The Aran Valley, where Baqueira Beret is located, has been populated since pre-historical times, like many other points of the Pyrenees. Cesar's Roman troops passed through here on their way from France to the Iberian Penisula. The earliest documented history of the area is from the 10th century.

In the year 1175, during the reign of Alfonso II, the Arán Valley was placed under the Crown of Arágon. During two or three centuries, this valley was constantly disputed over, and passed between France and the Kingdom of Aragón until in 1313 the people of the valley decided that their protectorate should be Aragón and not France. It was then that Jaime II granted a number of privileges to the region, and in 1415 he joined together with the kingdom of Catalunya.

In 1810, the region was witness to the invasion of Napoleon, who entered Spain through Puerto de Viella. In 1815 however, after the fall of Napoleon, the valley was returned to the Spanish Crown.

It was during the XXth century that the Arán Valley developed into what we know it to be today, with new roads, tunnels and railways, and the conversion of the region into a tourist resort.

In the 1960's Spain began to timidly open its doors to the outside world, and it was in this era that a group of people in the valley decided to found the first skiing station, The Naut Aran Station as it was then called, the fruit of the unbeatable snow conditions of the area. The resort has continued to thrive until today, and it is currently the most visited ski station in the valley with its 100km of slopes. Previously the economy of the area had always been based on cattle farming and the exploitation of the forests, but these days the principal source of income is tourism.

As far as culture is concerned, one main attraction is the architecture of Baqueira with its typical stone houses or "escudos" with large chimneys; wooden cabins and hay lofts.

In the nearby Valley of Boi we find the most important collection of Romanesque architecture in Europe, hence its cataloging by UNESCO as a "Patrimony of Humanity". The area of the Alta Ribagorza is considered as the cradle of the Roman art of the Catalan Pyrenees.