Andorra la Vella

Andorra la Vella, town, capital of the principality of Andorra. The town, also known as Andorre la Vieille in French and Andorra la Vieja in Spanish, lies in the central-western area of the country, at an altitude of approximately 1,079 m (3,540 ft), on the eastern slopes of the Pic d’Enclar, in the Pyrenees. It is located near the confluence of the Valira del Nord and Valira d’Orient rivers in the Gran Valira valley. Andorra la Vella is the highest capital city in Europe, and the only sizeable community in the tiny country of Andorra. A rustic mountain town until the 1960s, Andorra la Vella now receives around 6 million tourists a year. Visitors are drawn by the principality’s duty-free status and the area’s excellent winter sports facilities: within a 30 km (19 mi) radius there are six alpine and nordic ski-fields.

Among the notable buildings of the town is the parliament building, the Casa de la Vall. Located in the centre of the old town it has a military design with watchtowers, a parapet, and arrow slits. Another important building is the richly decorated Church of St Stephen. Situated at the entrance to Andorra la Vella’s old quarter, it dates back (in parts) to a 12th-century Romanesque church and has been modified and enlarged many times. The city’s name means “Andorra the Old” in the Catalan language. Population 22,035 (2004 estimate).