Stuhleck, the largest and most modern ski resort in eastern Austria, opened the 2025/26 ski season with a now traditional celebrity giant slalom and a show act – all under dream conditions..
On December 11, 2025, the Stuhleck At its finest: brilliant sunshine, perfect conditions, truly glorious weather. This year also saw a new visitor record, suggesting a promising winter season, according to Fabrice Girardoni, Managing Director of the Stuhleck mountain lifts: "The early start to winter with enough cold days made it possible to cover the ski area with artificial snow in time and to open at the beginning of December." Even though it has warmed up again since then, the conditions at the opening were excellent – thanks in part to the 150 Stuhleck employees who worked behind the scenes on preparations for the start of the season.
Star-studded lineup at the VIP giant slalom
In the VIP giant slalom, in which Ski Guide Austria publisher Günter Fritz also participated, not only time but also style counted – Isabell Pannagl won the women's race ahead of Claudia Kristofic-Binder and Marion Finger; in the men's race, Flo & Wisch (David Krammer, Florian Röhlich) finished ahead of Christian Spatzek and Walter Schachner.
New this season at Stuhleck is the trendy sport "Yoonern", a fun alternative to tobogganing, in which Andy Lee Lang emerged as the winner.
This year's musical highlight was the high-energy show act Matakustix, which really got the audience in a party mood. For this, Matakustix received their own seat on the "celebrity chairlift" from Girardoni. An idea that originated in Kitzbühel but has now also become established at Stuhleck.
Conclusion: The 2025 ski opening, moderated by cabaret artist Gerald Fleischhacker, was not just a sporting start, but a celebration that reflected social get-togethers and the joy of winter.
