Andorra Travel Guide is part of the Gold Medal Trip Report.
TPOL’s Guns & Butter Travel Guide is the best way to see as much as you can in as little time as possible. Here’s how it works: A trip is composed of two factors: Labor And Lazy. The opportunity cost (what is given up) for relaxing and being Lazy is gained by being adventurous in the form of Labor and vice versa. The guide includes inefficient activities i.e., tourist traps that should be avoided and aspirational activities that are worth doing but may be impossible to see given the constraints of time and resources.
Getting There: A bus costs 60 euros to and from Andorra but make sure you don’t miss it (see I Missed My Ride: Not So ‘Direct Bus’ Andorra & Andbus to Andorra: ‘And’ It Showed Up).
Why do people come to Andorra? Most come to the home of the Pyrenesse to ski. TPOL doesn’t ski. Some come to hike. This was a day trip and TPOL had no interest in physical exertion. Others come for the Country Count novelty. This applied to me (see Where I’ve Been).
Tax-Free Shopping
One interesting fact about Andorra is that it is a tax-free zone. While that is true, I did not find the prices to be especially competitive for my interests (see TPOL Knows Cologne, Just Don’t Buy It on a Plane )
TPOL’s Tip: There is a 9-hole golf course in Andorra.
The prices were great for alcohol.
Nobility of Time
The point of interest that fascinated me was Dali’s Noblesse du temps or nobility of time. As a sophomore at the University of Michigan, I had the Persistence of Memory poster hung on my wall.
Old Town
Although I did not go hiking, I spent hours walking through the city. It certainly has the old town charm (see Astray in Old Town: Great Places to Get Lost).
Satisfied with my cultural experience, I stopped at Barri Antic for a beer.
From there, it was on to the old parliament. When I learned of the cover charge, I declined to enter.
The next objective was to take photos of the curious gold men sitting down. Since returning I have researched said men. They are called the 7 Poets and were created by Jaume Plensa. Regarding the moments, Plensa said, “Poets are a key part of society. They are doomed to failure because they know they won’t sell even three books, but they are a source of fertility, like a very fine rain that penetrates the earth.” He might as well be talking about TPOL.
TPOL’s Tip: Buy Everyone’s Advice Is Wrong . . . Including Mine.
Before making my way to the bus station promptly, I went for another beer and a bowl of gazpacho, a must on a terribly hot day.
Overall
Am I the cultural attaché to Andorra? Hardly. Is it worth going? Of course.