Palau de Gel, Canillo's Olympic-size ice rink and pool

The Palau de Gel rarely makes the Andorra postcards, yet for me it ranks among the handiest places in Canillo. When the mountain weather turns, and in the Pyrenees it turns often, an Olympic ice rink and a pool with slides a short walk from your hotel can rescue the day.

Before you go, the maintenance work

First things first, because this could save you a wasted trip. Andorra Turisme warns that parts of the Palau de Gel have been shut for maintenance from 1 June 2026, with no end date given. It doesn’t say which part, and advises contacting the centre directly to see what’s open. I’d ring (+376) 800 840 the evening before.

I also couldn’t read the prices or exact opening times. The centre’s own website wasn’t responding when I checked, and neither the parish council nor Andorra Turisme publishes them. Better to admit that than repeat a figure from some blog that may be three seasons out of date.

What can you do at the Palau de Gel?

The star turn is the rink, Olympic size at 1,800 m². Public skating runs on weekday afternoons and on weekend mornings and afternoons, according to Andorra Turisme. If you’re a group, you can book an ice hockey match with all the kit on loan, helmet, pads and stick included.

Curling is the one I’d suggest to a group of friends who’ve never tried it. It’s instructor-led, for groups of 8 to 12, with equipment included and recommended from age 12. Long trousers, long socks and gloves are compulsory, so don’t turn up in shorts however sunny it is outside.

The pool and everything else

In the pool is Splash!, three slides that start 7 m up and run 53 m before dropping you into the water. Riders must measure 1.20 m or more, and anyone under 10 needs a grown-up with them. For younger ones, aged 3 to 12, the small pool has its own child-sized slides. The heated 25 m main pool is there for proper lengths and aqua aerobics classes.

The building also has a gym, an indoor cycling studio, a sauna, an indoor climbing wall, a squash court, table tennis and an outdoor tennis court. Upstairs there’s a restaurant with home cooking and a set menu, and reception has a small sports shop. The climbing wall is a good first taste before you head for real rock, and the outdoor crags are in rock climbing Andorra.

Is it worth it on an Andorra holiday?

It depends what kind of trip you’re on. If you’re skiing Grandvalira with children, it’s the perfect post-ski-school afternoon, bang in the centre of Canillo next to the gondola. Andorra Turisme even lists it among the winter activities of the Mon(t) Magic park. In summer I’d keep it in reserve for a morning when the weather’s no good for the mountains.

If you’re after thermal waters and a spa, this isn’t the place. That’s Caldea in Escaldes-Engordany, and there are more ideas for families in Andorra with kids.

A wet afternoon in the centre of Canillo

If the weather’s against you, this is how I’d plan the afternoon. Start at the Palau de Gel, skating or swimming depending on what’s open. Then cross to the gondola square for the Motorcycle Museum, open Wednesday to Saturday until 19:00, €5.50 and free for under-10s. Round things off at Sant Serni, the parish church, which charges nothing, stays open daily until 19:00 and has its 27 m bell tower pressed against the Roc del Quer. It’s all on foot, so the car can stay put.

For anyone on a ski package with small children, this is also the answer to the day the lifts close for wind. Having a heated pool, an ice rink and a museum within a few hundred metres of the gondola is the kind of back-up that makes Canillo a sensible family base.

Getting there

It’s on avinguda Sant Joan de Caselles in the middle of Canillo, about 15 minutes’ drive from Andorra la Vella according to the council. Lines L3 and L4 of the national buses stop in Canillo, and a single costs €1.90 to €4.80 depending on how many zones you cross. Right next door the gondola climbs to Mont Magic family park, and in the gondola building itself is the Andorra motorcycle museum, another good indoor option.