Austria (Lech or Saalbach?) for 2014 half-term family ski trip?

A snowHead

Please help!

Having just got back from a brilliant week with Club Med in Les Arcs (well, Peisey Vallandry), our thoughts are turning to next year's Feb half-term family ski trip.

Given that our Feb 2014 half term will clash with the French this time around, and that we fancy trying somewhere new generally, we were wondering about Austria next year, perhaps Lech or Saalbach? Our main criteria are generally:

1. Not too busy at (UK/French) half term.
2. Suitable for low to high intermediates (most of us are happy on hard blues and easy reds, with one or two being slightly more adventurous).
3. We liked the big resort, high mileage cruising that Les Arcs offered.
4. We like the trees, such as those above Peisey Vallandry and Serre Chevalier.
5. It will probably be three families going, with kids ranging from 8 to 12 in age (all happy on blues/reds; some above), so family friendly (whatever that means...) preferred.
6. After two years with Club Med, we like the convenience of hotels and ski-in, ski-out.

So far the Snowheads have recommended two great locations for us (Serre Che and Peisey Vallandry) in the past, so all comments, hints, tips and suggestions would be very welcome!

Thank you all in advance!

chemistry

Puzzled

A snowHead

chemistry, to be honest, I think Hinterglemm might be a better choice than Saalbach for the more family oriented experience...having just been there... Toofy Grin

There are some great blues and reds plus more adventurous stuff, for sure, with plenty of tree-lined skiing. There are also plenty of circuits you can do which add to the sense of travel/adventure. I have to say, I really rated how well the area links. Many of the pistes are what one might call cruisey i.e. wide and fairly even terrain.

The night skiing in Hinterglemm is also a fun experience.

Can't make any hotel recommendations in Hinterglemm, but the hotel I stayed at in Saalbach was certainly possible to ski back to with only one road to cross (which, with all the snow we had, one could in fact ski over anyway).

I'm sure there are other diehard Saalbach/Hinterglemm experts who could provide a better insight into the hotel options.

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

Chasseur,

Perfect, thanks!

We're certainly not wedded to Saalbach, or Lech, indeed, we're only really just starting to look at Austria as a more half-term friendly alternative to France.

I'll certainly take a look at Hinterglemm (sounds like you enjoyed neighbouring Saalbach and the local skiing too...) and as ever, remain grateful to all the advice I receive on this forum!

chemistry

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chemistry, interesting choice as both great resorts.

If looking at Lech, stay in Oberlech - pretty much all hotels are ski in ski out. Fantastic toboggan run down to Lech which our kids (and the adults) loved down to Lech - then simply take the cable car back up and repeat as often as your body can withstand. we stayed at the Montana which was fantastic - have never had such good food in my life. The Sporthotel Cresta is very well located for the toboggan run and will be a bit cheaper than the Montana. http://www.oberlech.com/category/skifahren-in-oberlech Not too much tree skiing in and around Lech - from Oberlech down to Lech, there are tree runs but not to the extent of Saalbach.

I've only had a few day trips to Saalbach but really enjoyed the skiing and apres there. There will be a lot of slopeside accomodation to choose from, but not the ski in ski out of Oberlech.

If you're on a bit of a budget have a look at Kappl http://www.alpenfrieden-kappl.at/ Stayed here a couple of years ago and was excellent. Really good food, excellent value and right on the piste. Slopes quiet too and Ischgl just up the road

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

chemistry, as mentioned, I learned to ski in SC and have been there 5 weeks in all, so a big fan. Saalbach/Hinterglemm is not really similar, either in terrain or town but, on balance I actually think I prefer it and will def return. There are some breath-taking blues that wind down through forests, the infrastructure for getting about is excellent.

For example, if you decide to head out from Hinterglemm and find yourselves skied out below Saalbach, just jump on one of the frequent buses and head back.

Anyway, without getting too bogged down in detail, I think Saalbach probably offers more for you and yours at your stage of skiing than SC - simply, there is more to do, both skiing and evening wise.

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boabski,

Fabulous stuff, thank you!

chemistry snowHead

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Saalbach has one pedestrian street, approx 500m long, with ski-slopes on either side, so all of the hotels on this street are either ski-in/ski-out or involve a maximum of 5 mins to the nearest lift.

The Residence Saalbach (apartments), Haider, Panther and Eva all back onto the Turm lift, with the Peter, Wallner, Neuhaus, Bauer and Saalbacherhof all backing onto the Bernkogel lift on the opposite side of the street. Lower down the street, the hotels on one side have the beginners area behind them (Alpen Hotel, Berger Sport, Alpin Resort Reiterhof, Hotel Post) as do the hotels on the main road (Konig, Gappmayer, Norika and a few more).

My advice is to look at the TO brochures and find something you like, then contact the hotel directly to compare prices. In my experience, the brochure prices look interesting until you start to add on kid's supplements and other sundries.

Getting yourselves to Saalbach couldn't be easier. EasyJet/Jet2/Thomson/Ryanair/BA to Salzburg. If you are a big group (e.g. 3 families) contact the Holiday Shuttle company for a quote on a VIP minibus shuttle from the airport to your hotel. They have minibusses and small coaches of various sizes. The hotel may well help you with this, and with booking ski hire, ski school etc.

After all it is free

Chasseur, quinton,

Both - thanks for the helpful advice. I shall certainly take all of this into account as we plan things.

Please do all keep the words of wisdom coming!

Yours (gratefully),

chemistry

chemistry, Saalbach and Hinterglemm are both ideal for this sort of group, as long as you pick the location carefully, i.e. near one of the main lifts and the runs. Ski in/ski out is pretty rare, but it is possible if you are prepared to go for an alm halfway up the mountain and forego the option of going into town, or if you are flexible enough that walking 20 yards to the hotel is OK. Or if you are happy to use the ski bus, anywhere in the valley is good, and the prices drop sharply as you move away from the lifts. Your budget is probably the key here - while it would be lovely to be in the Alpine Palace Wolf hotel in Hinterglemm with the 20 yard walk to the lift and its outdoor heated pool, the €4600 price for a junior suite for two adults and two teenagers for a mid-March booking this year might be a little more than most can manage. By comparison, the Hubertushof in Hinterglemm is 40 yards from a different lift, and an apartment for 4 was €168 per night at half term this year, with meals extra if you don't fancy self-catering.

From Bath, I'd go with a flight to Salzburg with Easyjet from Bristol, and then arrange a private transfer to Saalbach. Innsbruck would be more difficult, and you'd probably end up with flights from Heathrow or Gatwick.

I've not been to Lech, so can't comment.

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All,

Thanks for the advice; the subtleties of considering Oberlech and Hinterglemm rather than just Lech or Saalbach are particularly helpful (I am assuming that, say, Oberlech is to Lech as Peisey Vallandry is to Les Arcs...).

Any thoughts on suitability of Austria generally during half Feb term (15th to 23rd Feb 2014, for us)? I don't want to find we've just swapped crowded French pistes and lift queues for equally crowded/queuing Austrian ones!

Thanks again,

chemistry

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Find out when Fasching is. Big German Austrian holiday. Worth noting that lech limit their ticket numbers to stop overcrowding from day trippers.

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boabski,

Thanks - according to this site ( http://www.schulferien.org/Feiertage/Fasching/Fasching.html ), Fasching is 27th Feb to 5th March, so we'd miss that. Very Happy

I'm trying to find out when Austrian & German half term dates in 2014 are, but so far haven't had much luck (only 2013 data seems to be available).

Overall though, would I be right in thinking that, even if our half term does coincide with Austria and Germany, the lifts and slopes will still be quieter than they would be if we're in France during their half term?

chemistry

PS. Interesting to hear that Lech has a limit on number.

You know it makes sense.

I'm pretty sure Fasching is their half term so you should be fine. The uk half term will have little impact on lech as the majority of guest are German Swiss and Dutch in my experience. The uplift is very good in the Arlberg region as a whole with most chairs being heated 6-8 seater jobs around lech. I've never been troubled with queues in all my visits to the Arlberg, with the exception of the zammermoosbahn in st Anton.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

chemistry, +1 for Oberlech where we had a couple of half term family trips some years ago. Also stayed at the Montana which was excellent. However, the hoteliers there operated a loyalty system in which they offered guests the option to return the following year at the same week, same room. This meant it was difficult to get a booking as a newcomer - bit like dead man's shoes. These options were released around September which then created some availability. Not sure if it's still like that.

A snowHead

A snowHead

chemistry, German holidays here http://www.holidays-info.com/School-Holidays-Germany/2014/school-holidays_2014.html

Dutch here http://www.holidays-info.com/School-Holidays-Holland/2014/school_holidays_holland_2014.html

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We've been to Hinterglemm at half term this year and last, though our half term this year was a week earlier than the rest of the UK, but that made it clash with Fasching.

Last year was busy, but the longest queue was about 5 mins. This year was busier, 10 mins max, and in many areas we still had the piste to ourselves if we were away from the central runs.

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pam w, ousekjarr,

Great stuff - thanks for the info Very Happy

So far it seems that, whilst half term will be busier for us than it was in 2012 & 2013 (in Serre Che & Les Arcs, respectively), Austria looks like a better bet than France in 2014, with both Hinterglemm and Oberlech likely to suit all three families (intermediate skiing, easy access to lifts, no late/noisy apres, etc.).

As ever Snowheads, thanks for all the help; although it's a long way off, I do promise a trip report! In the meantime, all comments, suggestions and tips will continue to be gratefully received!

chemistry

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

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Tatman's Tours,

Many thanks - pm sent.

chemistry

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Austria (Lech or Saalbach?) for 2014 half-term family ski trip?

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