26.09.2019

Winter PR News 2019/20: Your Perfect Ski Day in Austria

Austria holds firm as a top winter destination for British holidaymakers, with 3.8% increase in arrivals from the UK making 2018/2019 another record season.

This year, Austria invites holidaymakers to find their perfect ski day. From Tirol to SalzburgerLand and beyond, visitors are guaranteed to do so, aided by Austria’s age-old affinity for snow sports, the Gemütlichkeit and jubilant winter traditions, stunning scenery and the many new innovations for 2019/20.

The Perfect Ski Day in Tirol

Tirol boasts over 80 ski areas and 3,000km of skiable land, from expansive and famed resorts to local hidden treasures. 300 ski school programmes and hotels designed with children in mind make it the ideal destination for family holidays, while spotlessly maintained slopes, thrilling off-piste and terrain parks provide constant delights to skiers of all abilities and preferences. Warm up in cosy huts with farm-to-fork Tiroler Gröstl and sweet Kiachl while laughing with friends and looking forward to tomorrow’s adventures. However you spend your holidays here, you’re always guaranteed a warm Tirolean welcome.

Innsbruck combines luxury urban amenities with the world-renowned winter sports of the Olympia SkiWorld. From skiing and snowboarding to tobogganing, snowshoeing and bobsleigh, visitors here are spoilt for choice. New for 2019/20 is the SKI plus CITY Pass. With one pass, gain access to more than 308km of pistes, 111 lifts and 13 ski areas. Off the slopes, this covers three swimming pools and 22 lifestyle, cultural and sightseeing opportunities, from Swarovski Crystal Worlds through to an alpine zoo and the oldest museum in the world.

Sublime skiing awaits across Ischgl’s 239km of slopes, opening at 8am for early morning enjoyment, flying down routes during the day and skiing by stars at night. For more downhill fun, there’s fat biking, tobogganing and even paragliding. New for 2019/20 is the Velilleck F1. At 6 metres per second, this comfortable and ergonomically designed six-seat hooded chairlift is the fastest in the area. It leads up to Pardatschgrat ridge, extending 1,353m past its predecessor. Visnitz N2, an eight- seater chairlift in Samnaun, provides further convenience and comfort to skiers.

Home of the ‘Big 3’ – the Gaislachkogl, the Tiefenbachkogl and the Schwarze Schneid – Ötztal offers endless opportunities for winter holiday fun in a breath-takingly scenic location. The Ötztal Superskipass is new for 2019/20, opening up 356km of slopes, 90 lifts and six ski areas: Sölden, Obergurgl-Hochgurgl, Hochoetz-Kühtai, Niederthai, Gries and Vent. Plus, the Ötztal hotel village introduces a state of the art 10-seat gondola climbing to 2,083m in Hochsölden, taking passengers to the Giggijoch from the valley station in under six minutes.

Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau is a collection of enchanting villages with access to over 109km of pistes, plenty of winter activities for families and a hearty serving of Tirolean charm. Holidays here are further enhanced with two new options for accommodation. Start and end your ski days in style at the new for 2019/20 four star Hotel Angelika in Alpbach, and stay close to the slopes in Niederau’s Hotel Wastlhof – a family-run lodge providing the perfect setting for rest and relaxation following hours on fun in the mountains.

The expansive, modern SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser – Brixental has 284km of groomed slopes, bustling with live music, shows and activity from welcoming cabins dotted along the routes. New for 2019/20, SkiWelt welcomes the Fleidingbahn, the Zinsbergbahn and the Hexenwasser. The first: a comfortable, heated-seat eight-person chairlift with a carrying capacity of 2,730 people per hour. The second: a combined cabin- and chairlift with an upwards extension of 400m to the Filzbodenbahnstation. Finally: the ‘bewitching’ Hexenwasser, opening in summer 2020, in which each ten-seater gondola enchants with motifs to a unique theme.

The white peaks of the Kitzbühel Alps glisten above the villages of St. Johann in Tirol, Oberndorf, Kirchdorf and Erpfendorf, ready to welcome holiday makers to perfectly groomed slopes, cross- country ski routes and modern, comfortable lifts. Thoroughly family friendly, shorter gentle routes can be enjoyed by beginners before heading higher, where pistes will delight even the most seasoned skier. For those seeking culinary thrills, St. Johann in Tirol’s high density and range of huts give plenty of choice when choosing between local delicacies, lovingly homemade desserts and regional tipples.

The Tiroler Zugspitz Arena is equipped with breathtaking views on all sides and seven ski resorts within easy reach – and updates are aplenty in the Berwanger area. New for 2019/20, improvements include the Obere Karbahn, a 10-person gondola lift with a middle station and mountain restaurant, as well as the Thanellerbahn, a child-friendly six-seater chairlift. While exploring the region, stay at the new luxury Pure Resort Ehrwald, Zugspitz Resort Ehrwald, reopening in December 2019, the Heiterwanger Hof or pension Zeegershof Heiter, both under new management this season.

Zillertal has the world’s largest skiing valley with 535km of slopes and 180 lifts spanning across four areas. A premium choice for all kind of winter sports enthusiasts, it has challenging downhills, wide routes for carefree carving, snowboard fun parks, racing and speed courses, ski kindergartens, huts and high cuisine galore. New for 2019/20: From beechwood barbecues to sophisticated cocktails, to panorama bars and a vegetarian restaurant with its own permaculture garden, Zillertal welcomes eight new restaurants and mountain huts this year.

The Perfect Ski Day in SalzburgerLand

SalzburgerLand in winter is a symphony of fresh snow underfoot, the whistling of wind while gliding down slopes, glasses tinkling in cozy mountain huts serving up organic delights and gleeful cheers from children on toboggans. 1,140km of blue runs, 1,305km of red and a tremendous 305km of black – all accessible with the Salzburger Super Ski Card – render this region a playground for every kind of skier. From snow-biking to airboarding to ice-climbing, SalzburgerLand’s multitude of unique winter activities promise to enthrall, and its many well- appointed hotels guarantee rest and relaxation.

Travel a mere 60km south of Salzburg to the pristine slopes of St. Johann in Salzburg. The ideal setting for a family holidays in the snow, it offers direct access to the ski resort Snow Space Salzburg, with 7km out of 120km slopes dedicated for beginners and children on the family mountain Hahnbaum. And while little ones learn, those who have already graduated from ski school can discover the pistes of Ski amadé and explore the 760km of slopes, serviced by 270 high-tech lifts, all with just one pass.

For sensational skiing in a region that prides itself on being the ‘Home of Lässig’ – cool, easy-going and laid-back – is Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn. This destination, with 140km blue slopes, 112km red and 18km black as well as snow and freeriding parks, has invested much in recent years to offer visitors optimum levels of comfort and ease during their holidays. To start, the 12er KOGEL modern 10-person gondola, the Reservoir Hochalm II with 251,300m3 snowmaking capacity and an innovative piste orientation system are all new for 2019/20.

Together with Zell am See-Kaprun, Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn also introduces the irresistible offer of the Ski ALPIN CARD this season. The key to three premium regions,it allows access to Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn, Schmittenhöhe in Zell am See and the Kitzsteinhorn Glacier ski resort in Kaprun. This translates to 408km of slopes, 121 cable cars and lifts, 99 huts and mountain restaurants.

Further new for 2019/20 in Zell am See-Kaprun is the ultra-modern, ski-in ski-out tri-cable gondola, the 3K Kaprun-Kitzsteinhorn-K-onnection, linking the Maiskogel to the Kitzsteinhorn. The 12km ride is the longest continuous gondola axis and rises to the greatest elevation in the Eastern Alps. Moreover, the zellamseeXpress offers a new connection from Viehhofen to the Schmitten in Zell am See. Holidays here offer more ways than ever in which to explore the pistes, freeride routes, fun slopes, parks and pipes before heading back to huts and hotels for rest and recreation.

With some of Austria’s deepest snow for freeriding, a long November-May ski season, and one of the steepest mogul slopes in Europe, Obertauern is a paradise for winter sports mavens. The Tauern Round provides a unique ski circuit with 26 modern cable cars and ski lifts connecting 100km of slopes. New for 2019/20 is children’s ski area Bobby’s Monsterpark, with a 200m under-roof magic carpet and plenty of ways in which to keep kids entertained, making this destination even more enjoyable for the whole family.

Inspired to experience your perfect ski day in Austria in line with a commission? I look forward to hearing from you!

Eleanor Moody
PR & Community Manager
eleanor.moody@austria.info