42.70° N · 0.80° E
Baqueira from 28 November to 4 April, huskies and snowmobiles at Beret, rafting on the Garonne, the Colomèrs lakes, where to sleep and what to eat.
Part of PyreneesHorse riding routes in Spain
What to do
Each plan says how long it takes, who it's for and whether you can book.
Ski and snowboard · 175 km of runs and itineraries · From 1,500 to 2,610 m · 28 November to 4 April · Day lift pass from €70
Snowshoeing · 8 km · 525 m of ascent · From age 9 · Guide from €47.90
Lifts for pedestrians · €23.50 · For those accompanying skiers · Sledges and snowshoes for hire
Itineraries
Days and weekends already planned out, with how to get between each stop and who to book with.
Plan the trip
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
Baqueira opens from 28 November 2026 to 4 April 2027; the husky sledges and snowmobiles leave from the Pla de Beret while there is snow. From May to September, rafting on the Garonne, canyoning, horses and high-mountain lakes; Aran Park opens from 20 March to 7 November.
How you travel
Choose how you're travelling and we'll tell you where to stay, how to get around, where to eat and which services you'll need. We only show the ways of travelling that make sense here.
The car is the normal way to reach Aran: by the N-230 and the Vielha tunnel from Lleida, or over the Bonaigua from the Pallars when the pass is open. You sleep in Vielha and go up every morning to Baqueira, about 15 km away. The budget includes lift pass, food and a shared hotel.
Who you're with
A trip with a toddler is not the same as one with a teenager. Pick yours to see what works and what to bear in mind.
Baqueira charges little for the very young and has beginners' areas at 1800 and Beret, enlarged this winter. For those who do not ski, there is a walking lift pass, sledges for hire and sleds pulled by huskies or horses at Beret. In summer, the valley is done with children between family rafting on the Garonne, Aran Park and short walks.
A teenager gets bored in Vielha if it is all churches and dinners. In Aran there is more than enough to tire them out: in summer, the Garona, the canyons and a via ferrata; in winter, the Baqueira snowpark and a snowshoe climb to frozen lakes.
Where to stay
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel
© ParadoresSpa hotelWhy we like it: A Parador on the edge of Vielha towards the tunnel, with views of the valley, a spa with sauna and jacuzzi, a seasonal pool, ski storage and free parking.
Why we like it: A family hotel in Vielha since 1888, on the Paseo de la Libertat: ski storage, 24-hour reception and rooms for one to four people from €89.
Why we like it: Large 152-room hotel in Betrén, on the way out of Vielha towards Baqueira, with check-in at 14:00 and check-out at 12:00.
Why we like it: Four-star hotel on Carrer Major in Arties, with 22 rooms, a spa with a heated pool, its own restaurant and a free shuttle to Baqueira in winter.
Services for this trip
Areas, for any way of travelling
| Area | Who it's for | Average night |
|---|---|---|
| Vielha | Hotels, restaurants, tourist office | 15 km to Baqueira |
| Salardú and Arties | Stone villages next to the pistes | 5–10 min |
| Baqueira 1500 | Ski straight out | At the foot of the piste |
Where to eat
From set lunch menus to Michelin stars. We mark the price level and what to order at each place.
What to order: a few tapas at the bar, such as the tempura sturgeon cubes, or the house olla aranesa and a grilled meat
What to order: the olla aranesa as a starter and, for the main, the boned suckling pig or the oven-roast leg of lamb, within the Garona menu
© Baqueira BeretWhat to order: a meat from the open grill or the grilled burger, with a wine from its cellar
What to order: the tasting menu if the whole table is up for it; if not, the €58 menu, with a starter, a main and a dessert of your choice
What to order: the set lunch; à la carte, the olla aranesa and the venison civet
Nearby
The closest places, whichever country they are in.
Tips
With BaqueiraPASS the adult day costs €4 less than with the ticket.
The learning area is there and the car park is free.
With more than two hours' drive from Lleida, a single day falls short.
The Val d'Aran is the north-facing valley of the Catalan Pyrenees: the Garonne is born here and flows down towards France. In winter it is Baqueira Beret, the valley's big ski resort, and Vielha, the capital, where you sleep and have dinner. Between the pistes and the town there are a dozen villages of stone and slate with Romanesque churches, and from the Pla de Beret leave the snowshoe outings, husky sledges and snowmobiles. In summer the valley changes its face: rafting on the Garonne, canyoning and via ferratas, horses and high-mountain lakes.
By car. From Lleida, the N-230 climbs through the Noguera Ribagorzana valley to the Vielha tunnel and emerges in Aran; from there to Baqueira it is about 15 km along the C-28. Allow about two and a half hours from Lleida to the pistes, more with snow. From Barcelona, the resort gives 4 h 26 via the A-2, the A-14 and the N-230. From the Pallars you enter over the Bonaigua pass, at 2,072 metres, which in season is also one of the resort's bases and may close in bad weather. Carry chains even if you have winter tyres.
For 2026-27 it announces 175 km of pistes and itineraries, 125 pistes and 7 itineraries, between 1,500 and 2,610 metres, spread over four areas: Baqueira, Beret, with the extended beginners' area, Bonaigua, on the pass, and Baciver. This winter it opens the six-seat Mirador chairlift and a new central area at Baqueira 1800 for learners.
The adult day lift pass costs €70 by topping up the BaqueiraPASS card online and €74 with a BaqueiraTICKET; the child's, €46.50. Those born in 2021 or later and those born in 1956 or earlier pay €8. The official rental charges €36.50 for a mid-range set of equipment. There are four free car parks, Orri 1800, Beret, Bonaigua and Peülla; the outdoor one at 1500 becomes paid this season. At weekends arrive before nine.
With a Rutes Pirineus guide you can snowshoe up from the Pla de Beret to the Estanys de Baciver: 8 km and 525 metres of ascent, from age 9, for €47.90 plus €9.90 for the snowshoes. Baqueira sells a €23.50 walker's lift pass to ride the lifts up with the skiers and hires out sledges. Down in Vielha, the church of Sant Miquèu has a 12th-century Romanesque Christ; in Salardú, the church of Sant Andrèu has 17th-century wall paintings and another Christ from the same Erill la Vall workshop.
At the Pla de Beret, Montgarri Outdoor harnesses huskies: the twenty-minute loop through the Dossau forest costs from €75 for adults and the route to Montgarri with a meal at the refuge, from €185. The same company runs snowmobiles along the Montgarri track, from €140, and the Riding School brings a horse-drawn sleigh up to Beret, from €30 for children. You have the huskies with all their routes and prices.
The Garonne leaves Aran through Les: the rafting from Les to the Pont de Rei is intermediate level, from age 6, for €42. In the same day you can fit a canyon in Bausen or the Arties via ferrata, in a €75 pack. For families with small children, Aran Park, in Bossòst, with bears and wolves, from 20 March to 7 November, and the walk to the Uelhs deth Joèu, an easy hour. On horseback, rides from Vielha from €30. Higher up, with a guide, the Colomèrs Cirque links glacial lakes on the edge of Aigüestortes. And for a plan around the table, the Caviar Nacarii fish farm, in Les, shows how caviar is made and lets you taste it.
Vielha has more hotels and restaurants open all winter and is 15 km from the pistes. The Parador, 2 km from the town, has a spa and ski storage, and reopens on 1 December. The Hotel Fonfreda, in the centre since 1888, has rooms for up to four people from €89. If you want to ski straight out, look in Baqueira 1500. In Arties, 5 km from the pistes, the Hotel Casa Irene has a spa with a pool and a shuttle to Baqueira.
Olla aranesa, the valley stew, is the winter dish: it is on the Garona menu at Era Coquèla. For something simpler, the home-made tapas at Urtau, the tavern a family from Arties opened in 1963. On the pistes, La Borda Lobató, next to the 1500 car park, grills over embers in the resort's oldest borda (stone barn). In Vielha, Era Lucana has a €27 set menu with a drink; in Bossòst, Er Occitan is the long dinner, with an €80 tasting menu.
Questions
Rafting on the Garonne from €42, canyoning, the Arties via ferrata, horse rides, Aran Park and the Colomèrs lakes with a guide.
At the Pla de Beret, with Montgarri Outdoor, from €75 for adults.
From 28 November 2026 to 4 April 2027, if the snow allows.
€70 for an adult day with BaqueiraPASS online, €74 with BaqueiraTICKET and €46.50 for children.
The resort estimates 4 h 26 by car. From Lleida, about two and a half hours.
In the free car parks at Orri 1800, Beret, Bonaigua or Peülla. The outdoor one at 1500 is paid from 2026-27, like the Parking Telecabina.
Yes: there are guided outings from the Pla de Beret to the Estanys de Baciver, from age 9.
In Vielha, 15 km away, with more choice; or in Baqueira 1500, at the foot of the pistes.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/aran-valley
