Ordino: Andorra's quiet northern valley

Why go

If Andorra la Vella feels busy, Ordino is the antidote. The village is calm and pretty, the valley is green and steep, and the mountains at the top hold some of the finest scenery in the Pyrenees. It is a place to slow down, walk, visit small museums and eat well, while still being only a short bus ride from the capital.

The village

Start at **Casa d'Areny-Plandolit**, the home of a family that grew rich from iron forging. The house museum shows how Andorra's elite lived in the nineteenth century, with furnished rooms, a library and a garden. Close by, the **Museu de la Miniatura** displays tiny sculptures that you view through magnifying lenses, a surprising hit with children, and the **Museu Postal** tells the odd story of Andorra's French and Spanish post offices. Finish with a coffee on the stone square.

Up the valley

In **La Cortinada**, the Romanesque church of **Sant Martí** has rare wall paintings and carved wooden furniture. The **Ruta del Ferro**, an iron trail, follows the river between Ordino and Llorts past metal sculptures and old mine workings, and guided visits take you into the **Mines de Llorts**. The road continues to **El Serrat**, a hamlet below a waterfall.

Tristaina and Sorteny

At the top of the valley, the **Tristaina lakes** sit in a glacier cirque on the border with France. A well marked trail links three lakes, and the steel **Mirador Solar de Tristaina** viewpoint circles the cirque on a ridge above. Lower down, the **Parc Natural de la Vall de Sorteny** is famous for its alpine flowers and medicinal plants, best in July, with an easy trail and a staffed mountain hut for longer walks.

Ordino Arcalís

In winter the high ski area of **Ordino Arcalís** offers good snow, quiet slopes and freeride terrain, and feels far less busy than Grandvalira. It is part of Grandvalira Resorts. In summer, the area is a starting point for hikes.

Food

Ordino has village restaurants with terraces and a few bordes along the valley road. Look for mountain dishes such as trinxat, roast lamb, wild mushrooms in autumn and crema catalana. Picnic food from village shops is perfect for the lakes.

Where to stay

Family run hotels in the village suit couples and walkers, and the hamlets up the valley have small hotels and apartments for skiers. Staffed mountain huts are an adventure in summer: book ahead and check opening dates.

Practical tips

National buses link Ordino to Andorra la Vella, and in summer some services run further up the valley; check the timetable before planning a hike. The road to Arcalís can be icy in winter. The **Coll d'Ordino** pass, linking Ordino and Canillo, is a scenic route with picnic spots and big views, usually open from late spring to autumn.

A suggested day

Take an early bus or drive to the top of the valley and walk the Tristaina lakes loop before the clouds build. Come down for lunch in El Serrat or Llorts, stroll part of the Ruta del Ferro in the afternoon, and end in Ordino village with a visit to Casa d'Areny-Plandolit and a quiet dinner on the square. In autumn, swap the lakes for a walk in the Sorteny valley, when the beech and birch woods turn gold and the crowds of summer have gone.

Who it suits

Ordino is ideal for couples, walkers and families who want calm evenings, fresh air and easy access to nature. Nightlife is limited, so groups looking for bars usually prefer Soldeu, Arinsal or the capital.