Juberri Gardens, a sculpture zoo above the valley

After the parish name itself, the Juberri Gardens are the thing people search for most in Sant Julià de Lòria, and the appeal is obvious. A garden with elephants, giraffes and a gorilla on a Pyrenean hillside has a certain appeal. It’s worth arriving with a clear idea of what it is and isn’t, though, and of what the official information no longer says.

What are the Juberri Gardens?

They’re a small contemporary garden, created in 2005 by a family living in the village of Juberri. The garden sits at 1,250 m on a slope overlooking the valley, and its whole idea is contrast. It keeps the native vegetation and trees of the area but adds French-inspired geometric spaces laid out as formal beds, with perfectly clipped hedges and shrubs and small cascades. The result is a short circuit punctuated by sculptures.

Andorra Turisme still lists them among the highlights of Sant Julià as ideal for a family visit, and I think that’s the fair description. It isn’t a botanical garden or a museum. It’s an hour’s wander that children love. Adults who come expecting rare plants or a formal historic garden will be disappointed; those who come for a slightly surreal walk among sculpted elephants and clipped hedges, with the Pyrenees as a backdrop, generally leave smiling. I’d set aside an hour, no more, and keep the camera handy for the giant hands.

The sculptures

Much of the sculpture was designed by Àngel Calvente, a name that also appears on Vínculos, one of the works the tourist board lists around the parish. Animal groups dominate, with horses, sheep and elephants, plus very lifelike figures of a gorilla, a giant panda and giraffes, so the place feels like an animal park frozen in time.

My favourites are the giant hands that seem to hold certain trees up by the trunk, as if they were the stem of a flower. There are also groups of human figures and scale models in stone of Andorran churches. Those last ones are a good excuse to go and see the originals afterwards, starting with the one next door.

Opening times, price and what isn’t clear

I need to be straight with you here. The gardens’ official listing on Andorra Turisme’s website is no longer published. Its last copy, from December 2024, said access was free and referred visitors to the Sant Julià tourist office for times and prices. I haven’t found a more recent official source, so before driving up I’d ring (+376) 744 045 to check they’re open and on what terms. Travel sites quoting 24-hour opening aren’t an official source.

Walks that pass by

The gardens aren’t isolated. Andorra Turisme notes that several walking and cycling routes pass close by, including the one linking the development with the woods of La Rabassa, and the Comú’s summer programme includes a trail route between Juberri and La Rabassa. For a family, the nicest is Sant Julià Màgica, which tells the tale of Aubinyà’s White Lady over 3 km and 250 m of ascent, with ten stops of games. It takes about three hours, and the accompanying booklet is free at the tourist office. Even the government’s exhibition hall in Andorra la Vella has staged a group show called L’Escola dels Jardins de Juberri, which tells you how recognisable the place has become.

Getting there

The gardens are at number 66 in the Juberri development, less than 5 km from central Sant Julià de Lòria. You drive up the village road. On foot, the Senyoreta path leaves La Riberola on the main road and climbs steeply through the woods to Juberri; it’s the Sant Julià Màgica route, so with children over seven you can make the walk up part of the game.

What to pair it with

A few steps away is Sant Esteve de Juberri, Andorra’s southernmost church, from the late 11th or early 12th century, with a half-buried apse worth walking round. A few kilometres off is Naturland Andorra with the Tobotronc. My family-day plan would be gardens and church in the morning, lunch in town and Naturland in the afternoon. If you’re staying over, the options are in hotels in Sant Julià de Lòria.