Andorra la Vella: Guide, Hotels, Map & Photos
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EUR 59 - 187 Hesperia Andorra
 The Hesperia Andorra is situated in the centre of Andorra La Vella. This hotel features a restaurant, rooms with balconies and free Wi-Fi access throu… MoreEUR 59 - 361 Acta Arthotel
 Acta Arthotel in Andorra la Vella has free access on request to its sauna and Turkish baths. All rooms have free Wi-Fi internet access.
Facilities at… More | ||||||||||||
Andorra la Vella: Guide
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Andorra la Vella (2004 est. pop. 22,035) is the capital of the Principality of Andorra, and is located high in the east Pyrenees between France and Spain. It is also the name of the parishes of Andorra|parish that surrounds it. The town of Santa Coloma is located in the province.
The principal industry is tourism, although the country also earns foreign income from being a tax-haven. Furniture and brandies are local products.
Geography and climate
Andorra la Vella is located in the south west of Andorra, at . , at the confluence of two mountain streams. Located at an Altitude of 1409 ski resort. Its climate is mm a year.
Transportation
Surprisingly for a capital city, it is three hours drive from the nearest airports, at Toulouse Airport|Toulouse, Girona Airport|Girona, Perpignan Airport|Perpignan and Barcelona Airport|Barcelona. This is a result of its small population size and highly mountainous terrain. It has no train station either, with a bus service linking the city to the French station at L'Hospitalet, which has mainline services to Paris.
Demographics and language
Native Andorrans account for only 33% of the population, with the plurality being Spanish (43%), and notable minorities of Portugal|Portuguese (11%) and France|French (7%). Catalan language|Catalan is the official language, although Spanish language|Spanish and French language|French are also spoken. Most of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics, with a high life expectancy of over 80 years .
History
The site of Andorra la Vella (literally, "Andorra the Old") has been settled since prior to the Moorish settlers in the Iberian Peninsula .
The settlement has been the principal city of Andorra since 1278 when the French and the Episcopal co-princes agreed to joint suzerainty. Andorra La Vella's old town - the Barri Antic - includes streets and buildings dating from this time. Its most notable building is the Casa de la Vall - constructed in the early sixteenth century - which has been the state's parliamentary house since 1707. Andorra la Vella was, during this period, the capital of a largely isolated and feudal state, which retained its independence due to this principle of co-sovereignty . This isolation also means that the city's history is poorly documented.
Well into the twentieth century, the area around Andorra La Vella remained largely forgotten; indeed the state was not part of the Treaty of Versailles, simply because it was not noticed. After political turmoil in the 1930's and an attempted coup by Boris Skossyreff|King Boris I, an informal democracy developed. In 1993, the country's first constitution formalised this parliamentary democracy with executive, legislative, and judicial branches located in Andorra la Vella.
During this period, Andorra also developed as both a tax haven, resulting in the construction of modern banking offices in Andorra La Vella. The city also developed its skiing facilities, to the extent that Andorra la Vella was Andorra's applicant city for the XXI Olympic Winter Games, the 2010 Winter Olympics. However, Andorra la Vella was not selected by the IOC as candidate city, following the evaluation report of an IOC commission.
Sights and culture
The city's old town is characterized by old stone streets and houses. The central Església de Santa Coloma .
The city is the country's cultural centre, with the Government Exhibition Hall acting as a main theatre and museum. The piazza outside the parliament building is also the location of a number of events, and the town hosts a music festival every winter.
Economy
Andorra la Vella is the node for economic networks in Andorra; it is the country's commercial centre. In the country as a whole, 80% of the GDP is derived from the 10 million tourists who visit annually . The city is also the centre for the many banks and businesses that thrive from its tax haven status. The state is not a member of the European Union, but has a customs arrangement with the EU, and uses the Euro.
External links
This "Travel Guide" section is drawn from the Wikipedia article "Andorra la Vella". We hope you will edit and improve it. It is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.