Llorts iron mine, Ordino's tunnel into the iron age

The Llorts mine is a small visit that explains something big. For three centuries iron was one of Andorra’s main sources of income, and this is where that business began, with a hole in the mountainside. It’s only thirty metres of tunnel, but told well it’s enough to explain the wealth of the Casa d’Areny-Plandolit and the forge down in La Massana.

A mine that lasted four years

museus.ad says the mine dates from the nineteenth century and was only worked for four years, because the ore was too scarce to make it pay. Even so, it was part of a system. Together with the Sedornet mines and the diggings at Ransol, it fed the forges of Ordino parish at a time when ironworking, from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century, was one of the country’s great industries.

What survives is a gallery of about 30 m. According to the tourist board, no other mine in Andorra survives intact, and the place to follow the whole iron process, from prospecting and digging the ore to preparing it and working it at the Farga Rossell in La Massana.

What’s the tour like?

The visit is guided, with guides speaking Catalan, Spanish, French or English, museus.ad says, and takes you into the mine’s tunnels. The tourist board recommends it for families with small children, as the access is easy, pleasant and fairly flat. It isn’t adapted for wheelchairs, and inside a mountain gallery I’d always bring a warm layer, even in August.

The thing not to forget is the booking, which is compulsory and made on the council’s tourism website, visitordino.com. In July and August I’d book several days ahead, and in October, when it only opens on Saturdays and Sundays, even earlier.

Opening hours and prices in 2026

The 2026 season began on 16 June. The mine opens from 9:30 to 17:30, with the last tour at 17:00, and closes on Sunday and Monday except in July and August, when it opens daily. In October and up to 1 November it opens at weekends only. An adult ticket is €6.75, ages 6 to 12 pay €3.75 and under-6s go free; groups of eight or more, Carnet Jove holders, over-65s, Targeta Blava holders, large or single-parent families and Pyrenees Pass holders pay €2.75.

It’s on avinguda de l’Angonella at the entrance to Llorts, and for questions, ring the Ordino tourist office on +376 878 173. Without a car, take national bus L6 from Andorra la Vella to La Cortinada, the end of the line, and walk the last stretch up the iron route past the sculptures. On a summer holiday without a hire car, that’s my plan, and it turns a short visit into a proper half day.

The mine and the iron route

The council suggests the mine as the starting point for the iron route, the old track the muleteers used to carry ore down to the forges. Along the way are six sculptures by artists from several countries, a spring with iron-tasting water and, in La Cortinada, the wrought-iron grilles of Sant Martí de la Cortinada. The full route carries on for about 10 km to the Farga Rossell in La Massana, where the ore was turned into iron.

With children, on foot from Ordino

With children and time to spare, the tourist board suggests an approach that makes the mine the prize at the end. It’s the royal road that starts at Santa Bàrbara, on the edge of Ordino village, and ends in Llorts, about 6 km and almost flat, with wooden bridges and boardwalks. Past Arans, the Men of Iron signs lead from sculpture to sculpture to the Vilaró de Llorts rest area, and the mine is a short walk beyond. You can ride the parish bus back, so nobody has to retrace their steps.

My verdict

As a stand-alone trip, the mine is too short to justify the drive. As part of a day in the valley, it’s one of the best things Ordino offers a family. I’d walk up the royal road from La Cortinada, do the mine with a booking in hand and, time permitting, round off the iron story at the Casa d’Areny-Plandolit in Ordino village, which is where all that money ended up.