Located in the far northwest corner of the principality, the Vall d'Ordino area has somehow managed to escape the mass tourism that is a feature of Andorras other ski resorts. Ordino Arcalis is Andorra’s newest ski area and one of the most picturesque ski resorts in Andorra, with cobbled streets set around an old town square. With altitudes of 1940 and 2620 metres, ordino arcalis ski resort usually gets a good quality and quantity of snow throughout the entire ski season. The closest accommodation is in Ordino, but this inconvenience is offset somewhat by the historic character of the village. And as there is no accomodation at Aracalis, the ski runs are not as crowded as at other Andorran resorts. Another feature is good views of Coma Pedrosa, Andorra's highest peak.
The resort is less popular with UK skiers and mainly consits of tourists from Spain, France and Russia. It is not the resort to come to if you are looking for a wild nightlife. The order of the evening is a relaxing meal, followed by early bed before a long hard day of skiing.
The main drawback for Andorra is that there is no international airport, so you are faced with long transfer times, typically from Barcelona which is 140 miles away.
Resort ratings summary (out of 10):
Overall: 7
Skiing: 7
Snow: 8
Apres Ski: 6
Suitable for: beginner / intermediate / expert
Not suitable for: non skiiers
Resort Summary:
Population: 1600
Currency: euro
Language: The official language of Andorra is Catalan, but many Andorrans also speak Spanish and/or French.
Resort Altitude: 1940m (6365ft)
Winter Season: November to April
Number of beds: there are 14 hotels and 5 aparthotels (apartments)
Nearest Airport: None in Andorra. The nearest are Barcelona (140 miles) and Toulouse (112 miles).
Nearest Town: Andorra La Vella (14km)
Nearest rail station:
Getting there by road: easy
Snow:
Snow reliability: very good
Current snow conditions: snow conditions from the BBC
About the ski runs:
Total piste length: 24km (442 hectares skiing area)
Vertical Drop: 660m (2165ft)
Number of ski runs: 24 (6 green, 7 blue, 9 red, 2 black plus 1 slalom run)
Longest run: 2km
Beginner %: 55
Intermediate %: 35
Advanced %: 10
Snowboard parks: none
Ski school: 40 instructors (telephone: (376) 850 121)
About the ski lifts:
Highest lift: 2600m (8530ft)
Lowest Lift: 1940m (6365ft)
Number of Lifts: 13 (5 chairlifts and 8 gondolas)
Lift capacity: 16510 per hour
The cost of ski passes (2004 / 05):
Adult 1 day: 28 Euros
Adult 6 days: 125 Euros
Child 1 day: 23 Euros
Child 6 days: 105 Euros
Restaurants, Apres ski and non skiiers:
Ordino Arcalis ski resort is definitely not the area for apres ski and the non skiier. Apres-ski activities in Ordino, La Massana and Andorra la Vella and there are 34 bar / restaurants - mostly very traditional restaurants that the locals also frequent, with one pizzeria - as well as the 'Vertical Limit Cafe' (which offers an eclectric menu) and one pub. There is also a sports centre with an indoor pool, children's pool, gym, sauna and spa. Those who speak no French or Spannish may have communication problems. The local town, Andorra la Vella, has every conceivable variety of duty free shop.
Resort contact details:
Telephone: (376) 73 70 80
Fax: (376) 6 83 92 25
Nursery and kindergarten: (376) 864 121
Email: ito@andorra.ad
Website: www.andorra.ad/comuns/ordino or www.vallordino.com (click on the english flag)
