 Poster: A snowHead
|
We are from Singapore and it’s going to be our first time to Austria for skiing! We have skied in Niseko japan for a few years till covid hit and would consider our group to be comfortable beginner / intermediate skiers.
We have planned a las t minute trip to Austria the week before Christmas and have sourced accommodation in Soll and Kirchberg. Choices are scarce cos there are 7 of us and we are looking for self catering accommodation.
Which of these resorts would be more suitable for us? We are not big on apres ski and would enjoy proximity to a village for necessities or a day off. Night skiing and tobogganing are something we want to try too!
Still not decided whether to drive from Munich (where our flight lands) or take a transfer and rely on ski busses in the resort.
Thank you!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
There is not much to choose between Söll & Kirchberg, the skiing is very similar. Söll does have an excellent toboggan run which is illuminated at night. I believe both have night skiing (might be wrong about this as it is not something I pay any attention to).
Not sure having a car gives you very much. You should check the position of your accommodation in the village and how near to the lifts / village centre it is. Generally there is an efficient network of buses for skiing though not in the evenings.
I would be a little cautious about the week prior to Christmas, some years there will be plentiful snow, some years none. SkiWelt / Kitzbühel is not the highest area so not the most snow secure.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
Can we ski at the upper half of the mountain even if there is no snow at the village level?
Both properties have ski shuttles nearby or at the doorstep.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
That early in the season, snow coverage at 800 m and a bit above is basically luck of the draw. Adding to that, global warming is modifying my early ski choices.
What are the chances the tobogganing area won't be opened before Christmas, it's a separate chairlift?
The upper slopes will definitely have snow but will that be enough mileage for you?
I have been to Kirchberg in early March 2019 and we have naturally skied to Soll. It was clouded and a bit snowing in some of the days but snow quality was poor near the village. It's a place I would enjoy returning to, but only in Jan-Feb.
How about Zillertal area?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
That name hadn’t come up in my research- is that near Munich? Should we be looking at skiing on glaciers? Although not sure what choices we have as we are a little late to the game.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
@banoffi, the Skiwelt typically opens around the 10th December, and has adequate cover through to the end of March. It's not the highest area, but the snow is pretty reliable - I've been twice in mid December in 2017 and 2019, and on both occasions the snow was good except on the last 200m down to village level.
It's still a lottery, but your chances are good.
My preference would be Söll over Kirchberg, simply because I prefer the skiing in the Skiwelt to that in Kitzbuhel, but they are linked if you buy the wider area pass.
The Zillertal is maybe a better bet that early in the season as it is higher and has a glacier at the end of the valley if you're really unlucky with snow, but it is further away from Munich. Mayrhofen is the obvious base especially if you end up having to go to the glacier each day
For 7 people from Munich to Söll I'd go for a private transfer rather than driving, especially with hire costs at the moment. Once in town you don't need a car as the buses are good. The only question then is over getting stuff back from the supermarket since you are self-catering - can you carry it all easily each 1-2 days, or would you need a car to cope with the beer alone?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pre Xmas is a bit luck of the draw.
Most of these resorts have excellent snowmaking tho' and as long as there is some chill weather the runs should be OK - the Austrian policy seems to be to make deep bases relatively early in the season to see them through the rest of the season.
Whether the potential energy crisis in Europe will affect the ability to make snow etc, others can comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I think we will take our chances cos frankly it’s really overwhelming lol! We are not hard core skiers, we typically ski half a day and then spend the rest of the time recovering or enjoying the village.
Lol there are 7 of us - we will manage from the supermarket 
We are also planning on going to Salzburg after the ski trip - should we do that via a private transfer too? Any recommendations? Thanks
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
With a triangular journey like that, you may want to consider taking trains, though it's not trivially simple. Salzburg is about 90 minutes from Söll or Kirchberg, or 2.5 hours by public transport - bus to Kufstein and then direct train to Salzburg.
Munich airport to Söll is similar - S-Bahn to Munich East then train to Kufstein and bus/taxi to Söll, 2.5 hours.
Salzburg back to Munich airport is 2 hours, one train and S-bahn.
On current prices, hiring a 9-seater to carry 7 people and their luggage is likely to be about €850-1100 for a week, plus cross-border charges and it would need an Austrian vignette for the trip from Salzburg back to Munich unless you went the pretty way and had 4 hours to spare to avoid the €10 cost
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@banoffi, The week before Christmas is still low season so you should be able to find accommodation most places.
The big issue is concern over how much snow there will be. I have been skiing in SkiWelt in good conditions on empty pistes in December but equally some years there are just a few strips of artificial snow amongst green hillsides.
Given SkiWelt is an hour's drive away from where I live I can chose to go or not go depending on the conditions, you are coming from the other side of the world so you need to give yourself the best chance of decent skiing.
Personally I would look at some of the higher more snow sure places, Ischgl, Obergurgl & Obertauern are three examples. The disadvantage of those three is that they are a good deal further from Munich (hire car would probably be best) and December can mean storms and the higher places can be pretty bleak in bad weather. The same applies to glaciers, the Zillertal (Mayrhofen) has a glacier at the end of the valley - Hintertux, which gives a back up plan in case of poor snow.
Wherever you chose there will be an element of compromise. If you have a chance I might be inclined to look to do the trip mid January rather than before Christmas. The advantage of pre Christmas is that the Christmas Markets will be in full swing which are worth visiting no matter how much snow there is.
Just seen your Salzburg question. Salzburg is a very beautiful place but it can get overwhelmed by the number of visitors, Christmas Market time is very popular. Personally I would avoid driving as parking, especially for a mini bus, is not easy. It is easy to get there by train from Kirchberg (Söll less so as you need to take a bus to Kufstein or Wörgl first). An alternative for the Christmas market and a nice enough place though not on the Salzberg level is Innsbruck. Another option might be to stay in Munich for a day or two, easy day trip on the train to Salzburg.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
Thanks everyone for the helpful response. It’s bedtime now and I’ll look into some of those resorts suggested tomorrow.
As a matter of fact, we will be spending a couple of days in Munich after Salzburg as our flight to Singapore departs from the Munich airport. We don’t intend to drive in Salzburg or Munich and are planning to look into private transfers if the public transport route is too challenging with our bags.
Unfortunately we can’t go in Mid-Jan as our school year begins the day after the New Year holiday and the teenagers have to go back to school.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
For private transfer to Söll, try https://www.taxi-soell.tirol/en/ and they may combine two trips with a discount. From Salzburg back to the centre of Munich, the train would be easiest of all options at 90 minutes without changes between the main stations.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Researching Ischgl now and finding it’s mostly hotels and not easy to find self catering options for 7.
Is ischgl more snow sure as it’s on a glacier? Thanks
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
Ischgl is snowsure but in case of bad weather you are doomed. Bad visibility, strong winds and nowhere to go. (Based on my personal experience, mid December 2018. My luck of the draw.  )
Have another look at Mayrhofen or at Zell am Ziller in Zillertal. Relatively easy to arrive by train from Munich. Free public transport between the ski stations, frequent and reliable.
If you'll rent a car, you can use half days to drive to Innsbruck and to return back after Christmas Markets' closure, the connecting road is easy to navigate and in the valley, no need to climb steep/sharp turns in the dark.
Or even better, have the last day or two in the old quarter of Innsbruck, near the markets and the river.
See the map, the Hintertux glacier is within reach by organized public transport
https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/mayrhofen-penkenahornrastkogeleggalm/trail-map/
On the other side you have Zillertal Arena, superbly linked by bus/train to Mayrhofen
https://www.skiresort.info/piste-trail-maps/zillertal/
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
| banoffi wrote: |
Researching Ischgl now and finding it’s mostly hotels and not easy to find self catering options for 7.
Is ischgl more snow sure as it’s on a glacier? Thanks |
There is no glacier in Ischgl, but 90 percent of the area is above 2000 meter, and much I facing north.
Galtür up the valley have lot’s of self-catering options, but requires a bus trip to Ischgl (around 10-15 minutes), but do have a local area also. Sunweb have (historically) some quite good deals on top places in Galtür. There is an option for a shared lift pass.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
@banoffi, where are you looking for apartments? In Austria practically all the village tourist offices run a booking service. They are much better than Air BnB, booking.com etc as most Austrian owners do not use them (fees too high). Rather than wade through the booking site you are probably better off emailing the tourist offices direct with your requirements and see what they come back with. They are usually very helpful (all will speak / write perfect English). Ischgl does have a lot of hotels but plenty of apartments too, it is not the cheapest place. It is very snow sure but no glacier. It opens from the end of November to the first Monday in May, I believe the longest season of any non glacier resort in the alps. Obergurgl similar though smaller and, I believe, almost all hotels. It is also fairly remote at the end of a long valley.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Hey there - we googled to find apartments and managed to get one at alma alpine which is apparently linked by an underground (?) escalator to the lifts. Also considering Astellina which is cheaper and a bit further out cos that one requires a ski shuttle.
We have very complicated sleeping arrangements lol and so glad to have found these at acceptable prices (we are used to paying Niseko prices for chest and week!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
[quote="banoffi"]Hey there - we googled to find apartments and managed to get one at alma alpine which is apparently linked by an underground (?) escalator to the lifts. Also considering Astellina which is cheaper and a bit further out cos that one requires a ski shuttle.
We have very complicated sleeping arrangements lol and so glad to have found these at acceptable prices (we are used to paying Niseko prices for Christmas week!)
Sorry continuing here cos I pressed submit accidentally. Any views which is more convenient- alma or Astellina ? We are going the week before Christmas so hoping it is not going to be super crowded.
Are there other snow activities like tobogganing and ice skating. We aren’t really apres ski people  haha but we do enjoy a good dinner out!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
