Last weekend for the 2011/12 Tirol snow card

It is certainly a distant memory now but back in October I wrote at the start of the long winter season when the Tirol Snow Card kicked in about the many months of skiing that lay ahead. The winter arrived with a dump or 2 in the autumn and then was noticeably absent in the late autumn when many of the resorts were busy trying to prepare for the early winter starts. Obergurgl and Ischgl opened on time thanks almost solely to the capacity of the snow making facilities whilst almost the entire rest of the Alps remained closed. When the snows arrived in early December it was almost 3 months of incessant snow, resorts cut off by avalanche danger and for those on the slopes some of the best powder skiing in memory. It was broadly mighty cold as well with some horrifically frigid days in January and February and a snow pack in Kitzbuhel that has rarely been beaten. March was sunny and snowy, April was sunny and May the same. And yet many weeks into spring / early summer there is still some 4m of snow on the local glaciers. Despite the snow pack the Tirol Snow Card is set to expire for the 2011/12 winter this weekend after 7½ months, the first of which brought lots of snow, the second absolutely none and the following 3½ months almost non-stop snow fall. God bless the Tirol Snow Card!

December brings the snow

After a November that can best be described as mild to reasonably cool, very sunny and very, very dry, then the arrival of December is bringing winter fully back to earth with heavy snow set to hit the west of Austria from this weekend onwards. Records for lack of precipitation have been smashed in the Tirol in November with possibly not a millimetre of rain, snow or anything else falling out of the sky for the entire month. It hasn’t prevented Obergurgl and Ischgl from opening on schedule but I am sure that they are as relieved as anyone by the weather charts. Over the weekend resorts such as Ischgl, Solden, St Anton and Kitzbuhel are set for a period of heavy snow that will have a slight interlude before the snow returns early next week. We are very likely be announcing the first flake as soon as it leaves the cloud so keep checking back.

Endlich - the snow is coming

After a month-long period of blue skies and sun and a complete lack of rain or snow, the cycle seems headed for a welcome end over the Austrian Alps with snow forecast in Kitzbuhel in the east and Ischgl and St Anton in the west. It hasn’t been the temperatures necessarily over the last month that have been despairing, more the dryness of the conditions - the sun has been warm but generally the air has been cool. The problem though has been the relentlessly dry conditions, with no part of the Alps spared. Luckily for Austria the glacier skiing takes place on 8 glaciers and these benefitted from some great early autumn snow so have been offering some great skiing. All of them will be welcoming a top-up for sure, from cloud laden skies. Forecasts are conflicting at the moment but all agree that Friday / Saturday should see a decent dump, others are identifying Wednesday as another day due to bring snow.

Obergurgl and Ischgl - the only resorts to open on time in November in the Alps

Some kudos but I am sure that they would happily replace that with some snowflakes - Obergurgl in Austria opened on time and has ski pistes running back to the resorts thanks in part to some early season snow and a larger part due to the snow cannons that pump out artificial snow. Temperatures have been milder than average over the autumn but hardly balmy in Austria, rather it is the incessant dry weather that has dominated for many weeks now that has delayed the season opening for many big name resorts in France and Switzerland including Davos / Klosters which has just announced a delay. Ischgl in Austria is set to open on schedule tomorrow and so long as you aren’t looking for off-piste heaven then the piste skiing really should be ok. We had friends on the Kaunertal Glacier this week and they had a great time with groomed pistes and bright sunshine. Quite when the weather will break is not known but it just has to be soon - it is time for some grey threatening skies after all this tanning weather!

Corporate ski trips - flocking to Austria

We have had seen a huge growth in business and corporate trip enquiries in the last few months asking for a wide range of Austrian ski holiday resorts. Initially it was believed there must have been a successful marketing push behind the surge but the range of resorts, dates and industry profiles suggests something more general at work. As a company we push the quality and authenticity of Austrian resort ‘messages’ hard, the snowfall figures are beyond debate and are strongly in favour of Austria and surveys suggest that Austria offers some of the best value for money in the Alps, alongside Italy. There are many, many epic destinations for corporate clients and groups outside of Austria with Zermatt and Megeve high on any list. Val d’Isere has the label, ski area and to a degree an unswerving loyalty whilst 1850 still makes headlines for prices when the ski area should be worthy of more columns of coverage. Verbier has a great deal going for it, especially the skiing, St Moritz and Davos are headline names with mighty ski areas above them but when it comes down to choices it hard to overlook Austria and that seems to be in evidence for corporate and group ski planners. Austria offers events that are unsurpassed with the Hahnenkamm race weekend in Kitzbuhel is akin to Wimbledon - the Hahnenkamm offers unique drama, unmatched risk and ultimately the adoration and respect of the entire snow sports world. In terms of apres ski then whatever the pace Austria has it - Ischgl offers both Sir Elton and The Killers the chance to host the end of season bash and whatever the demography of those in attendance the feeling is the same - blown away with presence and setting. Snow sure? Austria has the absolute best snow record in the Alps, it has 3 ski holiday resorts over 2km high and glacier skiing that is unequalled in the Alps with seasons that run from October to June (and year round). And crucially in these times when corporate ski groups are looking at ‘bang for the buck’ value for money then Austria (along with Italy) is peerless for corporate ski trip value. Wherever corporate ski groups end up in Austria, it is tough to find locations and suppliers in Austria whose prices aren’t justifiably fair. In this climate Austria is peerless.

Roxette to open Ischgl

Purveyors of middle of the road euro pop rock Roxette are set to open the Ischgl winter season with an open air concert for 20 000 or so pop crazed revellers. The mountains of Paznaun Valley are set to reverberate to classics such as Crash, Boom, Bang, The Look and of course Joyride. No idea what The Killers would make of Roxette following their live performance to close the last winter season but that won’t trouble Per and Marie as they open the new winter in Ischgl.

Ischgl - fact or fiction?

Now that Ischgl has started a TV advertising campaign we have a pretty clear idea of where they are and where they expect to be. For years now Ischgl has been entertaining big name stars in an attempt to position the brand at the forefront of winter sports destinations. I am not sure of the origin / authenticity of the claim to be ‘the Ibiza’ of the Alps - but it has been a term of intent that has been bandied around for a number of years. Excess in the snow so to speak. Paying Paris Hilton many hundreds of thousands of euros to holiday in Ischgl a few years back and bring with her the world’s paparazzi raised eyebrows in the region as well as creating endless press columns. I am not even sure that she skied / snowboarded but that was never the point in any case. Elton John, Katie Perry, Kylie, Stereophonics and Rihanna are some of the names to have opened and closed seasons in recent years and The Killers are the next act to grace the Idalp stadium. So we have a mega brand in winter sports that everyone seems to want a piece of, even though much of the marketing has nothing to do slopes - you don’t hear Bode or Seth talking about the epic skiing or off-piste, the whole brand has been created by what happens off the snow, granted Elton’s piano was on a ski slope but I am pretty sure he wasn’t.
So behind the big names and the undoubted success of branding Ischgl as the place to be in the Alps - how is it on the slopes and in the resort? Key to Ischgl is the skiing / snowboarding area and whilst some bemoan the glitz and commercialisation of the resort then there is no escaping the fact that Ischgl is one of the elite ski / snowboard areas in the Alps. Beginners have a good area at Idalp, intermediates have a big network of well linked, long cruisers and good skiers and snowboarders have some genuinely steep slopes to tackle as well as acres of legendary off-piste. In short the ski area is up there with the very best. For me the Arlberg trumps Ischgl for steep skiing and off-piste but that could be said for nearly every area in the Alps and the fact is that Ischgl is a truly epic ski region with variety, challenging terrain and an almost unrivalled lift system that is high capacity, modern and extensive.

Skiing is tough to beat in Ischgl - © www.skiingaustria.co.uk

Off the snow - ‘Relax. If you can…’ is the message from the resort. Despite the sumptuous hotel facilities offering health-giving treatments and relaxation opportunities, my experience is that Ischgl provides few chances to relax and I have yet to leave the resort with anything other than a pressing need for a holiday. There is debate where offers the best après ski in the Alps but if you were to create a short list of 3 then Ischgl would have to be on it, very possibly with 2 other Austrian resort (St Anton and Solden). For brazen excess then Ischgl cannot be topped. The bars are heaving from 3 onwards and it is easily possible to be partying at day break with dancing girls on the bars and some exclusive clubs.

Ischgl for me falls short for families - although some of independent snow sports portals rate it as a family destination - lazy journalism re-cycling third hand reports rather than actually going there and writing authoritative reports - ridiculous. Families should head to the neighbouring resorts of Galtur, See or Kaprun but not Ischgl - tough and crowded lower slopes, tons of après ski, lift queues in the resort etc etc. Ischgl is also pricey, one of the more expensive resorts in Austria, although it doesn’t do the crazy statement prices of some of the elite French resorts. But those looking for top skiing / snowboarding, can survive on little or no sleep and don’t mind paying over the Austrian average then Ischgl is the real deal.
Ischgl - fact.

Fresh powder in Ischgl

Snow yesterday, over night and today in Ischgl has provided some great power skiing conditions. Earlier this week (and despite a couple of weeks without snow) the pistes in Ischgl were surprisingly impressive with little ice and some great piste skiing on offer. Off-piste on Monday and Tuesday was not worth tackling due to the old snow but today conditions were really impressive. It was no 10/10 powder day for sure, maybe a 5 or 6/10 but given the recent drought it was a welcome return of powder conditions. Away from the slopes Ischgl continues to wreak havoc - excess on a grand scale with an appalling sleep to apres ski ratio for the 4 days I was there. The latest snow report from today in Ischgl:

Welcome to another world - apres ski in Ischgl

Shameless excess in Ischgl, not many places in the Alps do it better - image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk

Four hours into my 5 days in Ischgl and without even sampling the snow the appeal of Ischgl is clear. It is my first trip to Ischgl this winter and I am guiding a corporate group for the coming days. Colder temperatures and snow are forecast for the coming days and I imagine an après ski scene that isn’t conducive to physical or financial wellbeing – bring it on

Ischgl Piz Val Gronda expansion gets blocked by the Umweltlandesrat

The body overseeing the environment in Austria has blocked the proposed development of the Ischgl ski area into the Piz Val Gronda region. This expansion that has been mooted for 25 years would have added an additional 60km’s or so of ski pistes. Understandably opinions are pretty polarised with environmental campaigners saying this was a test case to curtail excessive development in protected areas whereas the lift company, local Ischgl businesses and it is fair to say the lift manufacturers were very troubled by the decision - culminating in a pretty passionate meeting between the groups last week. Tough call for someone who loves gliding through nature but who equally understands that the thrill is mostly about the nature (and therefore the preservation of it). Ischgl is a powerful force in alpine tourism in Austria - that will only raise the stakes for those trying to check the growth of these mega resorts. To be continued…..

47 days old and checking out the piste map at Ischgl

Josh in Ischgl - waiting for the powder days

Josh made his first real trips into the heart of Austrian skiing with a day combining visits to St Anton am Arlberg and Ischgl – two of the places he is likely to spend some time if all goes to plan. St Anton was abuzz with work on the new Rendlbahn ski lift and you can see the first impressions of how it is going to look when work is completed alter this year on the following video:

Watch his progress on our blog as he is absolutely sure to ski next winter barring freak weather or a meteorite strike.

Best ski images of winter 08/09 - Ischgl powder in December

……and after this we were invited to watch the Ischgl Top Model beauty pageant up on the mountain. Some days in Ischgl are impossible to beat