 Poster: A snowHead
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Well thoughts are turning to 2016.
We have just done a christmas trip last year and a NY trip this year. Won't be going so early in the season for a few years, which I don't mind because the nerves were in shreds in the lead up to this years trip, luckily snow did come and all worked out well.
Thinking of Mid March next year, possibly first week Easter holidays which commence March 16th in Ireland.
Thinking of choosing a higher resort. Because we like gentle blues at the moment I am looking at Obergurgl and Zell am See.
If we choose to stay in ZAS is there regular ski bus to Kitzsteinhorn/kaprun, and is cost included in Ski Pass.
Obergurgl looks good but can't do DIY from Ireland as no scheduled direct flights to Innsbruck.
Any feedback greatly appreciated.
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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 I'm a bit biased because I love Obergurgl and I've never been to ZAS.
I've only been in January but the snow seems good and reliable, although it can be cold and a bit windy on top.
The runs, even when steeper are 'easy' because they tend to be wide and open.
You can buy a pass that includes a day at solden, which is good because it's not the biggest ski area ever.
And of course there's the nedderhut 
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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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+1 for Obergurgl at that time of year, 1900- 3100m, skied there last year and enjoyed it although it's not a huge area, it holds the snow well later into the season. I've also skied at Kaprun on the glacier, it was very early season, but I found it very small and boring after the first day. Zell may be a bit low at that time of year,I'm sure others will provide more details.
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Zell is low, Obergurgle is much much higher, at that time of year I would go OBG, its safer. The 2 towns are also very different in character.
There is a regular free ski bus up to the Glacier from Zell, but as others have said, its not the biggest ski area in the world and its mostly T bars 
The other problem is that if conditions are poor in the area, then Kaprun gets bombed by like minded people. In the run up to Christmas this year it was horrific, since it was the only place to ski round here.
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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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you probably get a safer resort with Obergurgl. Its got the height to pretty well guarantee snow, Soelden is covered on the same pass(including free ski bus). Zell has Kaprun as the altitude option, but the area isn't massive. Neither resort has mega challenging runs. Munich, Friedrichshafen, Salzburg ,Memmingen are all about 3 hours from Obergurgl.
Obertauern may be a good alternative. Its pretty snow sure, most of the season(including start and end), and its about 80-90 mins from Salzburg.
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@2waterford, did NY week at Zell this year and loved it.
The ski area at Zell itself is indeed smaller than Obergurgl but I thought it was great for at least 4 days. We did Kaprun on two days and enjoyed just as much as Zell. The whole area is linked by free ski buses which run regularly (every 20 mins IIRC) except over the lunch period where it is one an hour. I would of thought it would be a very unusual year if less than 90% of the slopes weren't open in mid March also - though if you were going in April I would aim higher.
There are actually two mountains at Kaprun - The Kitzsteinhorn and the Maiskogel which is a smaller family mountain which is mostly blues (at least one black tho) that is right in the town centre with a "Alpine Roller Coaster" there also.
As a holiday destination - especially with family/friends Zell/Kaprun is a great area to visit.
Apart from Skiing, there are numerous things to do. My OH went paragliding with her sister off the top of the Schmittenhohe and the Tauern Spa is really brilliant. Even though there was snow on the first four days at Zell, we experienced no white out's as almost all of the skiing is in the trees. Apres is good if required, restaurants are great and it is close to many other resorts in the vicinity.
My trip report - http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=115566
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I've skiied both Obergurgle and Zell am See and I enjoyed them both. Both have plenty blues for cruising. If you're going to Zell but thinking of mostly skiing Kaprun then you'd probably be better off staying in Kaprun. The glacier is the far side of Kaprun from Zell so Kaprun is a more central location. That's what we did and we skiied Zell and the glacier on alternate days. Obertauern would be an excellent choice too - high, convenient, good value and plenty cruising blues and easy reds.
For DIY transfers to any resort in Austria check out Four Seasons travel on www.tirol-taxi.at We used their economy service for transfers from Munich to Serfaus at Christmas and they were very good.
And just to make your decision harder: my recommendation for the resort that best suits what you want is Serfaus/Fiss/Ladis. Lovely big ski area, great infrastructure, great hotels. None of the big British tour operators go there, in fact it's almost entirely full of Dutch and German folk, we didnt hear any British or Irish voices all week. But in my view it's beter than Obergurgl or Zell.
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+1 for @Valkyrie, re Serfaus. but also love Zell. I even got married there! if it was purely skiing id Prob go for Serfaus tho
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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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Only t bars at kaprun are at the top, think there is three possibly four so certainly not mostly t bars
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| mikeelsa wrote: |
| Only t bars at kaprun are at the top, think there is three possibly four so certainly not mostly t bars |
By winter 2016 even these will be moved and replaced by 2 new lifts, there will still be t bars at outlying areas but the main ski area will be serviced by modern high speed chair/gondola combo.
http://www.kitzsteinhorn.at/en/about-us/cable-cars-lifts/new-gletscherjet-3-4
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Thanks guys, so many things to consider when booking a ski trip
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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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You know it makes sense.
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We did Obergurgl second week of March last year. Snow was fine although it was bloody hot!
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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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| 2waterford wrote: |
Well thoughts are turning to 2016.
We have just done a christmas trip last year and a NY trip this year. Won't be going so early in the season for a few years, which I don't mind because the nerves were in shreds in the lead up to this years trip, luckily snow did come and all worked out well.
Thinking of Mid March next year, possibly first week Easter holidays which commence March 16th in Ireland.
Thinking of choosing a higher resort. Because we like gentle blues at the moment I am looking at Obergurgl and Zell am See.
If we choose to stay in ZAS is there regular ski bus to Kitzsteinhorn/kaprun, and is cost included in Ski Pass.
Obergurgl looks good but can't do DIY from Ireland as no scheduled direct flights to Innsbruck.
Any feedback greatly appreciated. |
"High" and "Zell" only count if you are thinking the glacier, which is a bus ride away.
On the Schmittenhohe there are a fair amount of blue, but they are the busier runs. The reds on the Sonnkogel are much quieter (and barely reds in reality) but as the name suggests they face the sun (as does much of the resort (lovely if it's cold and sunny, but unlikely in March.
Having said that, ZamS is a lovely resort - very picturesque...
Can't give you feedback on Obergurgl until late March - however I chose it for March because it's high, faces west and has 99% snowmaking...
But it costs more than ZamS looking at hotel prices and ski hire/pass etc
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FAQ
Last year all the flights to Innsbruck were sold out by the time we booked so we flew into Munich and hired a car from there. We drove over the pass at Imst. Less than 3 hours including a supermarket sweep on route. 
