 Poster: A snowHead
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I am about to move to Barcelona for a couple of months. Now I am looking for skiing resorts in the Pyrenees near Barcelona.
I've heard that Andorra is quite fun and pretty close.
Do you have any other recommendations for me?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There are loads  . Start with Andorra, sure. It's the most similar to a typical British alpine experience. Little by little you'll discover all the others.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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This resource is helpful when researching ski resorts...
https://www.bergfex.com/spanien/
Catalonia is the region where Barcelona is, La Molina & Baqueira are the best known.
Andorra is within striking distance, the Grandvalira area is the largest in the Pyrenees.
Aragon is next door, Formigal & Astun/Candanchu are sizeable ski areas, but would be a long trek from Barna.
There are also a number on the French side which would be doable from Barcelona...
https://www.bergfex.com/okzitanien/
I used to live near Barcelona...just be careful when treading around ideas of Catalan/Spanish identity, it's become a very sensitive subject in recent years.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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toulon can be a shorter transfer to them resorts
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Andorra is fun but note it’s outside EU, careful of roaming charges.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Mr.Egg wrote: |
| toulon can be a shorter transfer to them resorts |
Not much use if you're moving to Barcelona.
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| Mr.Egg wrote: |
| toulon can be a shorter transfer to them resorts |
Maybe you meant Toulouse? Toulon is many miles east, between Marseille and Nice, on the Mediterranean coast. It’s closer to the Alps than the Pyrenees.
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There are ~35 ski resorts within ~3 hours of central Barcelona.
The big ones are:
1. Formigal
2. Font Romeu
3. Soldeu
4. El Tarter
5. Pas de la Casa
Best and deepest snow (by far) is Baqueira-Beret, about ~4hrs away.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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3 and 4 on that list are interlinked by multiple runs. They are about 2kms apart and part of the same area as 5. If coming from Barcelona, surely you would start from Encamp or Canillo to ski Grandvalira. Definitely no need to drive to Pas. Google tells me that is 40mins extra driving and 26kms! Encamp has a 6km gondola that takes you to the centre of the Grandvalira ski area, which is the biggest in the Pyrenees. There are smaller areas that are nearer, that have all just had a massive dump of snow!
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| Whitegold wrote: |
There are ~35 ski resorts within ~3 hours of central Barcelona.
The big ones are:
1. Formigal
2. Font Romeu
3. Soldeu
4. El Tarter
5. Pas de la Casa
Best and deepest snow (by far) is Baqueira-Beret, about ~4hrs away. |
As @what...snow says 3, 4 & 5 are all part of the greater Grandvalira area which now sits at no.1 in terms of size in the Pyrenees with 210km of pistes.
Font Romeu wouldn't sit at no.2 with only 38km of pistes.
Formigal in Aragon is a sizeable resort with 137km (or 176km, depending who you ask) of pistes, but at 359km from Barna, it's going to take almost 4hrs to get there.
Agreed about Baqueira, it's the resort of choice of the Spanish Royal Family ski, so quite upmarket, but also about 4 hrs from Barna.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| what...snow wrote: |
| 3 and 4 on that list are interlinked by multiple runs. They are about 2kms apart and part of the same area as 5. If coming from Barcelona, surely you would start from Encamp or Canillo to ski Grandvalira. Definitely no need to drive to Pas. Google tells me that is 40mins extra driving and 26kms! Encamp has a 6km gondola that takes you to the centre of the Grandvalira ski area, which is the biggest in the Pyrenees. There are smaller areas that are nearer, that have all just had a massive dump of snow! |
Believe it or not, Pas de la Casa is actually the closest (195km, 2h45min) of the access points of the Grandvalira area to Barcelona since the opening of the Puymorens tunnel on the French side. The route would take you up the C-16, through the Cadi tunnel, then N to Puigcerda, into France, through the Puymorens tunnel and in the back door to Pas. Even Soldeu (201km) is best accessed this way, using the Envalira tunnel from Pas. Encamp via the weekend traffic jam that is Andorra la Vella is 206km and quite a bit longer in terms of journey time.
Yes, you would be driving straight past the resorts of La Molina & Masella, now linked by the Alp2500 project and encompassing 135km of runs. Probably the closest decent ski area to Barcelona (153km, ~2hrs drive) and had a decent dump recently from storm Gloria.
Also near the entrance to the Puymorens tunnel in France is the resort of Porte-Puymorens which at 50km is not to be sniffed at, avoids the €7 tunnel toll charge too.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
2. Font Romeu
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At Font Romeu, you do also have Les Angles, Formigueres and Cambre d'Aze areas within striking distance, so you could make a long weekend of it in French Catalonia. 
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@luigi, I stand corrected. That Envalira tunnel is pricey, but not needed for Pas going that way. It sounds a trifle exposed though. Are there parts prone to closure, apart from the France-Andorra border?
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You know it makes sense.
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No one would start from Encamp, but also that 6km gondola closes in wind.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| what...snow wrote: |
| @luigi, I stand corrected. That Envalira tunnel is pricey, but not needed for Pas going that way. It sounds a trifle exposed though. Are there parts prone to closure, apart from the France-Andorra border? |
Both tunnels are around €7 one way.
I think the idea of the tunnels is to eliminate the most exposed parts, so they can keep them clear and rolling all year round. The Puymorens tunnel portals are around 1500m and Envalira around 2000m, so no doubt the approach roads could get a bit hairy in bad weather.
Obviously if the weather is really extreme, some roads might close temporarily to allow for snow clearing. In such a scenario, it would make sense to go the longer way round via Andorra la Vella or stay back at La Molina instead.
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