St Anton: The Highlights
Situated in the foothills of the Austrian province of Tyrol, St Anton is a small village well known for its world famous ski resort. Although made famous for its skiing, St Anton is also popular with mountaineers and hikers who want to tackle some of the peaks and check out some stunning views. For the less adventurous among us, there are cable cars and chairlifts available to get you to the top with or without your skis.
The Arlberg Area
If you are a keen skier who wants as many changes of scene as possible with just one pass, this is the place for you! St Anton is part of the famous Arlberg Area, boasting over 260km of groomed pistes, and plenty of deep snow runs totalling 184km, all served by 82 cable cars and lifts and all accessible by just buying one ski pass! Certainly a bargain well worth considering.
Slopes For All Levels
No matter if this is your first skiing holiday or you are a seasoned expert, St Anton ski resort offers a slope to suit you. A gradient of 100% is a 45 degree angle: the blue slopes have a gradient of 36%, designed for beginners. The intermediate slopes are marked by red signs, and have a 42% gradient, while the intermediate ski trails are marked by black (usually diamonds) and can have a gradient of about 22%. St Anton, although popular with beginners, has plenty of challenging terrain for the more expert skier, such as Schindlerkar, Mattun, and one side of Valluga. Some of these routes are only permitted if accompanied by a guide, and there is the option for exploration for the more adventurous skier, although this once again requires a guide.
The Cable Cars
From this small village you have the option of accessing peaks on the west side or the east side:
West Side - The older cable car system (the Galzigbahn) providing access up to the Galzig slopes (as well as the peaks of Schindler and Valluga) has been replaced by a system known as the Funitel gondola, featuring a unique ground-level entry system consisting of a Ferris wheel to rotate carriages to the top of the wheel and attach them to the high speed cables.
East Side - From the east can be accessed the Nasserein area. This is made possible by the Nassereinbahn cable car system, which also runs to the peak of Kapall.
The three peaks accessed from St Anton add up to a total of around 1.5 vertical km of skiing slopes; plenty to satisfy any skier!
Après-ski
Aprés-ski (meaning ‘after ski’ in French) is the common practice of having some fun after a hard day of skiing. There are many aprés-ski sites available in and around St Anton, the number and variety of which are unparalleled in the Alpines: these include fifteen cafés, seven bars, eight ‘ice bars’, three discos, and even a ski museum for those who want a quiet night. Something can be found to please everyone after a long day of skiing at St Anton!
Accommodation
From the lowliest hostel to the finest luxury hotel, you will definitely have no excuse not to find the accommodation just right for you in this thriving holiday location. With a brand new luxury hotel in St Anton due to open its doors for the first time since its lavish refurbishment, the 2012/2013 season is set to offer the best accommodation options St Anton has ever seen.
Films
St Anton has been the setting for several high-profile films such as Chalet Girl (2011), Downhill Racer (1969) and Der Weisse Rausch (1931).
So with all this variety and interest, who wouldn’t want to choose St Anton as a future ski destination! St Anton has it all; happy skiing!
This post is on behalf of VIP SKI, the luxury ski chalets specialists with a brand new luxury St Anton hotel opening in St Anton ski resort for the upcoming 2012/13 season.
