Airport Mix-Up Sends Tourists to Andorra Instead of Ondarroa
A Spanish radio show recounts how a phonetic confusion at Bilbao Airport directed foreign visitors on a long detour to Andorra, mistaking it for the.
Key Points
- Foreign couple asked for 'Andorra' at Bilbao's Sondica Airport late at night.
- Workers sketched 6-8 hour routes to Pyrenean principality via Vitoria or France.
- Realization hit: they meant nearby Ondarroa, but tourists had already driven off.
- Story aired on 'Herrera en COPE' radio, amusing listeners with language pitfalls.
A Spanish radio programme has recounted a humorous tale of a phonetic mix-up at Bilbao's Sondica Airport that sent foreign tourists on a lengthy detour towards Andorra instead of their likely destination, the Basque coastal town of Ondarroa.
The anecdote aired during "La Hora de los Fósforos" segment on *Herrera en COPE*, hosted by Alberto Herrera. Conchita, a former airport worker, shared the story from years ago when she and her husband were leaving their shift around 11pm. A foreign couple approached them in English, saying, "We want to go to Andorra."
Believing they meant the Pyrenean principality, the pair spent time sketching out routes—either through Spain via Vitoria and Zaragoza, or into France—for what they estimated as a six-to-eight-hour drive. The tourists appeared daunted by the description but promptly drove off in that direction.
Moments later, Conchita had a sudden realisation. "Oh my God, they weren't going to Andorra—they must have meant Ondarroa!" she thought, struck by the similar-sounding names of the Biscay municipality and Andorra. By then, it was too late to turn them back.
The light-hearted account, which drew smiles from listeners, highlighted the pitfalls of linguistic confusion and placed Andorra unwittingly at the centre of the mishap.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: