 Poster: A snowHead
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I have been reading all the posts for a while and am always impressed with the information and detail that you guys post. Only just signed up though and I hope you can help me with my first post!
We are going to Mayrhofen final week in Jan next year and have not been there before. Of the 4 of us in our group 3 are beginners and will be in lessons leaving poor old me to hoon about the slopes on my own  !
It would be great if any of you learned snowheads had any suggestions of good ski routes / back country fun to be had in the area that I could hit solo.
Either that or any useful guides/advanced classes/lessons you might know of.
Also any recommendations on ski hire places - people that know their stuff rather than just a conveyor belt type shops.
Thanks in advance for you time and help.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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All ski schools pretty decent but personally would favour SMT, the largest ski school in Mayrhofen. Good number of english speaking instructors, very friendly and professional. Apart from catering for beginners they also cater well for intermediates and advanced. Most lessons take place on the Penken and easy to get back to ski school meeting point at lunchtime or at the end of the day.
Plenty of decent skiing for you to enjoy locally. I would certainly recommend red 7 and red 27 on the Schaffskopf and taking the tux 150 over to Rastkogel and Eggalm. Ahorn abfahrt also good fun when snow conditions decent.
Sport 2000 pretty good choice for ski hire, rather busy but handily placed opposite Penken gondola. Not a great fan of Manni's (middle high street), not sure whether still the case but when I was there last had somewhat outdated ski hire stuff and not the most friendly or knowledgeable staff in the world.
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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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Aflex123, Welcome to 
Another vote for SMT always found them great to deal with
Ski rental try this guy info@skicenter-hubertkroell.com, http://www.skicenter-hubertkroell.com. Based at the top of the Gondola Family run shop with great service and excellent equipment. He has never let us down and is really good value.
Nip down through the trees on blue 2 for great off piste in the trees. Any where under the 150 is amazing just be carefull there is some serious avi terrain around there. Anyhwere around the side of 27 is great. Head down to zell em ziller for some great off piste.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I completely agree with Guyrhofen; Red 27 is a lovely run (with a timed slalom course halfway down) and particularly Red 7 which is probably my favourite ski run ever anywhere.
I was in Mayrhofen in March, and on the back of the piste map are (or were) 3 or 4 suggested ski routes. On our final day we did the longest route, it might have been called the Super X or something like that, I think. We'd done most of the runs on it throughout the week anyway but found this to be an excellent way of getting around all of the main resort; it takes you all through the Horberg, Rastkogel and Eggalm areas of the mountains. I recall there's 15 or so pistes in total on the route, and if/when I go back to Mayrhofen its the first thing I'll do as it's such a brilliant way to see most of the ski area in a relatively short amount of time.
I've not really progressed into off-piste yet so can't give you too much advice on this. But the timed slalom courses are a good bit of fun; as I said there's one on Red 27 which is the longest, a smaller sized one next to the board park, and a short one on the Ahorn (which the beginners should be able to have a crack down later in the week). Also, the Ahorn is a really good place for the beginners to spend the first day or two, it has a really nice wide short blue run with a fast 8 man chair back up. Oh, and for you the route down from the Ahorn into resort is well worth a go, you definitely earn yourself a beer or two after that one!
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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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Aflex123, Another vote for the Ahornabfahrt. The Ahorn is very limited for experienced skiers apart from the the run back to the village. Its over three miles long and very definitely not for the inexperienced. As a bonus it offers great views at certain points of the Ziller valley, stretching from Mayrhofen and beyond. If you go up the Ahorn make sure you check out the Ice Hotel and the Ahornhutte restaurant. The restaurant is owned by Uli Speiss, a former world cup skier and there is plenty of memorabilia on show including two bronze medals won by his mother at the 1948 olympics in St. Moritz by his mother. She, by the way, is about 85 and I am told that she still skis but I couldn't verify it personally.
On the Penken as well as red 7 & 27 already mentioned, there are some good blacks including the Harikiri, Austria's steepest piste. If you venture up to Hintertux, which is on the same lift pass, there is also a very good ski route, the Schwarz Pfanne although it can often be closed because of avalanche danger.
As regards to equipment hire I have my own gear but my wife and friends use Luggi's, just off the right of the main street as you walk up from the train station. He's a nice guy and speaks good English, mainly rents Blizzard skis which are very prevalent in Mayerhofen. For ski school there a few, SMT as mentioned and De Roten Profis are the biggest. My wife uses the latter but I suspect that is because of her drop dead gorgeous Italian ski instructor (her words not mine).
Whatever you do and wherever you go, enjoy, its a great place. I'll be there at Easter.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Awesome guys, once again showing your great knowledge!
Does anyone have any tips on good restaurants up the mountain for lunch?
Should you book, like you have to in the 3 Vallees to avoid being beaten to the tables by a load of Roman Abramovich's mates!" 
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Might find few of our Russian friends around but not normally necessary to book. Bergrast and Pilz Bar restaurant at top of Penken can be busy at lunchtimes. If venturing a little further afield I like Christa's Schi Alm at top of Finkenberg gondola (nice BBQ'd stuff) and Almstuberl at Finkenberg middle station (reasonably priced, friendly staff and great views if warm enough to sit outside) As mentioned on a previous post the Ahornhutte on top of Ahorn is atmospheric (lots of memorabilia and stuffed marmots) and the pyramid shaped restaurant at the top of the Schaffskopf is nice and cosy
In Mayrhofen itself the Gasser shop opposite the botton of the Penken does nice snacks which fill you up nicely after a hard day's skiing.
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Aflex123, I think Guyrhofen has covered it well already for restaurants already. But I can recommend stopping for a hot chocolate in the restaurant at the foot of the Eggalm Nord chairlift. Schiestel's Sunnalm restaurant is 3/4 of the way down Red 7 and is a good laugh as it often has comedy oompah music pumped out of it, which always make me smile when I ski past. And they serve a cracking wiener schnitzel. On a sunny day the terrace of Heidi's Skistadl at the foot of blue 3 on the Rastkogel is a great choice, decent food and great views. It was pretty quiet every time we stopped there too, probably because the only way back up the mountain is a slow 2 man chair.
But in short we found that all the restaurants we stopped in were good, and relatively inexpensive too.
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