Around 1,300,000 Spaniards skied last year at the three ski resorts in Andorra and the 39 that are spread out in the French Pyrenees. The great novelty this winter on the slopes of the Principality is the union of its three centers —Grandvalira, Pal Arinsal and Ordino Arcalis— under the same brand, Grandvalira Resorts Andorra, which implies, among other things, the possibility of skiing with the same Ski pass, either seasonal or multi-day, in any of the three seasons.
The cost of these passes is determined by a new concept of dynamic pricing that varies according to age, the dates chosen, even the level of occupation of the slopes. Buying through the web you get discounts of up to 15%.
But if what you are looking for is, above all, cheap skiing, some resorts on the French side offer really competitive prices; 19 euros per day in Artouste or 23.50 euros in La Pierre Saint-Martin, to name two cases. Without losing sight of proposals such as the No’Souci card, which allows access to 14 winter centers with discounts on the general rate and works like a credit card that is detected when entering the ski lifts.
The range of prices for this winter is complemented in the French mountains with a multitude of recreational activities parallel to skiing and snowboarding, such as the powerful offer of spas in most of the seasons.
Andorra
For the first time, it will be possible to ski in the three resorts of Andorra with a single ski pass thanks to the commercial union between Pal Arinsal and Grandvalira Resorts, which also includes Ordino Arcalis. In total, 303 kilometers of tracks that require, yes, road trips between each of the three centers. With the Grandvalira ski pass (from two days) you can freely access the facilities of the other two stations.
25% of the energy consumed by the three stations already comes from self-production systems. Even so, it is possible that skiers will find duplicate ski lifts closed this season, reduced speed, even reduced hours to save consumption. In any case, the intention is that the client does not notice these measures if they are applied.
Grandvalira (210 kilometers of slopes; day pass: 59 euros adults), the largest station in southern Europe, opens, among many other things, the Pont-Grau slope that links Port d’Envalira with Bordes, increasing by 14 the skiable hectares, and the longest snowtubbing on the continent: 350 meters with night lighting and two tunnels that cross under the slopes and that will allow speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour. The areas dedicated to little skiers have received numerous improvements, including the three new Fun Cross circuits (fun tracks with jumps, tunnels and other obstacles) in Soldeu. L’Abarset, where more than 50,000 people passed last year, will continue to be the great space for leisure after skiing.
Pal Arinsal, the most familiar of the three Andorran resorts, incorporates the use of drones to control the thickness of the snow and Ordino Arcalis, which has a spectacular off-piste and the longest green slope in the Pyrenees, opens two new ski lifts for Newcomers in Planells and Vailets. From January 20 to 22, the Montana Ski World Cup is held in Coma Pedrosa; from February 4 to 9, the Freeride World Tour in Ordino Arcalis, and, in March, the finals of the Alpine Ski World Cup and the Thrown Kilometer World Cup will take place, both in Grandvalira.
french pyrenees
The three stations in the Atlantic Pyrenees are the most visited by Basque fans due to their proximity. Gourette, at the foot of the mythical Col d’Aubisque, replaces the old gondola with the Bosses chairlift, opening up three new pistes for beginners and improving the connection between all sectors of the domain. Pierre Saint-Martin’s offers a track for electric snow bikes and Artouste, the closest facility to Spain, opens a new freestyle area.
In the central Pyrenees are the largest and most well-known stations on the north side of the chain. Saint Lary (more than 100 kilometers of slopes; day pass: 46 euros adults) turns 65 this winter and boasts of being a pioneer in winter sports and of having its slopes next to a town of extraordinary Pyrenean charm where you can listen to talk in Spanish is not strange. It presents a major remodeling of its facilities, increases its slopes by 1.6 kilometers, launches the Espiaube cable car and a six-seater chairlift, both to the Tourette peak, and removes five old ski lifts and 38 bollards to clean the mountain of iron. In addition to archery, ax and knife throwing and laser biathlon, this year it organizes rides through the forest on quad bikes, a mixture of bicycles and pedal go-karts with big wheels.
Grand Tourmalet (more than 100 kilometers of slopes; day pass: 49 euros adults) is also in the process of being remodeled to welcome tourists all year round, not just in winter. It offers skiers a great difference in altitude, 1,500 meters from the Pic du Midi, and 11 kilometers from one end of the domain to the other, linking the slopes of its two slopes, Bareges and La Mongie. In addition, this season it opens two areas for families and its first four-star hotel.
Peyragudes (56 kilometers of slopes; day pass: 44 euros adults), a charming station, straddling the Col de Peyresourde on the route of the ports, raises its maximum level to 2,368 meters with the installation of a ski lift to Cap de Hittes which gives access to a black slope with a 1,000 meter drop to La Vallee Blanche and to two new freeride areas in the Monsegu valley. It increases its skiable area by 20%. Luz Ardiden, in the Luz-Saint-Sauveur valley, inaugurates a blue slope and a boardercross on the snow front, as well as a rest area at the base of the facilities; Piau-Engaly, a stone’s throw from Spain, proposes fat scooting (a mix of scooter and bike) before the slopes open, and Cauterets, capital of spas at the beginning of the last century, announces the reopening of the Wallon refuge-hotel.
The Neiges Catalanes group brings together seven alpine ski centers plus a Nordic space from Alto Conflent to La Cerdana and El Capcir, on the easternmost side of the chain. Les Angles (55 kilometers of slopes; day pass: 43 euros adults) is the largest of them with 70% of its surface provided with artificial snow, a sled on rails two kilometers long and located above a pretty village foot of tracks Font-Romeu Pyrenees 2,000 incorporates this year a green track (very easy) of almost four kilometers and a connecting walkway between the two areas that make up the center. Here we can also find the Nordic station of Capcir, an immense flat territory of 100 kilometers where you can practice sports as fun as ski joering (the skier is dragged by a horse or by dogs), sledding with pony.
