Andora is certainly one of the most sought-after tourist destinations, where it is difficult not to find what you are looking for. Splendid sea, typical restaurants on the seafront, hotels and holiday apartments that everyone dreams of: it is impossible not to love it.

Whether you want to know the history of the area, or you can’t wait to put on your running shoes and start your sports holidays, Andora and its hamlets offer everything you need. Let’s find out together what its hinterland has in store for us!

The hamlets and localities of Andora

The coastal area has no more secrets for you? Then you should think about taking the car and visiting some pretty hilltop villages around Andora. These are small villages with few houses, where it is worth taking the time to admire the panorama.

In fact, between woods and the typical Mediterranean scrub, you will be able to see the true essence of the Ligurian landscape, not far from the most sought-after tourist attractions. On one hand you will continue to have the reference of the sea, simply from a greater height, and therefore privileged; on the other, you will have the view of valleys with terraces full of olive groves and vineyards.

The hamlets of Andora are:

• San Pietro
• San Giovanni
• Conna
• Rollo
• San Bartolomeo

Inside there are numerous villages, which we will not have time to talk about on this occasion. We will just visit a few, those that we consider absolutely unmissable!

Colla Micheri

Colla Micheri is part of the hamlet of San Giovanni and is one of the villages that you must visit if you are in Andora. A historic village of a few houses, perched on a hill but not immediately visible from the coast. The reason for its particularity is very simple. When it was built, Liguria was continually under siege by the Saracens, who raged on the coasts with their raids. For this reason it was decided to build the village on the opposite side of the hill and in a very steep area, in order to make the access difficult and only through the woods.

A pretty cobbled square, overlooked by the church of San Sebastiano, welcomes you in Colla Micheri. Here most of the tourists stop to photograph the ancient fountain and the stone facades, each with its flower pots on the windows and the climbing plants to frame them. From the main square there is then a series of arches that lead you to the respective alleys, all narrow and in full Ligurian style. Entering the alleys is a must: only in this way you can say that you have breathed the atmosphere of our region.

Borgo Castello

An unmissable destination for those in Andora is a visit to its oldest nucleus, the hill where the castle once stood, known as Paraxo, which the ruins remain today. It was one of the residences of the Clavesana marquises who settled here to control and defend the territory. In the vicinity of the castle there is also the beautiful medieval church of Saints James and Philip, and a little further on you can see a high tower whose function was to serve as a gateway to the fortified area.

To get to Borgo Castello simply follow the signs for the castle, park the car at the entrance of the historic center and continue on foot through a dirt path shaded by olive trees. On the walls that line the road there are slate boards with engraved poems.

Rollo e Conna

Finally, we also want to offer you a simple route that will take you to breathe the essences of Mediterranean vegetation. Olive trees and holm oaks are a constant in the landscape in the hamlet of Conna, in whose countryside it is possible to meet some buildings characteristic of the territory: the “Caselle liguri”. These are ancient shelters for shepherds and farmers, built with the “dry” construction technique, without the use of mortar or cement.

The hamlet of Rollo is also made up of a set of scattered houses, which can be accessed after a few uphill hairpin bends. Once at the top of the hill, you can leave your car and continue on foot, to find yourself immersed in a unique landscape. Among dense olive groves there are private homes, with their extremely well-kept gardens from which the view of unparalleled views is offered.

Even a simple walk in one of these places, with a stop on a bench to admire the Gulf of Andora, is one of the experiences that you cannot miss in Liguria.