Europe’s bigger ski areas, the Pal – Arinsal sector is made up largely of fast blue and red cruisers served by modern high-speed chairlifts and gondolas, so this is a fun and user-friendly destination for less demanding intermediates who are happy to get a lot of kilometres clocked up beneath their skis.

Advanced

Not known as a major destination for advanced skiers, Vallnord has six black runs in their total repertoire of more than 70 pistes. The Arcalis ski area (included on your Vallnord pass but a bus ride away) is pushed as the main destination for experts, with 50% of the terrain graded advanced and a 310 hectare area designated a Freeride Zone. There are two further freeride areas above Arinsal itself around the La Capa black and the Comellada black at Pal, but they are much smaller.

Snowboarding

Arinsal is very popular with snowboarders both on and off the slopes. The freeride areas and bump runs in the Pal and Arinsal sectors above the resort attract both pros and wannabes, whilst everyone else just enjoys the wide open powder bowls. There is a Freestyle Area covering 40,000 square metres which includes a half pipe, rails, kickers and jumps as well as a chill out area with comfortable seating and music.

Other Activities and Facilities

There are plenty of activities available in the area but these are promoted for Vallnord as a whole so may be up to 30 minutes away from Arinsal. On snow fun includes snowmobiling and snowshoeing (Both based in Arcalis or Pal). Dog sledding is available in Pal where there are also amphibious vehicle rides available and ski bikes (like normal bikes but with skis instead of wheels) to hire.

An excursion to the Andorran capital and duty free shopping mecca La Vella, just ten minutes away, is worthwhile. This is also home to the famous Caldea water spa which is a day trip in its own right. From Arinsal itself you can take a 10 minute helicopter sight-seeing flight

Après Ski and Dining Out

Still one of the liveliest and most affordable apres ski destinations in the apres-skiing world, Arinsal has more than two dozen bars and restaurants to enjoy. You can expect Andorran, Catalan, Spanish, French and Italian cuisine as well as British favourites and some South American influence from Argentina and Mexico. Most establishments offer good meals at good prices, but as Andorra has moved more up-market so more gourmet establishments have arrived such as Xalet Montane. The bars open long in to the small hours and in many cases don’t really get going until around midnight.

Families

All of Andorra’s ski areas are great for children. The ski schools and the nurseries they operate are amongst the best in the world with many of the teachers and carers recruited in the UK, Australia and New Zealand and first class facilities to boot. The ski school accepts children from age four to eight to learn in the special snow gardens and they also operate a non-ski Baby club for children aged one (providing the child can walk) to four. Both of these facilities were totally redesigned for the 2007-8 season. Older children have regular group classes. Vallnord strongly recommends that children wear helmets and even offers a one euro discount on the ticket price when they do.

Accommodation in Arinsal

• Aparthotel Poblado - 3 star, self catering
• Aparthotel Poblado - 3 star, self catering
• Aparthotel Xalet Besoli - 3 star, half board
• Aparthotel Xalet Besoli - 3 star, half board
• Aparthotel Xalet Besoli - 3 star, half board
• Arinsal Hotel - 2 star, half board
• Coma Pedrosa - 2 star, half board
• Diana Parc - 5 star, half board
• Diana Parc - 5 star, half board
• Diana Parc - 5 star, half board
• Diana Parc - 5 star, half board
• Hotel Princessa Parc - 4 star, half board
• Hotel Solana - 3 star, half board
• Hotel St Gothard - 4 star, half board
• Hotel St. Gothard - 4 star, half board
• Hotel Xalet Besoli - 3 star, half board
• Hotel Xalet Verdu - 3 star, half board
• Hotel Xalet Verdu - 4 star, half board
• Micolau - 2 star, half board
• Micolau - 2 star, half board
• Montane - 3 star, half board
• Montane - 3 star, half board
• Montane - 3 star, half board
• Palarine - 3 star, half board
• Patagonia - 4 star, half board
• Poblado Apartments - 3 star, bed & breakfast
• Poblado Saver - 1 star, bed & breakfast
• Princesa Parc - 4 star, bed & breakfast
• Princesa Parc - 4 star, half board
• Princesa Parc - 4 star, half board
• Princesa Parc - 4 star, half board
• Princesa Parc/diana Parc - 4 star, half board
• Sant Moritz Apartments - 3 star, self catering
• Sant Roma Apartments - 3 star, self catering
• Solana Hotel - 3 star, half board
• St. Gothard - 4 star, half board
• St. Moritz Apartments - 4 star, half board
• Xalet Verdu - 4 star, half board

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