Snowboarding in Andorra! Anybody been?

eddie-n07

Im going snowboarding in Jan to Arinsal in Andorra. Its my first time (insert pun here) Has anyboby been? Whats it like? - Socialising, hotels, people, and most importantly the slopes? Remember im a first timer! What will i need for my first time skii holiday? Were booked all inclusive so skii clothes and boots are included - what else will i need???

Also were flying into Toulouse and traveling by bus to Arinsal! How long is the journey? Thanks:eek:

robinph

Andorra is fantastic for begginers, although I've never been to the Arinsal area before. The Grand-Valiara resorts are the ones I've done before (Pas de la Casa/ Soldeu/ El Tarter) and they are all good for learning and socialising, with the loudest being Pas down to El Tarter being the quietest.

The transfer from Tolouse is quite long, about 3 hours, but they will stop somewhere on the way for you to strech your legs and grab some food most likely. Although I've been to several other resorts with transfers about the same time so it's not that unusualy long really.

moorele

I've been to Soldeu in Andorra the last 2yrs running and I have to say I cant fault it!!! (Going back again 1st wk in Feb). I dont snowboard, I ski but a friend of mine snowboards in Arinsal quite a bit & again she cant fault it. Andorra is absolutely great for beginners & the ski/snowboard school is one of the best supposedly! I've used the ski school and again have never had a problem. I did a snowboard lesson on the last day there last year too & it was extremely difficult but the best of fun!!! All the instructors are a great laugh & you tend to end up having a few apres ski drinks with them.

I found nightlife in Soldeu great too. Lots of cosy bars & a few clubs. You usually end up having a good laugh with all your ski group (& suffer together the next day too!!!) One thing I will say tho seeing as its your 1st time... after a good day on the slopes you'll never feel tiredness like it!! You'll be trying to hold your head out of your pint by about 11.

The transfer from Toulouse can be a bit rough... Its prob a good 3-4hrs but thats including a stop over to stretch the legs. The place they stop is grand for a cup of tea/coffee but the food selection wouldnt be great so could be worth your while to pack a few sandwiches or whatever!

You'll love Andorra & have an absolute ball!!! Enjoy!

flikflak

I learnt to ski in Arinsal many moons ago and it rocked for nightlife!

The instructors were great and would make the learning great fun. Not too challenging terrain too - just right for a first week.

Yes, the transfer is a bugger - I think it took us about 4 hours by the time we had dropped everyone off.

We did it again a few years ago to Soldeu and that was only 2 hours in the car from Toulouse. Its those coaches winding up and down the mountains that take the time.

Andorra is great for beginners - you will have a fab time!

Overflow

Hey, I have been to Arinsal twice when i was learning to snowboard. Its a great place to learn, slopes are not that challenging, but when i think back to my first day ever snowboarding they did look daunting!

Night life was great, the best spot we found was called a pub called 'Quo Vadis Pub' very lively spot with really friendly staff. They free pour in the bars over here so you get some serious big measures of spirits. Dont forget is customary to buy a drink for the girls behind the bar. We were up drinking with them all night. Lucky our room was in the hotel above the bar. This pub is also right next to the main Gondola and you have to try their Jalapeno Poppers, damn tasty! There also the only place in town that does a fry up if your so inclined.

Another good place to go for something to eat is the Surf & Turf bar, you can get a huge T-Bone steak cooked in front of you on a charcoal fire also damn tasty. It also has a night club that opens later in the evening around 10-11.

I would say its a fairly young crowd that go to Arinsal. All in all i had a great time while i was there, like i said its great for beginners, but if you get the hang of the skiing while you are there i suggest go somewhere else more challenging the next time or you might find your self bored. A lot of people tend to just get stuck going to the same place over and over every year, whats the fun in that?

Just one other thing to note, i went there in early Jan both times and the snow was pretty poor, never snowed while we were there and the snow was parse on the mountain with a lot of slopes closed. Not trying to scare you but that was my personal experience with Arinsal.

Anyway hope you have a great time!

Angelica Rocks!

OP i am so jealous!!! i went to arinsal last year for new years, it was my first time snowboarding and it was absolutely brilliant!!!! there is a really nice place to eat called mangos (i think!!), and so much cheaper than at home.

instructors really good, and great with beginners. also a few of the pubs have guys up on the mountains during the day and they take vidoes of your group, which they put up on big screens in the pubs every night. its so much fun laughing at yourself on the big screen.

going to italy this year and if its half as much fun as last year we'll be doing well!!

have a brilliant time

vines

Oh Arinsal is AWESOME!!!
Look out for Andres (awesome ski and snowboard instructor, and a good friend of mine) and Andy. They're always at El Derby, and say hi to the South African twins who run El Derby..... They're sound out!
The slopes and atmosphere and accommodation and EVERYTHING about Arinsal is Perfect for beginners......
Have a great time!!!!!
I wish I was going back this year, I went last year and had the time of my life!!!!!!

imom922

Hi i'm on my way back to Andorra for the 8th year in a row, its great the mountain is linked by cable car to another ski resort called "Pal". You can get the bus in to town and head to Arcalis thats even better and its very quiet because there is no hotels local, its only a tenner in a taxi aswell.

Night life is also great and dont bring loads of "going out clothes" cause nine times out of ten when ya come down from the slopes you will stay out for the night, no Knuckle dragging doorman stopping you with your ski gear on.

If you have not booked a hotel dont there is a load of web sites with apartments to let. Thats what we do, we actually fly in to girona and hire a mini bus up to Andorra its about 2 hrs quicker of transfer.

Its a very freindly area and beginners and advanced will enjoy it, food is cheap, and you can go into town for electrical gadgets so so much cheaper. Watch out for baggage weight Ryan air hammer ya on the way home.

bongo2

I went to Arinsal last January. I was the only beginner in my group so it was fine for me. The others were experienced so they found it a bit boring. The Surf restaurant was the only decent one in the resort. It is right next to the gondola and the steaks are fantastic. The restaurants on the slopes are rubbish, chips, chips and mpre chips. We bought fresh bread, cheese and ham in the village in the morning and brought it with us. Enjoy your holiday

Rev. Kitchen

Said id ask in here rather than start a new thread but how expensive is andorra i was there once before about 11 years ago i was in bulgaria snowboarding last year and that was dirt cheap but we are thinking of hittign andorra this year Pas de la casa its around 470 and then 330 for the snowboarding pack ( lessons lift pass boards etc) so it will only be spending money i need outside that cost.

How much is a pint ? thats the most important question ( 50cent in bulgaria last year was brilliant )am i right in thinking it will be closer to a fiver in andorra ?
also food etc any tips would be helpfull too (like is pas de la case any good ? )

Overflow

If your looking for a dirt cheap ski holiday would you consider Poland, i dont think many people do, but i was there about 3 years ago in Karpacz. Its right on the border with the Czech Republic. We flew to Krakow and rented a car and drove to the resort.

It was a lovely little town with nice restaurants and pubs, but most importantly it was dirt cheap, 20c for a pint. We paid about €10 each for a full meal with beers and wine. Ski hire was about €5 a day, cant remember what the lift card was but it was also very cheap.

The only thing is english is not so widely spoken so it can make things a bit difficult, but overall i would highly recommend Poland. Althought prices probably have risen since i was there 3 years ago. Oh yes and winter in Poland is EXTREMELY cold, im talking -20 and below!!

I hear Sakopane is the biggest and best resort to go to in Poland, might be worth looking into.

Overflow

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Said id ask in here rather than start a new thread but how expensive is andorra i was there once before about 11 years ago i was in bulgaria snowboarding last year and that was dirt cheap but we are thinking of hittign andorra this year Pas de la casa its around 470 and then 330 for the snowboarding pack ( lessons lift pass boards etc) so it will only be spending money i need outside that cost.

How much is a pint ? thats the most important question ( 50cent in bulgaria last year was brilliant )am i right in thinking it will be closer to a fiver in andorra ?
also food etc any tips would be helpfull too (like is pas de la case any good ? )

With regards to Andorra, i believe its not as cheap as it used to be. I hear a lot of people saying its getting more and more expensive and buying drinks in pub and clubs can be the same prices as back home now. I think its still dirt cheap to buy alcohol in shops though.

Rev. Kitchen

Overflow wrote: »

If your looking for a dirt cheap ski holiday would you consider Poland, i dont think many people do, but i was there about 3 years ago in Karpacz. Its right on the border with the Czech Republic. We flew to Krakow and rented a car and drove to the resort.

It was a lovely little town with nice restaurants and pubs, but most importantly it was dirt cheap, 20c for a pint. We paid about €10 each for a full meal with beers and wine. Ski hire was about €5 a day, cant remember what the lift card was but it was also very cheap.

The only thing is english is not so widely spoken so it can make things a bit difficult, but overall i would highly recommend Poland. Althought prices probably have risen since i was there 3 years ago. Oh yes and winter in Poland is EXTREMELY cold, im talking -20 and below!!

I hear Sakopane is the biggest and best resort to go to in Poland, might be worth looking into.

Poland was our original plan if it was just me id go there but there is a group and ill be left trying to organise every thing and ill get the blame if it goes wrong so its just easier to go with a tour operator this year i think to take care of flights and bus transfers all the stuff at least untill next year when i have my own board and stuff and wont need the lessons. I have a polish mate here in work says its still pretty cheap he skiis there a lot. Only thing he said was that there arent that many slopes and the schools are on hols from Jan to Feb ( not all of them but different regions have different hols over that range ) so the slope are very busy then.

Im trying to weigh up now the conveince of andorra over the cost compared to Bulgaria. I think the 100m to the ski lift from our hotel swings it at the moment

Plus we will have an apartment there so drinking at home will be the main focus.

Overflow

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Poland was our original plan if it was just me id go there but there is a group and ill be left trying to organise every thing and ill get the blame if it goes wrong so its just easier to go with a tour operator this year i think to take care of flights and bus transfers all the stuff at least untill next year when i have my own board and stuff and wont need the lessons. I have a polish mate here in work says its still pretty cheap he skiis there a lot. Only thing he said was that there arent that many slopes and the schools are on hols from Jan to Feb ( not all of them but different regions have different hols over that range ) so the slope are very busy then.

Im trying to weigh up now the conveince of andorra over the cost compared to Bulgaria. I think the 100m to the ski lift from our hotel swings it at the moment

Plus we will have an apartment there so drinking at home will be the main focus.

You should really look into it, you cant go too far wrong when booking it, if you go through a tour operator expect to pay through the teeth, Karpacz might be a bit small but Zakopane is a bigger resort and even has a FIS certified slope.

Rev. Kitchen

Ill defo check it out cheers for the tip im not set on andorra, What are the slopes like in poland i know in bulgaria they where quite tight so made it quite difficult to snow board if you got caught up in a ski class learning doing there big snake thing across the slope you couldnt get past them.

Id prefer large wide and not too steep slopes for learning on.

Overflow

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Ill defo check it out cheers for the tip im not set on andorra, What are the slopes like in poland i know in bulgaria they where quite tight so made it quite difficult to snow board if you got caught up in a ski class learning doing there big snake thing across the slope you couldnt get past them.

Id prefer large wide and not too steep slopes for learning on.

Well i can only talk about Karpacz, the slopes where fine, some were wide and there were some nice secluded ones in the trees, when i was there they were quite empty so people getting in your way wasnt a problem, to be honest if your just learning a smaller resort would be just fine for you. Although Andorra is known well for its beginner slopes. Arinsal is full of green and blue slopes, i would say the the red slopes are more like blues in Arinsal.

If your worried about the slopes not being wide enough for boarding you should really work on your carving technique, then this wont be an issue anymore, can you traverse from heel edge to toe edge easily yet?

Rev. Kitchen

Where i am at the moment is i can go from heel to toe fairly comfortabily i wouldnt be great but i can make it down the slopes carving with out falling but sometimes i do need to check my turns ( pull out of a turn and start again). The thing with the width was more to do with not being able to get past a group of skiers. the slopes in the last place in spots where no more than 10 metres wide so i would be tipping away nicely but if you met a group of skiers in front of you the group would cross over and back the slope 3 times at least ( if that makes sense ) Like a giant snake. It wasnt just me getting stuck the really good boarders would just pull into the side and sit for a few mins then go off again.

I just remember in andorra a ski group could be on one side of the slope and you could easily pass them on the other side.

robinph

Large, wide and not too steep.

You'll be hard pushed to beat Andorra for that which I think is one of the best places for begginers.

Overflow

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Ill defo check it out cheers for the tip im not set on andorra, What are the slopes like in poland i know in bulgaria they where quite tight so made it quite difficult to snow board if you got caught up in a ski class learning doing there big snake thing across the slope you couldnt get past them.

Id prefer large wide and not too steep slopes for learning on.

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Where i am at the moment is i can go from heel to toe fairly comfortabily i wouldnt be great but i can make it down the slopes carving with out falling but sometimes i do need to check my turns ( pull out of a turn and start again). The thing with the width was more to do with not being able to get past a group of skiers. the slopes in the last place in spots where no more than 10 metres wide so i would be tipping away nicely but if you met a group of skiers in front of you the group would cross over and back the slope 3 times at least ( if that makes sense ) Like a giant snake. It wasnt just me getting stuck the really good boarders would just pull into the side and sit for a few mins then go off again.

I just remember in andorra a ski group could be on one side of the slope and you could easily pass them on the other side.

Ah i get what you mean, damn those skiers always getting in the way with their zig zagging, but robinph is correct Andorra is great for wide open slopes!

Pocahontas

has anyone ever gone over to andorra, or indeed any other resorts, for a long weekend? bit short on holidays from work so would love to do a thurs to sun if possible. still a bit of a beginner boarder so was thinking that andorra would be sweet. i've heard of people flying to barcelona and hitting font romeu...any thoughts?

Overflow

I hate to tell you it might be a waste of time! The transfer times to the resports in Andorra are between 3 and 4 hours. Also its not really possible to get any cheap accomodation mid week, most places only rent from Saturday to Saturday. You might get a hotel but pay through the teeth. There was a thread a while back where people were discussing other places to go for a weekend, just have a look back through the threads.

Pocahontas

ah fair enough. it does seem like a lot of effort, just for a few days! i'll have a snoop around, tanks!

Rev. Kitchen

Anyone drive to andorra before, 4 of us where ment to be travelling and 2 wanted to wait to book it and have now pulled out and topflight/panorama who i was going to travel with have no more deals for march the 8th. and the public bus goes 20 mins before we land and the next one does nt go for 8 hours later. so its driving now is the only option but how risky is it i remember last time i went there was lots of frozen roads and steep cliffs !!!

Thinkign of flying into carcasanne and driving

connundrum

Rev. Kitchen wrote: »

Anyone drive to andorra before, 4 of us where ment to be travelling and 2 wanted to wait to book it and have now pulled out and topflight/panorama who i was going to travel with have no more deals for march the 8th. and the public bus goes 20 mins before we land and the next one does nt go for 8 hours later. so its driving now is the only option but how risky is it i remember last time i went there was lots of frozen roads and steep cliffs !!!

Thinkign of flying into carcasanne and driving

Three of us are driving next month. Flying into Barcelona Girona. Have to upload maps onto the SatNav - hopefully that'll do the job

Overflow

If you have never driving in snow and ice before i would take it very easy until you get the feel for it. I know the roads get a bit icey in Ireland, but this is a different story, the car can slide all over the place especially if there has been heavy snowfall and the ice can be quite thick on the road, remember if you feel the backend of the car sliping out, always turn into the slip, so if the cars backend is sliping out to the left turn to the left, but never turn the steering wheel more than 20 degrees either way, otherwise you might loose control, just small adjustments. We learn all this in driving school in Norway and have a specific ice driving course to learn all these techniques, pretty fun actually, sliding the car around a circuit. Driving lesson over

But anyway once you take it easy you should be fine, make sure you hire a car with winter tires on it , oh watch out of the bus drivers in Andorra, they drive like lunatics.

edson

i'm going snowboarding to "pas de la casa" in Andorra next week
we've got flights/accomm booked, but how much would lessons be?

Rev. Kitchen

3hours a day for 5 to 6 days will be about 90-110 euro