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The Catalan Pyrenees

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Lake in Aiguestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park in the Pyrenees.

Michael Heffernan

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Overview

Catalonia's Pyrenees are much more than an all-season adventure playground, and, beyond the major resorts, conceal a raw natural beauty that invites discovery. Certainly, the Val d'Aran draws winter skiers and snowboarders (with resorts ranging from red-carpet to family-focused), while summer and autumn lure hikers to the jewel-like lakes and valleys of the Parc Nacional d’Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici, the low-lying countryside of Cerdanya, and the climbing terrain of the Serra del Cadí.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll.

    Monestir de Santa Maria

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    Consecrated in CE 888, Ripoll's monastery was Catalonia’s spiritual and cultural heart from the mid-10th to mid-11th century. The five-naved basilica was…

  • Monestir de Sant Joan de les Abadesses

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    Who gallops through the hills around Sant Joan de les Abadesses on stormy nights, on a horse engulfed in flames and accompanied by ravenous black dogs? If…

  • Catedral de Santa Maria & Museu Diocesà

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    Dominating La Seu d'Urgell's old town is the 12th-century, pale sandstone Santa Maria cathedral – one of Catalonia’s outstanding Romanesque buildings. Its…

  • Sant Climent de Taüll

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    On Taüll's fringes, this 12th-century Romanesque church is a gem not only for its elegant, simple lines and slender six-storey bell tower (which you can…

  • Santuari de la Mare de Déu

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    The region's high point (literally and figuratively) is Núria's strangely austere 1911 sanctuary. A gold-and-pastel-painted passageway leads to its upper…

  • Sant Joan les Fonts

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    Some 6km northeast of Olot, Sant Joan les Fonts has some lovely forest just beyond the village centre. From the Oficina de Turisme, you can pick up…

  • Centre d'Interpretació del Mite del Comte Arnau

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    The monastery's 14th-century Palau de l'Abadia houses a fascinating audiovisual exhibition tracing the source of the Count Arnau legend. Folk songs from…

  • Santa Eulàlia d'Erill la Vall

    The Catalan Pyrenees

    The slender six-storey, 12th-century tower of Santa Eulàlia d'Erill la Vall, a 2.5km walk or drive west of Boí, once used for communications and valley…

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