Looking at Austria for skiing in Feb 2009 (UK half term). had been looking at Maria Alm but flights are proving tricky so would like a couple of other options. Looking for skiing to suits all levels - ideally somewhere a little less busy as having skied in the USA for the past 2 years I%26#39;m not wanting to go back to long queues and crammed slopes. Would appreciate any suggestions. Thanks
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Maria Alm is a very nice choice. I am not sure from your post if your choice of Maria Alm is tricky based on the flights as if your dates are fixed (i.e. UK Half term) it appears it is only an issue of transfer time/method.
When you say flights are tricky :
which airport(s) were you looking at (Salzburg, Innsbruck, Munich).
Do you intend to book everything independently or as a package from a UK Tour operator??
What is your preferred airport to resort method of transfer/time
Do you wish to avoid skibusses (some main parts of villages are a distance from the main lift e.g. Alpbach, Scheffau)
For many skiing holidays you could fly into Salzburg, Innsbruck or Munich.
You can get trains from all these cities to various resort areas.
e.g. For Maria Alm - Depending on depature times it is possible from both Innsbruck and Salzburg to get direct trains to Saalfelden and then a local bus (15mins) to Maria Alm.
Some connections would require a change at Woergl (from Innsbruck) or Schwarzach St Veit (from Salzburg).
It is also possible to get a train from Munich which also follows the same routing.
I ski every UK Half term with my kids and but am fairly flexible on arrival times/days/resorts as I can drive to many resorts in under 3 hours. It is peak season anyway so resorts will be generally busy. Some resorts get the usual inundation from the British Tour operators on top of it being peak season generally. You would at this time of year be hard pushed not to find long queues first thing in the morning (where there is only one way up).
We all have our personal preferences when it comes to resorts but one of my personal critieria in choosing a resort at peak holiday times is that I try to avoid resorts where the only way down is the same gondola you took up. What goes up must come down. If people have an option to ski down at the end of the day you can avoid that %26quot;Mad time%26quot; at about 15:45 onwards where everyman and his dog is trying to get down for the apres ski.
Simples
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Thanks for the reply. Re flights - were looking at Munich in the end as Salzburg flights are coming out at almost £500 each. The Maria Alm option would require us booking the components independently but we are also looking at package options as well.
Airport to transfer time ....I guess 2 hours ideally.
Not adverse to ski busses.
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Probably best to confirm your flights during this busy time if you do not consider a package then work on a resort.
For innsbruck as a destination you havwe many choices.
Brithish Air is beginning winter flights there
Easy Jet often has some good fares-
Charter flighty from various english airports by Austrian Arrows, Lauda ( these daughters of Austrian Air )
Monarch, Flybe , Thomas Cook , Thompsons among others.
This a most busy time as the annual winter vacation for Austrian schools is during this period among other countries too.
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Just thinking of your requests Consifder this in your options-
try ryanair to linz - yes I know not everyones favorite but this is a less frequented ski destination airport perhaps.- no idea of flights but worth a look
Not so far away the ski resorts
Kasberg
www.kasberg.at
Hinterstoder
www.hinterstoder.at
Lesser known names to most but most often good snow and fewer people perhaps. and fair prices.
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Sorry a better site in english
www.hwu.at
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correction
www.hiwu.at
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Now down to a shortlist of 3 - Maria Alm, Soll and Kaprun....any thoughts from you experts ? Thanks :-)
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Söll - skiwelt - I ski a lot at the %26quot;skiwelt%26quot; but only as day trips. If I was personally going to stay there I would choose Ellmau or Brixental. Not really sure why other than these are the 2 places that I start my day trips at. The skiwelt is good for the extensive ski-area but has sometimes suffered through lack of snow but in more recent years this has only been early season. Söll previously had a reputation as the %26quot;Blackpool%26quot; of ski-resorts. Not sure now. The other minor problem, depending on the ability of your party, is the short black run from the top of the Hohe Salve (where the main Söll gondola finishes) down into the Hopfgarten/Hoch brixen area. Its the shortest way to link in to the rest of the Skiwelt and for a number of years my son was afraid to do it. The red/black runs back to Söll from the Hohe Salve can be circumnavigated. Brixen in Thale and Hopfgarten are the sunnier side. Great when the weather is slightly colder but obviously suffers more in warmer weather.
Kaprun - not sure the reason for your choice rather than Zell am See - stayed at Kaprun many years ago for a weekend during the season (big group of us) and skied only on the glacier - fantastic weather - great weekend but obviously when it gets bleak it gets bleak. You could stay in Zell am See and more or less whereever you are you won%26#39;t be that far from the 3 main lifts (Schüttdorf -%26gt; 2km -%26gt; Zell am See -%26gt; 2km -%26gt; Schmitten). Multiday passes includes the whole area (Kaprun and Zell am See). If you intend to do most of your sking in Zell then maybe it is easier to stay there
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