The Principality of Andorra is located in southeastern Europe bordered
by France and Spain who share the country equally. The total area of
Andorra is 181 square miles, with a population of approximately 67,000.
The capital is located at Andorra la Vella and the main tourist
attractions are the tax-free shopping and the largest skiing area in the
Pyrenees Mountains.
There are no Andorra casinos to boast of in this tax and duty free
Principality; however, both locals and tourists can travel either to
France or Spain for their gambling adventures, as both countries offer a
great number of casinos and other gambling facilities such as horse and
dog racing. Since it is a tax and duty free country, strict casino and
gambling rules cannot prevail in Andorra. There were talks and plans,
however, to open an Andorra casino in order to entertain the vast amount
of tourists that pour into this beautiful country every year.
The official language in Andorra is Catalan, but Spanish and French are
widely spoken due to the influence of both countries. Many Andorrans
speak English, as well, because of so many tourists who come here year
round from all over the world. Even though there are no Andorra
casinos, people of Andorra find adventures and thrills in everyday
activities including skiing, snowboarding, and ice-skating. Andorra
does not have a currency of its own and until the Euro took over in the
European Union (EU), it used the currencies from France and Spain, the
French franc and the peseta respectively. However, Andorra decided it
needed to have a currency of its own and started negotiation for the
same in 2004 with the EU.
Andorra is a place like no other, quiet and tranquil in a timeframe of
its own. You can spend the whole day strolling around its clean,
well-maintained town streets and shopping for great buys in the tax-free
shops. There are restrictions on the amount of alcohol you can carry
out of the country, as well as on the cigarettes, but apart from that,
you can shop to your heart's content for as much as you can carry.
Any time you look for some casino thrills, all you have to do is cross
the border to either France or Spain and spend the night there. Both
countries have legal gambling facilities such as casinos, which are
available for those over 18 years of age.
