Salzburger Sportwelt

Salzburger Sportwelt
A winter world with local color

Overwrought There are only valleys here, which means that the skiers are extremely relaxed - or excited about what the day might bring in terms of slopes. Within the cross-border marketing association Ski amadé, the Salzburger Sportwelt links four valleys alone. That's a conservative estimate. You float over the Tauern motorway and several federal highways.

The overview It is not easy to maintain a clear view of the entire ski world. The easiest way to understand the four valleys is to look at the east-west axis. Realistically speaking, this is unnecessary, because you usually stay in one place and just enjoy the slopes. Maybe you visit your favorite slope more often. But it is technically possible to travel through the entire Salzburg sports world in one direction in one day, but it is extremely stressful. That is not the point of such a large network; it is to be able to ski individual peaks as you please during a vacation. Like a spider in a web, you stay in Flachau or Zauchensee.

So, to illustrate the dimensions of the entire area, a short flight over the individual places, each of which contains a piece of skiing history. From the tranquil family ski area of Filzmoos, which is both the northernmost and easternmost point in the world of sport, via the traditional towns of Radstadt, Altenmarkt and Eben, all located along the motorway, with the unusual "Monte Popolo", we head south and up to Zauchensee. Behind this begins the large SnowSpace complex, but the high alpine World Cup resort at 1,350 meters has a completely unique character. After crossing the Tauern motorway, the dense lift network of Flachauwinkl, Flachau and Kleinarl awaits. Historic Wagrain is the next stop. Later, further small valleys are overcome until finally St. Johann and the Alpendorf hotel complex mark the end. Here you will also find one of the five cheapest ski areas in Austria, St. Johann's local mountain: Hahnbaum.

Zauchensee is the perfect starting point for dedicated piste fans, on the other hand, to immerse themselves in the wide network of the Salzburg sports world right from the hotel door. While things are comparatively small-town down below in the valley towns such as Radstadt and Altenmarkt, which are connected by a small ski area, the piste life is in full swing up above. It is no coincidence that the women's World Cup circus will be hosting here again in 2024. The first World Cup races took place here back in 1980. The shady Kälberloch piste is usually tough and demanding, even if you don't try to keep up with Miriam Puchner or Sofia Goggia in terms of speed. But we like it sunnier today...
From the Gamskogel we choose a perfect ski route just next to descent 9, which leaves enough room for experimentation but also doesn't put off deep snow newbies. Like almost all tours, it leads directly back to the hotel village. The only descent that doesn't end in Zauchensee continues the ski circuit from the Rosskopf to Flachauwinkl. A great slope! The hustle and bustle on it is always easy to see from the Tauern motorway.

Ideal for vacationers are the ski-in-ski-out hotels in Zauchensee, which have been expanded to include a new house by former world champion Michael Walchhofer. Winter sports enthusiasts have it good in Zauchensee in every respect. Thanks to the location between 1,000 metres at the level of the valley station in Flachauwinkl and the highest point at 2,100 metres on the Gamskogel, winter sports conditions are perfect throughout the winter. This makes skiing particularly attractive in the second half of the season. In addition to the sunshine, special offers around Carnival time delight winter sports fans of all ages. The slope conditions are usually excellent at this time anyway.

Smart Skiing Leisure carvers, freeriders and families alike can enjoy themselves here. Zauchensee has deliberately chosen the motto "smart skiing" as a double meaning: This applies not only to the 44 kilometres of slopes around Gamskogel, Rosskopf and Tauernkar, where winter sports enthusiasts can follow in the footsteps of the World Cup stars. Freeriders can look forward to top-class variants such as the "Gamskogel East" or the ski route towards Flachauwinkl. The experience is perfect when the local guides show you the best and, above all, safest routes. A tip: There are checkpoints at the two valley stations of the World Cup Arena Zauchensee and Highport Flachauwinkl where avalanche transceivers can be tested for functionality. The Family Park on the Rosskopf ensures fun on the slopes, where beginners can gain their first experience with airtimes, boxes and rookies.
But because intelligent winter sports involve more than that, the cable cars of the Salzburg Sportwelt on both sides of the motorway have invested a lot of time and money to meet the ecological demands of their guests. One example: all 240 snowmaking units are networked with each other. Today, computers control numerous measuring points and record the climate data. The maximum throughput of the snowmaking systems has almost doubled within just a few years, but energy consumption has actually fallen by a third.

700 meters from the highway is the fastest way to access the SnowSpace network. For Zauchensee, this is also an alternative to the traditional route via Altenmarkt at 1,350 meters. In Zauchensee, day skiers can park their vehicles in the free parking garage. There are sports shops with ski rentals and numerous restaurants. However, the journey to the ski area via Flachauwinkl is a little more environmentally friendly: from the Flachauwinkl motorway exit, it is only the two minutes mentioned to the valley station of the Highliner cable car. The mountain station is reached around eight minutes later.
SnowSpace Salzburg last invested heavily two years ago. The Flying Mozart cable car covers the 970 meters of altitude to the Grießenkareck in less than 11 minutes. With a transport capacity of 4,000 guests per hour, the crowds are now a thing of the past. Together with the panoramic gondola connection from Grießenkareck to Kleinarl-Flachauwinkl, which opened at Christmas 2020, skiers can now even get to Zauchensee via Flachauwinkl in great comfort with the two new cable cars. This makes SnowSpace Salzburg one of the largest regions in Europe that is fully connected by lifts. The cable cars make the "12 Peaks Trophy" possible, which is 91.5 kilometers of slopes and 10,000 meters of altitude that can be mastered in one lap. Now over 200 kilometers of slopes can be covered in one day of skiing without a bus transfer. If you can manage it. The last major "air bridge" is only a few years old. The G-Link near Wagrain connects the middle station of the “Flying Mozart” with the middle station of the Grafeneck Express lifts across the Kleinarlertal.

Flachauwinkel, located directly above the motorway after the descent from Zauchensee, seemed at first glance a bit like a "dead end" until this winter. But the ski circuit over the Mooskopf to Kleinarl has always been a pleasure. A wide, open area where absolute highs are the order of the day. In particular, it is the Absolut Park that captivates young people in particular. Snow park life began here 20 years ago. Most of the time, it starts at the beginning of December, but if the snow is right, the first lines are already intact on a few November weekends.
Since 2006, the Chillhaus has been the central culmination point of the riders' activities. A "shelter" of a different kind. With a ramp and bouldering facility, it is very popular when the weather is not good. No obligation to consume anything, but with cold and hot water dispensers, which are used just as eagerly as the kickers outside the door.

In Herrmann Maier's hometown of Flachau The World Cup star is still omnipresent a decade after the end of his career. A new Hermann Maier Tour has now been launched, which leads to his favorite places in the ski area. It goes without saying that the Hermann Maier FIS World Cup course (with photo start) down to Flachau is one of them. In the footsteps of Flachau ski star Hermann Maier, signposts lead through the ski area, past the most beautiful places, the greatest highlights and the best panoramic views. In Flachau itself, the start is particularly comfortable with the panoramic cabins of the Achter Jet. To ensure that the transition from the luxury car to the slopes is not too dramatic, the gondola has leather upholstery and heated seats.

Flachau, Wagrain and St. Johann are each a place closely linked to the skiing tradition, and are now part of SnowSpace Salzburg. We continue the rocking we have begun with the first attraction, the Hermann Maier World Cup course. It is regularly the venue for the women's night slalom. We continue on Hermann Maier's local mountain, the Grießenkareck. The ideal ski mountain is completely covered by a network of lifts between Flachau and Wagrain. Extensive slopes, usually with optimal snow cover, which invite you to make long carving turns. If there is one drawback, it is the similarity of many of the blue and red marked slopes. The region is not very demanding for steep slope artists: even the two rather short steep slopes on the Sonntagskogel and the Top-Liner-Mulde below the Saukarkopf are not really an exception.

Just above Wagrain At the middle station of the "Red 8" gondola, there is a small ski swing in the middle of the large one. Wagraini's winter world is a child's dream with practice lifts and magic carpets that are perfect for the first attempts at skiing. This is where the little ones romp around, and are offered much more than just their first skiing experiences: there are animals to feed, snow caves to discover in the igloo, as well as the "Dwarf House" as a freely accessible warm-up hut. The children's ski carousel, tubing track and a mini snow park are the entry into cool times. To see how this basis comes into full effect later in teenage years, we move to the middle station of the newly built "Flying Mozart" to take the G-Link gondola to the other side of the valley.

The descents are not very different from Grießenkareck - apart from the ski movie route. Until you reach the Sonntagskogel. Here the atmosphere changes: a real black one plunges down next to the chairlift. If you go further to the left through a small forest when you get off, there is a cheerful hustle and bustle on the Funslope with its wave tracks, tunnels and steep curves. Here you move through almost forest-free terrain, the slopes become steeper. St. Johann is not to be underestimated as the grand finale, after all there is even a drag lift here with only difficult runs. The wide runs from the Gernkogel towards St. Johann offer pure enjoyment. But first you should have enjoyed the 360° panorama of the surrounding mountains on the new viewing platform, before the last four kilometers of the run to the Buchaubahn often demonstrate what optimal snowmaking can do.

Finally, perhaps a short detour back to Filzmoos. This family-friendly "outpost" was also expanded in the middle of the pandemic. The "Mooslehenbahn" on the sunny side of the valley was replaced by a modern 6-seater chairlift. Equipped with child-safe bars and a weather protection hood. Only from the top station of the Papagenobahn at almost 1,600 meters - and thus already the highest point in the Filzmoos area - can you get a glimpse of the vastness of the rest of the sporting world. For example, for those who do their 12-kilometer lap on the high-altitude trail.