 Poster: A snowHead
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Can anyone help, I am looking at somewhere suitable for 6 total beginners plus me and the wife who are experienced skiers. Austria is our preferred venue due to lower prices, better accommodation and better all round atmosphere etc. Have come up with Westendorf as a possible venue, it looks good for the beginners and with connections to Kitz and Ski Welt gives access to larger ski areas.
Question is does Westendorf link directly (by piste and lifts) to the ski welt via Brixen or is a bus ride or long walk involved? Link to Kitz looks to involve a bus both ways, is this correct?
Also the nightlife, how quiet is it? We are not after nightclubs but do like some good bars to have some apres in.
Many thanks
Kais
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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My first few wobbles on skis were in Westendorf. Lovely little place, excellent nursery runs, tricky progression runs though that put me off a bit.
Don't know about the links nowadays as it was years ago. I'm pretty sure they've made a proper link to Brixen.
Nightlife was centred around a single, awful, stinking, nightclub. Can't remember its name, but if it's still there you'll spot it a mile off. Avoid it, and go to one of the many abundant and civilized hotel restaurant/bars instead.
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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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From memory all the links are via a bus ride. Westendorf is fairly self contained. Nice though. I enjoyed it there.
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Westendorf is now fully lift- linked into the rest of the Skiwelt.
Yes, the link to Kitzbuhel involves a bus both ways but with the size of the Skiwelt it's probably only worth it for a fun day trip (or if the snow in the Skiwelt is worse). Westendorf is likely to be less busy than the rest of the Skiwelt and is a good choice of base imo. On one day you could do a trip from Westendorf to Going (far end of the Skiwelt) and back, and on another you could go over to Kitzbuhel, ski all the way over to Mittersill and back.
I cant comment on the apres, but its likely to be fairly low key (by Austrian standards).
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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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Went to Westondorf two years running 18 years ago and loved it. Very pretty village, everyone very friendly. Did not bother with ski welt as plenty of runs locally - don’t think there was direct link then anyway. Nightlife - well, we are not into pubbing/clubbing - but I recall a Tyrolean evening, with usual yodelling and thigh slapping, sleigh ride, skittles evening, presentation evening in town hall type place, and fondue in the hotel - oh yes, and toboggan run - to be avoided imho, 3 out of 4 of us were injured! Would definitely consider going back, especially with the ski welt links now.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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The link to the Kitzbuhel area (KiWest) is a (very) short bus ride, we used it the last time we visited, a couple of years ago, when it had just opened.
I've not used the new link to Ski Welt via Brixen, however my mum has just returned from Westendorf (she's a cross-country rather than alpine skier), she said the new link was a walk across the road rather than a bus link. We're quite keen to go again next year and also try the new lift over towards the Schrandlhof (this used to be bus served).
In the past the bus links to Brixen and the one down from Schandlhof have been a bit of a pain (grossly over-crowded and liable to not stopping if full), the KiWest bus link was much better.
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Kaiser846, Westendorf is excellent for beginners, from my one day's experience of it. Very pretty skiing, but a decent skier could cover it in a day. The only downside for beginners is that the run down, under the gondola, is a genuine red, narrow in places, but of course beginners can always take the gondola (the most civilised way to finish a days' skiing anywhere, I always feel, rather than skiing down what is ususally a dreary road in the cold with the hordes).
The 'link' to Kitzbuhel does indeed require a bus in both directions, presumably someone was trying to make a point. It is usable (we visited Westendorf from Kitzbuhel), but not something you'd want to do often, as you spend half the day getting there and back, especially as the Kitzbuhel ski bus service is poor. The improved link to the rest of Skiwelt makes the link to Kitzbuhel a bit of a dead loss, I'd have thought.
Don't know the town of Westendorf at all.
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[Kaiser846
I was in the Westendorf couple of times.Very good for the beginners,but you can find a lot of decent red and black runs on the Ski Welt,Westendorf is lift connected to. You can go to Kitz,but to make it to K West gondola you have to pass 3 red and 5 km.blue run (nice,but no place to stop for a drink!  ),than cross the road.Is not worth it as you have 250km.piste on Ski Welt.
Westendorf is a nice village (ones it was rewarded a most beatiful village in Tyrol),no glamorous night life,more family oriented resort. Still there are a couple of bars and very nice restorants (one of the best grostl I ever had).On the slopes-a lot of slopeside restorants.The one big downside is that the place is low altitude and in a sunny day lower slopes becomes mashed crude(as Richmond sad,it is better to take a gondola down).
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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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The bus link between the Westendorf (Ki-West lift) and Kitzbühel (Pengelstein I lift) areas has a reasonable frequency (10-20 mins) in the morning and later afternoon, somewhat less frequent during the day (though that hardly matters practically). There is a link to the timetable (Kitzbühel-Kirchberg-Skirast-KiWest-Aschau) in PDF format at http://www.bergbahn-kitzbuehel.at/de/default.asp?ID=322.
Westendorf is now linked to Brixen by lift and piste, as others have said. But, if you don't want any walking, you would have to go up the Alpenrosenbahn gondola, ski down the piste (very attractive, I think) to the new Choralmbahn gondola and go up that, and then ski down to Brixen over the Kandleralm (or take the gondola down). The latter piste is quite steep in parts, red and black (the black section with a red alternative). The Skiwelt gondolas on both sides of the Brixental are connected by a bridge over the road.
There would be enough bars around to keep you happy, I expect.
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Was in Westendorf a fortnight ago. Fantastic nursery slopes for learners, large and virtually in town. Ski hire, ski schools, tourist info all in same area just before the nursery slopes.
Bus link to Kitz is a doddle and well worth it. Couple of minutes bus ride, as Espri said every 10/20mins morning and afternoon. We went over to Kitz area for dinner one day. The 3S lift from Pengelstein is a quite impressive ride as well. Another day we went to Pass Thurn. Now if you start early and don't hang around you should be able to go to Pass Thurn and back to Westendorf, but we were told you need to be back on the KiWest lift by 3pm. This seems about right. Wind closed the Pass Thurn lifts on us and we got buses back.
To get to the Ski Welt by lift go up the Schneeberg chair on the nursery slope, trundle over to the Alpenrose gondola, get off at middle station then down to the Choralm gondola, up that to Choralpe and take the Kandleralm red down to Brixen. Apparently the locals don't ski the Kandleralm as it doesn't get any sun. The bottom of it goes under the road and then there's a tiny travellator to bring you up to a rope tow to take you across to the lift station, walk over the bridge to the Hochbrixen gondola. The red (Niedling I think) back down to Brixen gets quite a lot of sun and was pretty chopped up despite plenty of snow. From Hochbrixen you can get to Ellmau in four lifts. Nice skiing on Astberg at Going and deserted.
As mentioned above easy runs for learners to progress look to be an issue, but I think there are some new blues and shouldn't be a problem with a an instructor.
The Ski Welt piste map is a bit hopeless. Tries to cover everything which it does but not clearly. Piste names/numbers are not marked. Piste signage not the best either. We found it best to try and ski towards lifts and not by piste names. Some local knowledge was helpful.
Six bars in Westendorf.
1. Karat
Under the Hotel Mesnerwirt. Loud music and clubby.
2. In's Moment
Under the Hotel Jacobwirt. Has live music, otherwise quiet. Good traditional bar run by a Scot. Good place for a quieter drink.
3. Kibo
Up towards the ski school offices. Comfy seats, music, popular with locals. Nails game!
4. Village Pub
Next door to the Hotel Post. Slightly Irish themed place busy popular place, good.
5. Wunder Bar
Past the Hotel Post towards the Spar. Was quiet when we went. Themed nights, karoke, wet t-shirt contest...
6. Moskito
Further up past Wunder Bar. We called it the 'Techno Dutch Oompah Bar' packed with loads of Dutch enjoying themselves.
Piste side apres places
1. Bruchstall
Next to the road in between the nursery slopes. You go past it coming back across the slopes on the way home.
2. Gerrys Inn
On the far side of the nursery slope (far left as you look up the slope.) Large place with tables and service, full of Dutch dancing on tables and live singing in Dutch, German and English. Great atmosphere.
Think the above is as accurate as I can recall. Anything else ask and I'll do my best!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Thanks all, particularly e.g. for such comprehensive information.
Supplementary question here, anyone stayed in the Hotel Schermer, looks a bit pricey but is it worth it?
Thanks
Kais
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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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just back from Soll and we skied over to Westendorf, very easy runs all over the ski welt area and well connected with gondolas and chair lifts when you need them would recommend it and the views up the westendorf moountain were fantastic, im jealous i want to go again
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