 Poster: A snowHead
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Our original non-Ski plans are cancelled and I'm looking for a last minute 1 week Ski trip. While some things had changed since my last request over a year ago (https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=5333806) which resulted in a great trip (https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=5433392).
Persons: 2 adults / 1 child (8 years)
Some data points:
1. Skiers: Me, I would call myself an advanced beginner where I managed to do blues and some reds last trip after 14 years of no skiing. Child: did 5 day school and managed to do some blues with the group/instructor towards the end (good progress)
2. Wife is not a skier and might work remotely but if not, having a nice town to go around, sit in a coffee shop and read a book and do some sightseeing.
3. Budget, ideally around 3000EUR all inclusive (flights, accomodation, ski rental, ski school for child, food)
4. Traveling from Dublin on Sat 21 - Sat 28
5. Hotel with a pool is highly preferred
6. Happy to do DIY (I actually enjoy it) but seeing good(?) deals on Crystal too
I was first looking into Cervinia since it's snow sure and not too terrible from Turin airport. But then, I figured Zell am See would be perfect for a non-skier and not too cold with lots to do. So unless you have a very strong case for Cervinia vs Zell/Kaprun or maybe other resorts, I think I will need more clarification and advice on Zell vs Kaprun.
Zell am See
Pros:
- nice half/full board family friendly hotels like Gartenhotel Daxer or Hotel Waldhof, they seem to tick all boxes for us
- easy access to town for my wife
Cons:
- low altitude
- 5 day school is the maximum (?)
Kaprun
Pros:
- nice B&B found with nice pool (e.g. Mountain Hotel Luis)
- better snow conditions
- 6 day school (e.g. https://skischool-kaprun.at/), but is the extra day really needed (?), I know it's my child but I cannot tell if this is a pro or a con 
- more fun on blues (and maybe reds) to be had vs Zell's Schmittenhöhe
Cons:
- a bit further away from Zell (but managable with the bus)
- Zell's hotels seems more suited for a child
I'm leaning towards Zell for non-ski related reasons. From the better hotel facilities for the kid and proximity to Zell am See's main center.
Also, going DIY we land in Salzburg, so maybe we can do Sat-Fri Zell/Kaprun then last night in Salzburg for a Saturday morning stroll just to get a taste of the city before our flight. With Crystal, we will land in Innsbruck
Questions:
- would Schmittenhöhe at this time of year (last week of March) present enough challenge for our kid? or she would benefit more from being in Kaprun? again, she only had 1 week of skiing in Dec 2024.
Appreciate your thoughts and will add more later tonight.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There will be more expert opinions to come I’m sure but my immediate thought is that the end of March is quite late for Zell. Obviously the weather is unpredictable but I visited near the start of March a few years and it was getting slushy early in the day.
In theory Kaprun would be the better base for late season skiing. Your wife would have all day to catch the bus to Zell to explore and Kaprun is a serviceable village in itself, especially if you have a good hotel.
Regarding the lessons for your 8 year old.. Austria normally run all day lessons so a day or two off at the end of the week for you to ski together might make sense (and you can explore Zell then if the conditions work out).
Good luck
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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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Kaprun should work well. We went there in March of last year for a long weekend. Plenty to see and do and walk around - including a market one on of the days. Great little coffee/hot chocolate stores and so on.
Andy at Snow Camps Europe may well be worth contacting about lessons. He is based in Kaprun.
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I'm for Zell on the 14th March with Crystal and flying from Dublin into Salzburg. I'm a skier but the other half isn't and Zell was sort of chosen so she would have something to keep her occupied when I'm out and about. Cost wise for us it was flights, transfers, 3* Hotel with Bed&Breakfast, ski/boot hire and the 3 area lift pass for around e2300 so you're 3k budget would make sense.
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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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No doubt Zell is is good spot for a non skier, though assume too early in the year for lake activities like boat trips etc. Late March is certainly late for skiing there especially with the early spring weather at the moment. Have you thought about Mayrhofen / Zillertal? Lots to do in the valley (though no lake), easy to do a day trip to Innsbruck, lots of hotels to choose from and the skiing is higher, arguably the glacier skiing is better too.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| munich_irish wrote: |
| No doubt Zell is is good spot for a non skier, though assume too early in the year for lake activities like boat trips etc. Late March is certainly late for skiing there especially with the early spring weather at the moment. Have you thought about Mayrhofen / Zillertal? Lots to do in the valley (though no lake), easy to do a day trip to Innsbruck, lots of hotels to choose from and the skiing is higher, arguably the glacier skiing is better too. |
Thanks. I haven't considered Mayrhofen. I don't think a "lake" is a must, can you elabrate what do you mean by "the valley"? and I guess you get there from Mayrhofen by bus/train? or do you mean just the various towns in Zellertal?
With a quick search, it seems it's easily accessible from Innsbruck which only TUI Ireland fly to and I can only book TUI flights with Crystal so I can't DIY (or I can take trains from Munich or Salzburg).
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@ifaour, The area really is the Zillertal rather than just the town of Mayrhofen. It is all very well connected, there is a train thats runs along the valley between Mayrhofen and the Inntal at Jenbach (change there for trains to Innsbruck & Munich). Pretty much all the skiing takes place above the valley floor so late season less of an issue than in Zell. Mayrhofen itself is pretty lively, the smaller villages are much quieter. In an ideal world fly into Innsbruck but realise direct flights are limited, Munich is perfectly doable (so is Salzburg). Hire car is probably easiest but train perfectly OK too.
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+1 for Zillertal, beautiful scenery with loads of different options to ski. Mayrhofen itself and Gerlos tend to have a lot of loud Dutch clients so if you want quiet you are better is a smaller village. The glacier at Hintertux is better than Kitzteinhorn at Kaprun with plenty of long blue and gentle red pistes to keep you entertained.
For the non skier it is also worth a trip to the glacier where just a short walk from top station is the Natureispalast https://www.natureispalast.info/en/ where you can have a guided tour inside the ice caves in the glacier itself. Also as said previously it is easy to get the train to Innsbruck or Salzburg for a day out there.
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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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@ifaour, have a look at Obertauern. Snowsure and, in my experience, less crowded than Kaprun. Easy transfer from Salzburg.
I also second Zillertal over Kaprun / Zell.
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I've been in Zell for 3 nights this week with my non-skiing missus and it is indeed very spring-like already.
We have been making good use of the Salzburg Mobility Ticket we get free through our accommodation to get public transport elsewhere within Salzburgerland though. Hasn't been as smooth as using bus & trains as in Switzerland, but still meant we've been able to visit a few different places, just for a change of scene.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| ifaour wrote: |
| I haven't considered Mayrhofen...can you elabrate what do you mean by "the valley"? |
The river Ziller runs down a valley that's home to a number of individual ski towns that are all linked together under the "Zillertal Arena" banner, from the Fugen/Hock Fugen at the norther/foot of the valley up to Hintertux with its glacier at the souther/head end. Mayrhofen's just one of those towns but there are both bus and, from Mayrhofen down the valley a nice train linking them together.
And as for the "How many days ski school for our child?" side of things it depends what you're used to as different countries/resorts/ski schools do things differently. In France the standard ESF approach is 12hrs of ski school in 6x 2hr sessions. One of the ski schools in Mayrhofen does the same 12hrs but across just 3 days of 2hr morning session/1hr lunch/2hr afternoon session, while another does 12hrs across 4 days of 3hr lessons.
What's best...well that's up to you.
- 6x2hr means they aren't trying to teach too much each day and (assuming morning lessons) you get lunch/the afternoon to ski together. You also have the morning fight to get people up and out of the house (really fun with a 13 year old this year!) and your mornings are spent skiing the same 1hr out/1hr back set of runs.
- 3x2+2hr means you get 3 full family ski days so can explore further together and also have 3 mornings where you don't have to constantly crack the whip to get people up/dressed/fed/out. You also have 3 days where you're skiing the same 1hr out/1hr back slopes to pick them up at lunch - or you can pay for ski school to feed them too but that seems a little antisocial to me.
- 4x3hr means 2 full family ski days/chilled mornings on the one hand and 4 days of 1.5hr out/1.5hr back repeat skiing and with a couple of runs after picking them up access to a wider range of restaurants, not just the one by the ski school, that you're hitting as the 'early lunchers' are leaving.
Having done all of them the 4x3hr seemed to work very well this year for us (9/13 year olds). 3hrs didn't seem too much for them and we could get both us and them around more of the mountain.
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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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Thanks all. Mayrhofen looks nice but if I don't go through Innsbruck / CrystalSki, it's a 3 hour public transport that is not cheap or a car rental. Whereas something like Kaprun, trasportation is free with the Guest Mobility Card.
Moreover, a pool is a requirement I'm afraid and that already puts Mayrhofen and even Obertauern out of budget. I know we can go self-catering/B&B and just use the water park in say Mayrhofen, but based on our experience in Seefeld, having the pool on-premise is essential with a tired yet motivated kid.
Also, thanks for the advice on Zell. I had a terrible knee injury 15 years ago skiing in slushy conditions so that eliminate Zell even though the 4 star family hotels are great for our budget and requirements.
I will likely now focus my energy on Kaprun unless more recommendations about other resorts comes in. It's also worth noting that flights to Turin are very reasoable still, so if there's a resort that can match my requirements on the Italian side I'm happy to hear about it.
@Mjit : thanks for your thorough reply. I will take that into consideration. Last time, the little one had a 5x2+2hr group and she did well but with some hiccups on the first day. The other thing I would take into consideration, I wouldn't trust myself with her on the pistes (even Blues) alone as I won't be able to help her if something happen. Maybe that will change towards the end of trip as I gain more confidence and experience.
Lastly, our "Ski experience" is Seefeld, wouldn't Kaprun be an upgrade in terms of size and variety? skiresort.info and gemini both confirm it would.
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@ifaour, I reread your requirements and the pool would seem to be a Red Line. I'll give you one more Austrian option. The Hotel Forellenhof in Flachau has a family room on booking.com (B&B) for €1682. It is a lovely hotel, recently refurbished. The skibus stops right outside and it's a 5 min ride to the nearest lift. It has the facilities you are looking for. In Ski Amade your 8 year old will ski free that week when you buy an adult pass. For ski lessons I'd recommend "Sport Am Jet" as they have a beginners area at mid-station. Ski school will probably run 9-12am that week which means ski early and then relax! Don't be put off by the piste gradings, if it all goes to pot you can download by gondola or chair.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
I won't be able to help her if something happen.
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That's a wise precaution. I once watched, from a lift, a pretty incompetent mother doing awkward turns down a red run she shouldn't have been on and certainly shouldn't have taken the little girl following her down - quite a distance behind as the mother couldn't control her speed. The child fell, dropped her poles, and slid quite a bit further. She wasn't hurt - managed to get up OK. The mother, too far down the slope to help even if she'd been more competent, yelled at the poor little thing to retrieve her poles. I expected her to be overcome and to have a complete meltdown. But not a bit of it. With a very eloquent whole body gesture indicating "you can go and get them yourself if you're so bothered!" she started down again with her snowplough turns. I felt like cheering.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| RedandWhiteFlachau wrote: |
| @ifaour, I reread your requirements and the pool would seem to be a Red Line. I'll give you one more Austrian option. The Hotel Forellenhof in Flachau has a family room on booking.com (B&B) for €1682. It is a lovely hotel, recently refurbished. The skibus stops right outside and it's a 5 min ride to the nearest lift. It has the facilities you are looking for. In Ski Amade your 8 year old will ski free that week when you buy an adult pass. For ski lessons I'd recommend "Sport Am Jet" as they have a beginners area at mid-station. Ski school will probably run 9-12am that week which means ski early and then relax! Don't be put off by the piste gradings, if it all goes to pot you can download by gondola or chair. |
Interesting .. that whole area seems to be made for families / kids. How's the snow conditions at noon/afternoon? skiresort.info reports good snow depth (although I'm no expert if this is enough). I suppose this resort would tick many boxes, except the nice village feel for my wife to enjoy (according to gemini) (?)
I will check out this resort along with transport to/from Salzburg airport (it seems driving is the easiest/fastest) as well as things to do in and around the region for my wife. Given the Guest Mobility card, she can just hop on a bus in any direction and explore near by areas.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@ifaour, Who is Gemini? 
It's warm by lunchtime. The lifts open at 8am, so at a push you can get 4 hours skiing in before then. After midday it will get a bit slushy below mid-station but you can always take the Achter Jet down.
The Forellenhof is located next to the village church and above the old centre. I'd agree that Flachau is not a quaint Austrian Mountain village but the walks along the valley are beautiful and trails up through the woods to the Sattelbauer are worth the trek. You are correct in that ALL regional transport in Salzburgland is free with your guest card. Altenmarkt (with the Therme Amade) is a 10 min ride on the bus and Radstadt, which is a walled town is about 20 mins on the same bus. It is not that difficult to have a day in Salzburg too.
Lots of Airport transport info on the Ski Amade thread, but if you are happy to visit by bus/train, it won't cost you anything. Ski Amade thread here: https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=173402&highlight=
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@RedandWhiteFlachau Gemini is Google's AI chat. I try to ground it with specific sources like these forums.
Right, so from 22nd March, skiing from top to mid-stations should be fine throughout the day and I suppose the schools are located at mid-stations. I will consider Flachau given the offering is intriguing while keep poking around Kaprun. The ski pass savings alone is a huge plus for Flachau
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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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@ifaour, Half the runs here face North, so the sun doesn't hit them too early. As long as the temperature drops below freezing at night, yes the runs to mid-station hold up well. Ref Ski Schools, no they are not. Only Sport Am Jet has a beginners area at mid-station. Your 8 year old would probably be at the "Red 5" level (See videos on the Sport am Jet page), so can start on the mountain. The Mid-station I refer to is at the top of the Achter Jet Gondola, so your non-skiing Mum can meet you for lunches there too.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Updating this thread. We decided to book Flachau instead of Kaprun as we got better deals. Yes, we won't have glacier skiing or Zell am See's famous attractions but I think there's enough for non-skiers in the surrounding areas and it seems skiing will be just fine (fingers crossed). Will create a trip report after we are back.
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