Andorra

One of the best and most beautiful trips! During Erasmus in Girona, we took a weekend trip to one of the smallest countries in Europe. We rented a mini bus (17 people) so it wasn't that expensive and we left early in the morning.

The drive from Girona to the capital (Andorra la Vella) took about 3 hours. The whole state is in a basin surrounded by the Pyrenees, so we couldn't miss hiking in the surrounding mountains and seeing the natural beauty around the city. Something like 15 million tourists visit Andorra annually, so tourism is the main income of the state.

Overall, Andorra can be walked in one afternoon (not including the mountains). If you ever go here, make sure you do some shopping, as Andorra is a tax haven - you only pay 4% VAT here, so for smokers or alcohol lovers, it's really worth it. Even mobile phones and other electronics are cheaper.

Upon arrival, we first found our hostel (very nice, with a pub on the ground floor) and then went for our first walk around the city. Andorra is specific in that immediately around the houses are high and sharp mountains. You can literally touch them.

I have to say that Andorra is a very clean and tidy city, beautiful nature, clean air. The main street is lined with shops, restaurants and private houses. There is also a beautiful spa in town.

Since we had a personal driver, we asked him to take us to places where there is access to the mountains the next day. Within 15-20 minutes we were in the mountains from Andorra la Vella, where it was sunny, and it was cold and snowing. The climb was quite a chore. We scrambled over large boulders, mountain rapids, fallen trees, sharp rocks. In some places it was snowing.