Andorra la Vella. Tourism in Andorra la Vella, permits in country, student's hotels.

Andorra La Vella is the capital of this tiny principality nestling between France and Spain and is its biggest town. The state is one of the Marca Hispanica created and protected by Charlemagne in the Eighth Century as a buffer from the Moorish settlers in the Iberian Peninsula. Lying at the confluence of the Gran Valira, the Valira del Oriente and the Valira del Norte rivers, Andorra La Vella is dwarfed by stunning snow-capped mountains of up to 2500 metres high. The town is connected by road to the Spanish and French frontiers and shares in both cultures. Pop. (2004 est.) 22,035.

After political turmoil in the 1930's and an attempted coup by King Boris I, informal democracy developed.
In 1993, 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.

In the 1960s and '70s Andorra la Vella was transformed from a rustic town into a busy commercial centre catering to shoppers and tourists. Winter sports areas are nearby. Because of Andorra's duty-free status, the town is now primarily a retail shopping centre for goods imported from elsewhere in Europe and from Asia…

The Barri Antic (old town) was the original heart of the town when it was little more than a village. It stretches from the Esglesia de Sant Esteve to Placeta del Puial and is characterized by atmospheric cobblestoned streets and arresting stone houses.

Stroll in the Placa del Poble - the large public square atop the Edifici Administratiu Govern d’Andorra. It’s a great place for people watching of an evening and is home to the town’s theatre and concert venue.

For dinner, head for the Placa de Guillemo or the Barri Antic. Shop till you drop at the duty-free shops on Avinguda del Princep Benlloch and the Avinguda de Meritxell. For a spot of heavenly relaxation head for the Caldea spa complex where you can enjoy a Turkish bath, sauna, jacuzzi or even a hydromassage.