 Poster: A snowHead
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@PeteMan, Yes, it’s looking very murky on the tops. Let’s hope for a really horrible and very cold November and early December in Saalbach, changing to beautiful weather around 10th December 😉
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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15th for me 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Hyst, I'm not an expert but I've been to Saalbach at least seven times. I think there is enough skiing in the Skicircus area without having to travel to Zell, and I have never skied there. There are plenty of piste tours around the Skicircus that you can do at a gentle pace, allowing you to try a piste more than one time if it's quiet, or if the snow conditions are particularly good in that one area etc. For example Fieberbrunn is a whole day of exploring on its own, and whilst Leogang is less spread out, it will take a bit of travelling to get there from Hinterglemm and then back again, all on skis.
If you have a car then you have more options, but the Super Card looks an expensive way to do it if you are only thinking of one or two days in Zell or Kaprun.
I don't know where the Zell link finishes in Viehofen, but there would be a walk involved regardless, because of the need to cross the main road into the small parking area where the bus stop is located.
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| Hyst wrote: |
I noticed a number of experts here. 
First time im Glemmertal, just skiing 8 days during Christmas - is it worth going for the supercard to be able to go Zell and Kaprun or is it better to investigate the Skicirkus first?
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I'm sure Tatman will give his opinion (as close as you'll get to facts)
Plenty to do in Skicircus without Zell. Zell is lovely and scenic but the skiing is quite limited. I went to S-H 3 years ago and there was plenty then - now Fieberbrunn has been added.
There isn't a full link to Zell. A run and lift back comes most of the way down from Zell, you can ski back from Zell I believe but not get there. It's waiting for a lift back up Blue 68 (I think - Tatman's favourite) before full integration is possible - and there are problems with the geology for a reservoir as Blue 68 is south facing and would need snow cannon if was part of a full link; it's often closed).
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Wouldn't bother with Zell. It's stunning but there is so much skiing in Saalbach and all its areas you won't need to go anywhere else.
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| HoneyBunny wrote: |
| Wouldn't bother with Zell. It's stunning but there is so much skiing in Saalbach and all its areas you won't need to go anywhere else. |
If it was properly linked I'd go to Zell one day, but it isn't so it's not worth it.
Indeed, it is stunning, especially if the lake is frozen
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Hyst, I agree with all the others. If it’s properly linked then it would be worth doing. It isn’t and there is plenty to keep you busy in the Ski Circus.
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The cancelled men’s GS at Sölden is being replaced by a GS in S-H on Thursday 20th December.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I'm going to Zell for three days at the end of January. I'm trying to make sense of the posts above but could someone please explain the best way to do a day trip to Saalbach? Thanks!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Bus from Zell to Vorderglemm (Schönleitenbahn lift).
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@Hyst, The decision whether to pay extra for the Super Ski Pass can be made when you arrive in Saalbach on 22nd December. If the snow is good (of course it will I hear you all say, both in hope and expectation 😬) you will probably be satisfied, as others have suggested, with all that the Ski Circus has to offer.
The only circumstances in which I would suggest that it might be worth getting the super pass would be if you wanted to go up to the Kitzsteinhorn glacier at Kaprun, which is only a half hour drive away.
I spend all season in Saalbach, and I have never bothered to ski the Zell area, although I will certainly take an occasional day trip over there when the new link opens next year.
I have been up to the glacier in early April and enjoyed it, but not sure I would during the main season (unless conditions were unusually bad - and then hordes of other people would no doubt have the same idea).
I should add that I don’t generally have my car with me in the winter, so that’s another reason why I stay close to home (although I do have the Ski Alpin season pass, which covers Zell/Kaprun). I may therefore not be the best person to ask. However a group of about 10 friends, who often like to take their holidays in Saalbach decided a couple of years ago to stay in Zell for a change. They were underwhelmed by Zell’s Ski area, and on several days took taxis to Saalbach. They told me that, although it was scenic, the area was limited and and lacked the variety that they were used to.
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You know it makes sense.
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After 8 years of visiting Hinterglemm every half term with our kids while they were learning, last year we took day trips out of the Glemmtal to Hochkonig and to Zell. We know Zell and Kaprun well from several previous trips, but the Konigstour from Maria Alm out and back was new to us. Both were successful days out, and I'd recommend them to anyone who either feels that they've done everything they want to do in the Glemmtal, or who would like to sample the other areas to see what they have to offer. Neither is worth a full week on its own if you are the type who needs 200Km of pistes, but they offer something different and have their charms. Our aim was to take our kids out of their comfort zone - they hare off ahead of us in the Glemmtal because they know where they are going, so taking them somewhere new forced them to pay attention to their surroundings and learn to navigate the piste map.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| tatmanstours wrote: |
@Hyst, The decision whether to pay extra for the Super Ski Pass can be made when you arrive in Saalbach on 22nd December. If the snow is good (of course it will I hear you all say, both in hope and expectation 😬) you will probably be satisfied, as others have suggested, with all that the Ski Circus has to offer.
The only circumstances in which I would suggest that it might be worth getting the super pass would be if you wanted to go up to the Kitzsteinhorn glacier at Kaprun, which is only a half hour drive away.
I spend all season in Saalbach, and I have never bothered to ski the Zell area, although I will certainly take an occasional day trip over there when the new link opens next year.
I have been up to the glacier in early April and enjoyed it, but not sure I would during the main season (unless conditions were unusually bad - and then hordes of other people would no doubt have the same idea).
I should add that I don’t generally have my car with me in the winter, so that’s another reason why I stay close to home (although I do have the Ski Alpin season pass, which covers Zell/Kaprun). I may therefore not be the best person to ask. However a group of about 10 friends, who often like to take their holidays in Saalbach decided a couple of years ago to stay in Zell for a change. They were underwhelmed by Zell’s Ski area, and on several days took taxis to Saalbach. They told me that, although it was scenic, the area was limited and and lacked the variety that they were used to. |
Thank you very much for all the information. The "local" liftcard will be it, now we will keep an eye on the weather and all the webcams to help making it a withe Christamas (and the week before for otheres - and even before that for you).
When you see a red missile on the pist tracked by slow purple wife- that is us - the daughter will be somewhere (we do not know where!) on her own.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Hyst, on getting from one side of the valley to the other, there are only really two places where it can be done without walking - at the Hinterglemm end where the runs down Hochalm take you directly to the Zwolfernordbahn (in the opposite direction, it is a 30 metre walk to the Hochalmbahn), and at Vorderglemm where the 2b run comes directly to the Schonleitenbahn (with no option in the opposite direction as there is no uplift).
You can cross in Hinterglemm and in Saalbach with a short walk of about 150 metres, with lifts (elevators) to make it easier, so for example to get from the U-bahn to the Reiterkogelbahn you take the elevator down to street level, walk down a flat street, take the bridge over the river, and into an elevator up to the snow. In Saalbach it is a little trickier, so for example to get between Turm and the Schattberg Express it is a downhill walk on a cobbled street which can sometimes be a little treacherous in ski boots, and in the other direction it is of course uphill. You also have to walk between Turm and the Bernkogel lift, about 50 metres and fairly level if you take the elevator down from the snow.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@ousekjarr, The subject of walking between lifts has been explored in the past - I seem to remember that someone was moaning about it last year, and quite a discussion ensued. I think the moaner, who was also complaining about "too many gondolas"  found himself in a minority of one. I fully agree with your summary but would just make the point that walking for any appreciable distance between lifts is largely optional. The exception for me would be the 50 meter walk between the Kohlmais (Turmwiese) and the Bernkogelbahn, which I do regularly and regard as negligible. The reason that I say it's optional is that my experience, and that of the people I ski with, is that once we're up the mountain, the last thing that we would normally want to do is to ski back to the village and walk to another gondola on the other side of the village - we prefer to keep our skis on, and, if we want to get to another part of the valley, we either ski there, or we might (especially when in a hurry) ski down to the valley road and hop on a ski bus. (We find the ski buses especially useful for getting quickly between Hinterglemm and the Schoenleitenbahn, which more often than not is the last lift of the day.)
I'm not saying that there might not occasionally be exceptional circumstances necessitating a walk of 150 meters or so in ski boots from one lift to another, and much no doubt depends on where one's accommodation is located, but generally we plan our skiing so as to eliminate or minimise any walking in boots. Other people may choose to organise their itineraries differently, but generally I would say that it's possible to avoid
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a downhill walk on a cobbled street which can sometimes be a little treacherous in ski boots, and in the other direction it is of course uphill
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The advice that I tend to give to visitors to Saalbach is to try to find accommodation at the top end (north side) of the village, either in Oberdorf, or along Schiliftstrasse, and in the north-eastern area of Ronachweg - in other words near either the Kohlmaisbahn or the Bernkogelbahn Any walking to lifts is then downhill or more or less on a level, and the occasions when it's necessary to walk uphill from the Schattberg Xpress should be quite rare - particularly if we're talking about walking from lift to lift, rather than accommodation to lift.
Hinterglemm is of course a different kettle of fish, but, by utilising lifts, it should be possible to avoid the tedious walk to and from the Zwoelferkogelbahn, especially now that we have the 12er Express, and the distance between the U-Bahn and the Reiterkogelbahn is, as you say, only about 150 meters, which, as you point out, can be avoided by crossing the valley at Hochalm.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@tatmanstours, agreed - but Hyst specifically asked about it.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Hyst, U-bahn = Unterschwarzachbahn
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| tatmanstours wrote: |
| @Hyst, U-bahn = Unterschwarzachbahn |
 Yes, of course 
I will look for the sign to find the Unterschwarzachbahn!
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here we go sorted.
booked for another return to saalbach early march and cant wait, returning to the same hotel as the last few years,interspersed with a short break elswhere . Good job we are booked as accomodation seems to be getting a bit harder to sort when we were looking not that we intended moving hotels so my advice if you have fixed dates is get booked. Reckon the amount of positive reports and views on here must be increasing the demand.killing the goose that laid the golden egg ( ho ho)
Now just got to sort travel arrangements and spend the next months looking at snow reports .Having been lucky enough to visit most of the mainstream alpine spots over the years we have come to the conclusion that as we dont do any serious offpiste nor want to race down thin icy blacks and enjoy the informality of the apres and the extensive skiing with lots of different itineries and the friendly crowd from other countries that make up most of the folks there, saalbach is as good as it gets for a ski holiday
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Hyst, The Bergeralm does an excellent bacon and eggs breakfast. Failing that, there’s breakfast at the Alte Schmiede. Or the Asteralm does a “skier’s breakfast”. Or if you must eat before going up, the cafes next to Hansis Best-Price, and on the corner of Schulstrasse and Glemmtaler Landstrasse are pretty good.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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just had a look at the webcams not a dusting to be seen, oh well early days
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@Hyst, an alternative down in the valley, Tiroler Baum, https://www.tirolerbuam.at/en/ then you could start your skiing day from the Schönleitenbahn The have ample parking and the lift is across the road.
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@radar, Sounds very nice - would neither use lunch or evening dinner after that breakfast, thank you very much for you suggestion.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
@Hyst, an alternative down in the valley, Tiroler Baum, https://www.tirolerbuam.at/en/ then you could start your skiing day from the Schönleitenbahn The have ample parking and the lift is across the road.
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@radar, Good suggestion!
@Hyst, For the sake of completeness (on the subject of cafes) there is a handy one in the MPreis supermarket in the village square.
@ski for fun, Fortunately things can change radically in two or three weeks. It's Novembers like this that sort out the optimists from the pessimists
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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hi, re snowfall ever the optimist here ,have to be, ive had a lifetime of weather watching as my livelihood and daily routine depends on it. Theres another reason to choose saalbach as the snowmaking is amazing if needed.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| ski for fun wrote: |
| hi, re snowfall ever the optimist here ,have to be, ive had a lifetime of weather watching as my livelihood and daily routine depends on it. Theres another reason to choose saalbach as the snowmaking is amazing if needed. |
And the lift system has to be the best in the whole of Europe. Up there with Ischgl.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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At risk of tempting fate, I see that temperatures are forecast to drop to minus figures from next Sunday. There have been a few times in previous seasons when the snow has arrived with immaculate timing at the end of November. I'm sure that all those hoping for a cheeky pre-Christmas skiing trip will be keeping their eyes glued to the web cams and the forecasts.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@tatmanstours, all set for that cheeky pre Christmas trip - so watching and crossing everything. Worse case there is always the glacier. Perhaps I should pack my cycling gear as well
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Yorksboy, We've been here before and it's turned out okay. All that's needed is that first big dump of the season, which normally arrives any time during November (sometimes a bit earlier, sometimes a bit later) and could change everything in the space of a day or two. Also, if the temperatures drop low enough and stay low for a while, they'll be working the snow cannons at full pelt. Don't pack that cycling gear yet.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Looks as though is going to get cold enough for the snow cannons to start up as well up as well 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Yorksboy, The Goassstall posted a photo on Facebook earlier today, showing a snow cannon blasting away over the piste that runs past their establishment, and of course that’s more or less at village altitude. Yes, with the minus temperatures that are forecast, the cannons will be going at full pelt, and if we get the promised heavy snow, it all looks quite good.
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Yup, the webcams at https://www.saalbach.com/en/live-info/livecams show cannons on the lower part of the Zwolferkogel and frost in the shadow of Schattberg, plus a temperature of -3 in the valley this morning. Sunny on the north side, but it is coming...
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FAQ
- just wanted to know what scale it was walking - 150 m is nothing! Just wanted some indication - however now I learned that there is an underground somewhere 
Or one has skied a lot in Val Gardena! 
(Umlaufbahn)
