Ski Weekend - Austria

[wrencho]

I'm planning a ski weekend with a couple of friends next January....we usually ski Chamonix for a variety of reasons but feel like a change for this short break. I've never ski'd Austria so that's the plan....now where to start. I don't normally have to make such decisions :-)

We are experienced skiers/snowboarders and looking for decent terrain and a few beers afterwards. The skiing is definitely the motivation rather than the apres...

I was thinking Mayrhofen or Solden so far...

Any tips?

[Powerkiter]

I've done similar weekend trips to Austria, usually staying in Soll (although plenty of other towns in the Ski Welt). Kitzbuhel is also an option but only ever skied there on day trips from the Ski Welt. Usually fly to Munich, pick up a hire car and it's around hour and 30 minute drive. Have also flown to Innsbuck and Satzburg but tend to get better fight times and prices to Munich.

[stuthemong]

St Anton is good fun. Massive area, nice little jump park, great offpiste (inc heliski - recommended)

[//j17]

Given for a weekend break you want to minimise travel time/maximise flight options I'd probably say fly into Munich and hire a car. Other options are available but tends to be cheaper and plenty of resorts 90 to 120 minutes drive away, much of it on the motorway (need Vignette).

Mayrhofen's good but also got other resorts in the Zillertral valley, Kitzbühel, Soll, amonst others.

And once you've gone Austrian you'll wonder why you went to France so much. Accomodation tends to be more expensive but also generally much bigger, just cursed by the Austrian Twin bed, and no place for a vegan but on the other side; no dog mess everywhere, people in resort who actually want you do be there and who want to give you good service, good value good food, and the worst Austrian apres ski is miles ahead of the best French.

[oddman]

stuthe said:

St Anton is good fun. Massive area, nice little jump park, great offpiste (inc heliski - recommended)

+1

OP if you ski Chamonix because of challenging lift accessed off piste and convenient day/half day touring the St. Anton has all of this in the wider Arlberg ski area. Plus it's a lively pretty resort town not entirely unlike Chamonix.

Heliski would be great but the lift system and a pair of skins will give you a feast of options.

[JEA1K]

oddman said:

+1

OP if you ski Chamonix because of challenging lift accessed off piste and convenient day/half day touring the St. Anton has all of this in the wider Arlberg ski area. Plus it's a lively pretty resort town not entirely unlike Chamonix.

Heliski would be great but the lift system and a pair of skins will give you a feast of options.

Another one for St Anton ... there's a lot to go at ... you certainly won't get to cover it all in a weekend. You'll need to go to Lech to do a heli day as its not available/permitted in the Arlberg but is in Vorarlberg. You can hire a guide in St Anton to do this. Might be good to get a guide anyway even if you just plan to ride Arlberg region ... some great off-piste to get at weather permitting.

Apres can be very lively but there are enough quieter places to eat and drink that don't allow ski's/boots in.

In terms of getting there, Swiss fly daily from a number of UK airports to Zurich ... then its a 2.5 hr ish drive or train ride to St Anton. Trains are every couple of hours and are direct from the main station in Zurich ... you can get a train from the airport into the city.

[wrencho]

Flights to Innsbruck booked....just need to sort some dogs now. Do I need to be in central St Anton? I'm not used to having to make these big decisions about snowboarding :-)