Obergurgl Ski Holidays

Obergurgl is located high up in the beautiful Valley and was recently presented with the enviable title of the most snow-sure resort in Europe. There are plenty of excellent hotels to choose from as Obergurgl is much more up-market than some of its Austrian rivals, with great facilities for groups of all sizes and ages, including families.

Hotels in this resort

Obergurgl Guide

The transfer time from Innsbruck Airport is only an hour and a half, which makes it a good choice for a short break. For these reasons, Obergurgl has become one of Austria’s most popular ski resorts and there are plenty of holidaymakers who come back to this resort again and again.

It is a resort that has retained much of its charm and prides itself on being the destination for the more discerning traveller.

Skiing in Obergurgl

The Obergurgl-Hochgurgl ski area offers high altitude skiing (1930 metre elevation) with almost guaranteed snow. The bottoms of the lifts are literally in Obergurgl village itself, making it easy to get from the slopes to your hotel and vice versa. Despite its excellent snow record, the queues and crowds of many other resorts are not a problem at this quieter resort. The uncrowded pistes are well maintained and a pleasure to explore.

Many of the runs are beautifully groomed and flat and they leave some of the black runs ungroomed for the more advanced skiers. The nursery slopes are close to all of the accommodations, which makes it easy for beginners and the ski school retains an excellent reputation. There aren’t as many more challenging runs to choose from, so the resort is much more suitable for beginners to intermediate skiers.

There are two main skiing areas. One is above the village of Obergurgl and the other is the bowls around Hochgurgl closeby. You can travel easily between the two by an excellent local ski bus system or by the new Top-Express gondola, which connects Festkogl in the Obergurgl area to the centre of the Hochgurgl ski runs.

In total, there are eight cable cars, six chairlifts and ten draglifts in the Obergurgl ski area. This means that it is easy to explore the whole ski area and make the most of your holiday.

Apres Ski

The mountain restaurants offer good wholesome fare as well as being a great place to relax at the end of the skiing day.

Most of the apres ski is enjoyed at Nederhett, a large mountain hut at the top of the Gaisberg gondola and starts around mid afternoon, much earlier than at other resorts. Many of the skiers are to be found here after a long day skiing, enjoying the Schnapps and the guitar and accordion playing whilst dancing on the tables.

Nightlife

Obergurgl nightlife is more restrained than some of its livelier European rivals, with much of the entertainment at night provided by the hotel bars. This more relaxed atmosphere means that it’s a great place for families.

You can enjoy some Glehwein and Schnapps at the Nederhett until the early hours. Other places to try include the Josl Keller, Edelweiss Bar or Krumpn’s Stadl. For anyone keen to dance until dawn, there is the Austria-Keller in Obergurgl and African Bar in Hochgurgl.

Eating Out

There is a great choice of restaurants, as well as a number of cafes to choose from. You can try some local delicacies or select a restaurant with a more international menu. Some recommended places to try are Pic Nic, Wiensenthal, Romantika and David’s Hut. The prices are very reasonable for the quality of food in the resort and you can typically enjoy a three course meal from around £25, excluding wine.

Fine dining can be found in most of the hotels, or you can choose to visit a Pizzeria Belmonte for a cheaper and quicker alternative.

Activities

On the days when you want a break from skiing, the resort has an ice rink where anyone can turn up and hire some skates. You can also try your hand at curling, which is a great activity for groups of friends or a family. No previous experience is necessary.

Night Skiing

If you can’t get enough of the piste, there is weekly night skiing led by a ski guide which is fantastic to take part in and also stunning to watch as the large group of skiers carry the lights down the hill.

There are also ski away days to other resorts in the area such as Solden, if you want to venture further afield and develop your technique on a new mountain.