“If you’re lost with someone in the mountains, you want it to be Sergi,” says Prisca Llagostera, referring to the chef and hunter-gatherer leading us on a hike through the U-shaped Incles Valley in northeastern Andorra, near the French border. “This can be an aggressive little valley.”
Similar to how the principality of Monaco integrates aspects of France and Italy into its culture, the landlocked Mediterranean microstate of Andorra blends the best of its French, Spanish, and Catalan neighbors. Nearly 92% of the nation—one of the world’s smallest, measuring about 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC—is blanketed in forest, the occasional Romanesque church crowning valleys like a star on a Christmas tree. Given the harsh weather in the petite principality—which you can drive across in less than an hour—agriculture is limited. Valleys can feel as remote and cut off from the world as parts of Patagonia. Modern-day gauchos—who moonlight as ski outfitters in winter—zip along trails by motorbike tending to their cattle, and chefs like Sergi, who cooks at Prisca’s four-bedroom mountain lodge and restaurant, L’Ovella Negra, are a one-person show—hunting, fishing, foraging, and fermenting.
A three-hour drive from Barcelona or Toulouse—the capital of France’s southern Occitanie region—Andorra is becoming more popular in summer for those who would rather skip the crowds on Costa Brava’s beaches in favor of fresh mountain air and empty hiking trails where you’re more likely to spot grazing cattle than another trekker. Cyclists and mountain bikers train on steep stretches along peaks staggering nearly 9,800 feet high (Andorra hosts the Mountain Bike World Cup in summers), some of which double as ski slopes and snowshoe paths in winter.
The same well-heeled crowd that spends off-season in Ibiza or lives in Barcelona jet over to Andorra for weekend winter après-ski events and gastronomic pop-ups along the slopes. “We don’t have the French, Swiss, or Austrian culture of après-ski—it’s something that’s newer here,” says Andorra-born Prisca, who managed an igloo-style ice hotel for three years before opening her lodge. “Things have changed over the past 10 years and the quality has really improved at the ski resorts—they’re doing something different than other places in Europe. Everything is a little more low-key, more exclusive.”
Below, a guide to Andorra—and why the under-the-radar principality is poised to be one of Europe’s most exciting après-ski spots this winter.
Where to Stay
When Prisca first visited the borda (mountain home where families once stored cattle and dried tobacco from the ceiling) that would become her lodge, it was winter and there were only two ways to reach the end of the valley: snowcat or snowshoe. “I've lived in Patagonia where everything is also challenging to access, so that wasn’t really a problem for me,” she says. Envisioning a contemporary take on the traditional dark wood-and-stone building, Prisca converted the bottom floor into a homestyle restaurant and living room-like space. Communal tables, cognac-colored armchairs, and plum velvet couches are positioned around the centerpiece fireplace—which is lit all winter long. The only design-driven lodge of its kind in the country, L’Ovella Negra’s four upstairs bedrooms look out over the valley’s surrounding snowcapped peaks, which can be explored via guided snowshoe hikes, ski mountaineering, or dog sled. At the restaurant, fill up on venison Wellington and lamb shoulder slow-cooked on spits over an open flame. In the winter, warm up with soup and wild boar stew at a communal table in the seasonal pop-up wooden shack.
In nearby Grau Roig, at the foot of Grandvalira ski resort’s lifts, the 42-room Grau Roig Boutique Hotel & Spa is designed with mountain materials (oak, iron, and leather) and luxurious touches like hydromassage tubs or a wood barrel bath perfect for soaking after a day on the slopes. Pop off your skis and break for classic Andorran cuisine near the Grandvalira chairlift at lunch-only La Vaquería, where firepits warm tables on the al fresco terrace. Also in Grandvalira in the town of Soldeu, the wellness-focused luxury lodgings at Hermitage Mountain Residences are styled more like private chalets, with nine residences scattered across five floors. The closest to what you’d find in ritzy resorts in France’s Val d’Isère or St. Moritz, alpine-chic rooms are outfitted with double-sided fireplaces in the dining and living rooms, outdoor terraces overlooking the slopes, and luxe extras like butler service and private chef-cooked meals. Another option is the new four-suite villa Hermitage Mountain Lodge, which sits on the slopes of El Tarter.
Andorra’s 70 mountains are dotted with simple wooden refugios, or shelters. In the southeastern valley of Madriu-Perafita-Claror, the six-room Refugi de l’illa is among the highest in the country and only reachable by helicopter in winter (not surprisingly, cell service is limited in the area). A former house for construction workers, the 1930s building has been converted into a modern mountain hut with Scandinavian-inspired light wood interiors and shared bunks with windows showing off views of the surrounding snow-drenched scenery.
Where to Eat and Drink
Zero-kilometer cuisine isn’t a trend here—it’s a way of life in Andorra’s patchwork of valleys, where seasons dictate what’s on your plate. In winter, hearty escudella (a vegetable, meat, and sausage stew) and trinxat (which some consider the national dish), a latke-like pancake of mashed cabbage, potatoes, and bacon, are staples. Trekking along the nearly 200 miles of high-altitude trails, you’ll notice wild blueberries, chanterelle mushrooms, and stinging nettle—which is crushed into pesto, blended as soup, or dried and sprinkled on venison or lake trout—sprouting along the well-groomed paths. In March, as the snow melts, a local dandelion plant called xicoies—which is only in bloom for about two weeks—is plucked and pan-fried with bacon and pine nuts.
A few dozen bordas across Andorra now open up as restaurants serving traditional dishes like sauteed favetes (broad beans) with ham and mint and venison carpaccio. Book a table at Malandra, a favorite for its Argentine-style grilled meats, or rest your legs after skiing in Grau Roig at the scenic Refugi del Llac de Pessons, whose outdoor terrace sits on the edge of the namesake lake. Dishes here range from classic to contemporary Andorran fare with a heavy focus on chargrilled meat like Wagyu beef. For fine dining, try wine-focused Beç or head to Kökosnøt in the capital Andorra la Vella for a seasonal menu of elevated takes on regional favorites, such as embutidos (house-cured sausage) and 42-hour-cured cow tongue dipped in activated charcoal that’s served on a pine sprig-topped slate platter.
Pop into Atelier by Aitor Estela for a whimsical nightcap like an AeroPress negroni or Pyrenees Mule with pineapple-infused vodka, celery and lime juice, ginger beer, and elderflower cordial. An afternoon favorite in summer for its umbrella-shielded riverside terrace, 13,5**°** Winebar doubles as a cozy après-ski spot with its antique Louis Vuitton trunks-turned-tables, large selection of by-the-glass wines, and tapas like mini croque-monsieur sandwiches.
What to Do
The Grandvalira, Ordino Arcalís, and Pal Arinsal resorts offer skiers and snowboarders nearly 200 miles of marked runs that cater to all levels, plus three World Cup slopes, themed children’s ski areas, and snowmobile and mushing circuits. If you want to go off-piste, heli-ski on more extreme runs, or helicopter to a wine-fueled picnic on one of the surrounding peaks with bottles from some of the highest-altitude vines in the world (family-run Casa Auvinyà’s pinot-syrah blends are worth seeking out).
The first and only true après-ski spot in Andorra and now the largest scene in southern Europe—L’Abarset brings the spirit of Ibiza’s clubs (and its DJs)—plus events thrown by open-air nomadic festival Brunch Electronik—to Grandvalira. On weekends, start the morning at L’Abarset’s alpine-chic restaurant with a filling breakfast of dry-cured Catalan pork mini baguettes or sausage with beans; snack throughout the afternoon on tapas like stuffed olives and anchovies on ciabatta; or go for something more gastronomic in the evenings, like Galician steak tartare or lobster tacos.
When you’re ready for a break from the slopes, Caldea is a spa version of après-ski, with champagne sessions on the weekends, live music, and acrobatic performances. Designed by French water architect Jean Michel Ruols, the hydrotherapy playground is fueled by the area’s thermal springs. The bell tower-inspired building (a nod to Andorra’s many Romanesque churches) is the tallest in the country, and everything from the panoramic lagoon—which feels like it’s suspended in air—to the transparent floor of the outdoor terrace brings elements of the surrounding mountains indoors (you can even stargaze from the jacuzzis).
Get your cultural fix browsing contemporary art galleries like Taranmana, which champions mixed-media pieces from a range of Andorran and Spanish artists, or stroll through a traditional village like 12th-century Sant Julià de Lòria, home to the country’s handful of wineries. In Andorra la Vella, Gallery is a boutique curated with brands like Missoni and Isabel Marant, while vibrant concept shop ..STAY features a mix of housewares, coffee table books, and jewelry. For sneakers and streetwear, Pollyanna blends Parisian brands like ba&sh and VEJA with under-the-radar labels like Copenhagen’s Rabens Saloner, known for its handmade, Balinese artist-designed tie-dye prints.