Hintertux Glacier ............October?

A snowHead

Hi,
Can anyone advise if there is any decent ( from a relative beginners point of view) skiing to be had on this ( or any other you could name) glacier in late October?
Thanks in advance
Mitch

A snowHead

Mitchell,
You will have about 18km of runs on the tux in October. All of it is pretty good skiing with a few steep reds and a number of good carving runs. They are mostly red runs with a few blues and a black but if the snow is good there will be more available. We where there second week of November last year and it was boot deep pow! On average its about 80cm-100cm on the top at that time of the year.

You could realistically ski up till well after Lunch at that time of the year to but if not there is plenty to do afterwards.Zillertal locals are amazing people and you will be made so welcome you wont want to leave. Could be an idea to head down to Mayrhofen for the afternoon if you have to finish at lunch as it is a little more livley than Tux

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Mitchell, I went there back in 1989 after a week skiing at Stubai glacier which IIRC had more blue runs. It was about the first week in November that I went to Hintertux and the conditions at the time meant that there was good skiing most of the day. Hintertux has more demanding skiing than Stubai. Other options could be Zermatt and Saas Fee in Switzerland. I went to Saas Fee last year and there was skiing back to the village in early November, which was a bonus, and the runs on the glacier in Saas Fee are good for beginners.

You need to Login to know who's really who.

Hintertux is not great for total beginners. Bit better for relative beginners but overall it's quite steep for a glacier - from the top of the gondola you have no choice but to get down a fairly steep red run to access the rest of the glacier. There is a slow chair that you can get off part way up but it can be cold and very exposed. All in all, Hintertux is probably ok if you've had a couple of weeks under your belt - or are up to a challenge if you've skied less than that. The villages of the Zillertal (ie Ziller Valley) are very picturesque - some lovely hotels and B&Bs.amd it can be worth staying at one of the places at the foot of the gondola to the glacier - though it's quiet on a night. Mayrhofen is much livelier but is about 30 mins bus ride from the glacier.

The Grande Motte glacier at Tignes is a good bet. Around 15-20km of piste even in July and August and some excellent long runs which are more suitable for relative beginners than anything at Hintertux. Also some steeper stuff as well. Definitely enough to keep you amused for a few days. Best of all, the snow is reached via a 5 minute funicular ride - as opposed to about 25-30 mins in gondolas at Hintertux.

In a normal year you can expect decent snow in late October on any Alpine glacier. Having said that, I've skied sheet ice in November and powder in July and September. Anything can happen weather & snow-wise but the glaciers will definitely be open for skiing.

As well as Saas Fee (mentioned by other SHs) there are other decent glaciers in Austria that I've tried. All are good enough & extensive enough for a few days ski and all are (in general) not as challenging as Hintertux:

Kitzsteinhorn at Kaprun
Rettenbach and Tiefenbach at Soelden
Kaunertal (nr Landeck)
Stubai (already mentioned)

PS: If any interest in Tignes, I can sort you out with a bargain out of season price for a stay of any duration at the following studio Very Happy

:
http://www.tignes.co.uk/Chalet_Club.htm

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Help!!

Hintertux Glacier ............October?

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