Pal Arinsal Bike Park

Pal Arinsal Bike Park, long known as Vallnord Bike Park La Massana, is Andorra's World Cup venue, set on the mountainside above the village of La Massana in the Pyrenees. More than 60km of lift-served trails drop over 1,000m from Pic del Cubil at 2,364m down to the village, with 32 lines on the operator's status board: 7 green, 10 blue, 9 red and 6 black, including a four-cross track, the World Cup downhill and cross-country courses, and more than 12km of continuous blue descent from high in the park to the La Massana gondola. Add a pump track, practice area, kids' Bike World zone and winter riding on the lower lines, and it is a genuine multi-day destination.

The Trails

The park is served by the La Massana gondola from the village, the El Cubil and La Serra II chairlifts in the Pal sector, and two conveyor lifts for the learning areas. The resort's bike patrol builds and maintains the lines, keeps them signposted and provides first aid. Lengths below are from the operator's 2026 trail map.

• Green: Skippy Track (1.7km), Connexió Cubil (2km), Verdet (0.4km), and the Green Gravity Descent (8.6km), the longest and most accessible descent in the resort, starting from the La Serra II chairlift. XC1 (2.5km) and Sobirans (2.5km) are the easy cross-country loops.
• Blue: Commençal Superior (6.5km) and Commençal Inferior (6km), which together make a long, flowing descent from the top of the park down to La Massana, plus Coll de la Botella (2.4km), Corpalanca (2km), Furious Track (0.5km), Carbonera (0.5km), Natural (0.3km), Taboi (0.3km) and Blavet (0.4km). XC2 (4km) is the intermediate cross-country loop.
• Red: Maxi Superior (2.2km) and Maxi Inferior (4km), the Maxi Avalanche course, plus Cubil (2.4km), Wood Park I and II (0.6km and 1.5km), Flow (0.6km), Makarena (0.5km), Old School (0.5km) and a 0.5km Four Cross track.
• Black: World Cup (2km), the current downhill race course; Best World DHI 2019 (2.5km) and 2008 (1.2km), earlier World Cup and World Championship tracks; Wet Tube (3km) and Project 1.0 (0.4km). The XC World Cup loop (4.5km) is the black-graded cross-country course.
• E-bike circuit (3km), plus a pump track and a practice area for warming up near the Pal base.

The park has hosted UCI World Cup racing since 2008 and the World Championships in 2015 and 2024, and the World Cup has become a regular fixture here. The UCI describes the downhill as usually dry, dusty, rough and fast, so treat the black lines as proper race tracks.

Bike World

Bike World is a separate family and learning zone at the Pal base, with its own ticket. It includes First Wheel for children taking their first pedal strokes, Bike Rules, a mini road layout with signs and roundabouts, Ride Challenge, an obstacle circuit for getting started on downhill, Trail Boost, a natural-terrain descent with its own conveyor lift, and Exploradors del Refugi, a nature trail for younger riders.

Winter Riding

Unusually for a Pyrenean resort, the lower part of the park can open outside the summer season. The Winter Bike Park uses the five lower lines, Commençal Inferior, Old School, Best World DHI 2019, Wet Tube and Maxi Inferior, for around 16km of riding and 700m of descent, served by the La Massana gondola. It opens in winter and on some off-season weekends when weather and ground conditions allow, so check with the resort before you travel.

Admission and Prices

All the lift-served lines need a Bike Park pass. For summer 2026, a one-day pass costs €37.50 for an adult (€25 for children, juniors and seniors), with multi-day passes from €70.50 for two days to €149 for five consecutive days, and an afternoon pass from 2pm for €27. Rider insurance is an optional extra at €12 a day. The Season Bike Pass costs €308 for an adult and also includes a day at Nevis Range in Fort William. A pay-per-day Plus+ Bike Pass, bought online, knocks 10 percent off each day after the first. Bike World has its own day ticket at €23, and a Winter Bike Park day costs €31 for an adult in the 2026-27 season. Prices are correct as of September 2026 but subject to change, so check current rates on the Pal Arinsal website before you book.

Guides, Shuttles and Hire

There is no van shuttle to arrange here: the uplift is the resort's own lifts, with the La Massana gondola carrying bikes from the village up to the Pal sector, and the El Cubil and La Serra II chairlifts serving the upper park, all included in the Bike Park pass. For lessons, the resort runs its own bike school, with private coaching from one hour to a full day and children's clubs and summer camps. Several shops in La Massana rent downhill, enduro and e-bikes, two of them on Avinguda del Ravell near the gondola, and local guides lead rides on the wider trail network around the valley.

• Commençal Rent Andorra: downhill, freeride, enduro, e-bike and children's bike hire from the Commençal Village on Avinguda del Ravell in La Massana, with online booking.
• Couloir Andorra: downhill, e-bike and other bike hire, protective gear and a multi-brand workshop in La Massana, with downhill bikes from €95 a day in summer 2026.
• MTB Aventures: guided mountain bike rides and multi-day trips around Andorra and the Pyrenees, based in L'Aldosa, just above La Massana.
• Pal Arinsal Bike School: the resort's own school, with private lessons from €48 for an hour to €249.50 for a full Top Bike day, for up to four riders per instructor, plus the Furious club and summer camps for children. Bike, gear and lift pass are extra.
• Pic Negre: downhill, e-bike and road bike hire, a workshop and guided tours from two shops on Avinguda Sant Antoni in La Massana.
• Riders: downhill, enduro and e-bike hire with protection packs, on the CG-4 road towards Pal in La Massana, with downhill bikes from €95 a day.

Prices are correct as of September 2026 but subject to change, so check current rates with the operator.

Getting There from the UK

Andorra has no major airport of its own. Barcelona is the usual choice, about 200km away, and Toulouse, about 195km away, is a similar distance on the French side. Girona is another option, around 260km away. From any of them, allow roughly three hours by road, and there are direct coach services from Barcelona and Toulouse into Andorra la Vella. Check each operator's bike box policy when you book. Andorra-La Seu d'Urgell airport is only 27km away but has a handful of domestic Spanish routes, none from the UK.

By rail, Eurostar to Paris then French trains towards Toulouse reach the stations at L'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre or La Tour de Carol, both linked to Andorra by daily coach. On the London to Paris leg, bikes need to be packed in a bike box or bag and booked in advance, so check Eurostar's current rules before you travel. Once in Andorra la Vella, local buses L5 and L6 run to La Massana and Arinsal.

Driving from Calais or the Channel Tunnel is around 1,100km, roughly 11 hours on motorways through France via Toulouse, then the N22 through Ax-les-Thermes and into Andorra over the Envalira pass or through its tunnel. From Andorra la Vella, the CG-3 runs six kilometres up the valley to La Massana. If you are combining the trip with other riding in the range, see our Pyrenees Mountain Biking listing.

Getting Here

The La Massana gondola station sits in the centre of the village, with a covered car park linked directly to it. The gondola climbs 675m to the Pal sector and carries bikes all summer, and the long lower lines finish back in La Massana. If you would rather drive up, the Pal sector has large free outdoor car parks with direct access to the Bike Park and Bike World, reached from La Massana on the CG-4 towards Pal. There is a bike wash and e-bike charging at the Pal base.

When to Go

The lift-served season runs from late June to mid-October. The park opens daily from late June to mid-September, then at weekends only until mid-October, with shorter autumn hours. July, August and early September are the time to ride when everything is open and the lifts run every day.

In race years the UCI World Cup takes over the resort for a week in early July, with downhill, cross-country and short track racing. During that week only the lower lines are open to the public and Bike World closes, so check the dates before you book, or plan to watch the racing and ride the lower lines. July and August are also the busiest months, with school holidays in Spain and France. The riding runs from around 1,230m in La Massana to 2,364m at Pic del Cubil, so it is noticeably cooler at the top than in the village. Pack a layer, and watch for afternoon thunderstorms, which are common in the Pyrenees in summer.

For a change from the lifts, Naturland Bike Center, above Sant Julià de Lòria in the south of Andorra, has more than 70km of waymarked cross country and enduro routes with a shuttle, about an hour away by road.

Where to Stay

La Massana is the best base. The gondola leaves from the village centre, the long descents finish there, and the bike hire shops, restaurants and hotels are all within walking distance. Arinsal, a few kilometres further up the valley, is a quieter village with plenty of hotels and apartments, and is also on the L5 and L6 bus routes. Andorra la Vella, six kilometres down the valley, has the widest choice of accommodation and shops, but means a bus or drive to the lifts each day. For motorhomes and campervans, the resort runs a free overnight area at La Caubella in the Pal sector, 100m from the Bike Park, open to Bike Park users from late June to mid-October, with water, waste disposal and toilets but no electric hook-up. Overnight stays in vans are not allowed elsewhere in Andorra outside designated areas.

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