In Summer, it's a birdwatchers' paradise. In Winter, it's a beginner to intermediate ski slope. At any time of the year, buy your perfume and Hi-Fis there.
New to ski? Go with friends in a tour, there they'll split you up in group according to the speed you can travel in,**kidding!**, but really it is because the last person in the group will determine the speed in which the whole group's travelling.
Try to stay as close to the ski lifts as possible and you're sorted. Andorra's really small, a local bus goes through it in less than an hour (correct me, it's been several years...), and the main road is like a laugh. When I went there there was too little snow so we prayed fervently, and it snowed first thing on New Year's Day...I'll never forget it. As optional extras can be cancelled by the weather (no snow followed by Blizzard, resulting in cancellation of a lot of off-piste activities such as tabaggonning (a sleigh ride down the slope with no brakes so you basically have to tilt to one side to stop)), including a trip to a local restaurant won't disappoint you one little bit. I spent much of my time playing pool off-piste, went dancing and got some cigarette burnts on my coat by the people who visited the same bar (never show off your amazing ability to dance if you look too oriental I'd say, ha ha...), but the coolest and understated place must be the local sports place, with stunning glass slope roof (think the Lourve Pyramid...) in the Centre for the (must be) heated swimming pool, and a very empty ice rink!(it is quite rare in the UK unless you book for a private lesson with coach).
Do ask Dr Dudley Baine (if you are either at LSE or Cambridge or know him personally)of the LSE Economic History Department, (who I understand to have been) currently on leave to Cambridge University about birdwatching in Andorra, he and his wife are quite keen... I'll soon get my first binocular once I'm done with this studying!
<b>Tips</b>: although this tiny new principality is situated on the mountain range (the Pyrenese) between Spain and France, only Pesetas were accepted widely and Spanish widely spoken in the parts I've been to. I had really nice and reasonably priced food, as well as nicely decorated, chinese restaurant next to my hotel...Long queues inside for ski lunches, but fish and chips and burgers can be found, and so could American-style breakfast. Not sure that the vegetarians would have that many choices.. I strongly recommend you buy the burgers from the outside counter rather than sit in a proper meal as it costs much more and it takes much longer.
Private skiing lessons for all levels can be found by just speaking to the School and/or directly to your group ski teacher. Mine's a lucky chap from Brighton.
<font face=impact>Watch out for the spectacular torch falls, by our very own teachers who have the ability and the guts to slide down the 80 degrees slope in the evening! (using ONLY one hand???)</font>
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