Scheffau?

A snowHead

We're thinking of going to Scheffau at Christmas this year...has anyone else been at this time? If so, what's your experience of the snow been? We had Christmas in Soll a few years ago, and it was just about okay...

Also, planning on staying at the Alpin...is it too far to walk to the gondola from there, or would we be reliant on the ski bus?

Finally...(for now)...is there a ski garage at the bottom of the gondola?

Any info would be welcome!

A snowHead

Hi Christina, I had a short break in Scheffau just a month ago. Snow conditions then were generally very good, full coverage from top to bottom but the very cold weather made for hardpacked pistes. It softened up towards the end of my stay. Snow conditions are never guaranteed anywhere but Austria in general has had a better season than the Western Alps, despite the perceived lack of altitude. The SkiWelt area is very good at maintaining great piste conditions and nearly every run is covered by snowmaking. Even with warmer daytime temperatures the Tirol rarely stays above freezing overnight which allows the snow guns to operate.

The Alpin is the largest hotel in the village and very central. It's a long walk to the lift base station, I'd guess at 20-30 minutes although I didn't walk it, but you can ski down there on piste 1 if you have enough snow in the village. The bus is very regular, it basically does a constant loop from lift to village so you never have to wait more than about 10 minutes. The main rental shop at the lift base station is Hansi's which has a very good storage service, €3 per night and the boots are stored on heated racks so they are nice and toasty in the morning.

Scheffau itself is small, picturesque and quiet with quite a family atmosphere. The best bar is actually down on piste 1, called the Biker Ranch (fairly obvious why I liked that one!), but the Village Pub and the bar at the Alpin are both good too as are the massive pizzas in the Alpin pizzeria. For loud après, the place to be is the Red Bull marquee at the foot of the slopes.

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

I was in Ellmau last year from Boxing Day through to New Year. There was enough snow to ski back to the villages (we skied down to all of them in the area), but it was slushy most days, and brown patches showing on well used runs. Hit and miss on conditions though same as any resort that time of year, the week before it had been in double minus figures with fresh snow, the week we were there it struggled to get below freezing.

Overall it was a good holiday though.

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Thanks Both. Hmmm, yes it can be a bit hit-and-miss at anytime...we're off to Soll in March, and its not looking promising at the moment (unless there is a big dump of snow soon!).

We're still deciding whether to go to Scheffau or go back to Kitzbuhel...good job we don't have to book just now!

I'm not that keen on relying on ski-buses, but as you say, they are regular and as its not a massive resort, shouldn't be packed, so that's a plus. We're now also looking at the Leitner Hotel (as well as the Alpin)....

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

You couldn't walk from the Alpin to the gondola but you can ski down, if conditions allow it. You'd have to take the bus back.

Although the snow has been disappearing here, people were still skiing down to the valley at Scheffau without difficulty on Monday. And, with luck, it should snow at the weekend, at least higher up. Enjoy your holiday!

Help!!

Scheffau?

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