Kitzbühel Skiing & Snowboarding
Kitzbühel always has the boasting rights for being the first non-glacier ski resort to open in Austria every ski season. That may mean it is only one run, but open is open & bragging is bragging...... & not much else. FYI, Obergurgl Hochgurgl is usually its competition for the early opening bragging rights.
The nonsense of bragging rights aside, Kitzbühel can rightly boast about its huge & superb quality piste trail network & super modern ski lifts. It doesn't hold the Hahnenkamm World Cup Downhill ski event for nothing. From experience, it is a genuinely frightening prospect to ski at full tilt too! In a good year when snow is deep and down to low levels, Kitzbϋhel always has loads of classic Austrian off-piste powder skiing all over the resort, including tree skiing. A little bit of exploration, particularly beyond Pass Thurn will reveal vast untouched freeride terrain regardless of the crowds on the piste.
The Kitzbuhel ski resort is in fact alot more than just Kitzbühel! Collectively referred to as KitzSki, the resort areas of Kitzbühel-Kirchberg-Reith-Aurach-Jochberg-Mittersill-Hollersbach are interlinked to provide a rollicking on-snow Austrian ski adventure. Whilst the entire 235km of marked trails are mostly lift inter-connected, 3 areas (1 large, 2 small) are not. The Kitzbueheler Horn above Kitzbuhel to the north, the adjacent Bichalm freeride area above Aurach & the minor Gaisberg above Kirchberg are the outliers.
Check out the ski trail map for KitzSki - Kitzbühel Kirchberg Mittersill below.
Kitzbühel Kirchberg Mittersill Skiing Highlights
The ski & snowboard highlights at KitzSki are many & varied. Tick off the following when at the resort.
- Complete all the top to bottom on-piste valley trails, a few of which are up to 1,200m of vertical.
1. Kitzbüheler Horn to Kitzbuhel
2. Hahnenkamm to Kitzbühel via piste #20
3. Hahnenkamm to Kitzbühel via piste #21/22
4. Ehrenbachhöhe to Kirchberg via Fleckalmbahn
5. Ehrenbachhöhe to Kirchberg/Gaisberg via Maierlaimbahn
6. Pengelstein to Skirast via piste #27b/27
7. Pengelstein to Skirast via piste #30/31
8. Wurzhöhe to Jochberg
9. Resterhöhe to Pass Thurn
10. Resterhöhe to Breitmoos
11. And finally the longest of them all (over 8km) Steinbergkogel to Kirchberg via piste #16/26/25b
- On a cold powder day where snow is thick in the valley, try for first tracks down the long ski routes Pengelstein-Süd (skiroute #33), Giggling (skiroute #34) , both ending toward Jochberg, and the 900m vertical on Schwarzkogel (ski route #56) into Aschau. If the snow is not fresh, challenge yourself and do them anyway.
- Try to get first chair on the Steinbergkogel on a powder day, or any day for that matter! Let us know if you do it so we can share your joy. Do a couple of runs in this awesome zone and once the crowd builds, get the hell out of there!
- Try and ski the Hahnenkamm’s Streif racecourse (ski route 21) from top to bottom without stopping. We will be super-impressed if you can do it and survive to tell the tale!
- Go exploring on Bichlalm and ride the snowcat up to the off-piste ski zone (or skin it!) on Stuckkogel.
- Spend a sunny morning or a clear afternoon on top of Kitzbüheler Horn taking in the spectacular 360o views.
- Heed the insiders tip for powder hounds that want to avoid the crowds - start your day early at Pass Thurn and ski the sector across to Zweitausender, the highest lifted point in the entire resort. Whilst the skiable vertical is at most only 5-600m on any one run, the lifts are deserted until well into the morning and there is funtastic freeride terrain to plunder before they get there!
- Get a guide on a powder day and be shown the secret side of Kitzbühel.
- There are 60 mountain hut bars & après ski location marked on the Kitzski trail map, see how many you can visit. For added difficulty, chug a beer, or eat a strudel at each! Some runs have multiple opportunities along them so it’s not as hard as it sounds, for example piste #26a/26b has seven bars on just 680m of vertical. That’s still a big afternoon but easily done.
Ski Lifts
KitzSki’s ski lifts are mostly of the modern, comfortable and even heated-seat variety. But there are some fantastic outliers like the ancient 40-person Horngipfelbahn (cable car). Built in 1955 it is still soldiering on today but is largely redundant and a nostalgic ride at best. The terrain it serves now has a modern 10-seat gondola (Raintal) & 6-seater hooded chair (Brunelle) comfortably taking riders up to the top the Kitzbüheler Horn. The new lifts even have heated seats - how very Kitzbühel of them!
KitzSki only truly exists in its current form due to the 2004 installation of the 3-S Bahn spanning the Saukaserbachtal. Connecting the Tirol side of the resort to the Salzburgerland side provided true integration. Completing the integration on the Pinzgau valley side, the 4.5km long Panoramabahn Kitzbüheler Alpen I & II was installed in 2005 and was a boon for the region as it connected Hollersbach (800m) with the 1,896m summit of Resterhöhe. Sadly the lower half of the terrain is south-facing and often snowless, requiring a download in the gondola back to the valley.
The one non-lift lift is the Bichlalm Snowcat. Located at the top of the of the Bichlalm chairlift, the 15-seat snowcat can be used to gain another 300m vertical to the summit of 1,888m Stuckkogel for easy entry into freeride zone. The rides are not included in the lift pass (unless you a season pass holder).
Lift Passes
A single lift pass covers the entire KitzSki area. Good to know is that all practice lifts in the valley can be used free of charge. The one exception to the rule (there is always one!) is the Bichlalm Snowcat that runs from the top of Bichlalm chairlift. The ride to the top in the snowcat costs an additional €8 for a child & €15 for an adult per ride (24/25 price).
For international guests, the Ikon Pass is now conditionally valid in KitzSki. Free days include all KitzSki sectors - Kitzbühel, Kirchberg and Mittersill. Full Ikon Pass holders get 7 free days, with no blackouts. Ikon Base Plus Pass and Ikon Base Pass holders get 5 free days, with no blackouts. Holders can go directly to the chairlift or gondola. There is no need to stop at the ticket window.
Resort Sector Trail Maps & Info
The three main sectors of KitzSki are 1. Kitzbühel - Kirchberg extending up & beyond from the towns of the same name; 2. Jochberg - Pass Thurn - Mittersill; 3. Kitzbüheler Horn. Sectors 1 and 2 are only connected by the magnificent piece of engineering called the 3-S Bahn. If it is not running
Kitzbühel - Kirchberg
The Kitzbuhel & Kirchberg sector is the largest and best known of the KitzSki resort. The world famous Hahnenkamm is enough brand name recognition for any resort. Generally on cold, north-aspect terrain, the sector’s main issue is low altitude. Bases at 780m (Kitzbühel) and 820m (for Kirchberg) are increasingly struggling for snow. That said, much of the ski terrain, whilst all below 2,000m altitude is substantially in the zone between 1,500m & 2,000m, making for fun turns all winter. If the snow is poor down low, gondolas will get you downloaded comfortably.
Check out the ski trail map for the Kitzbühel Kirchberg sector below.
Jochberg - Pass Thurn - Mittersill
Our favourite sector because of fewer people, the key to the off-piste terrain in this sector of Kitzski is the number 76 trail. It provides return access to the many lifts lining the alpine zone, as well as the Resterhöhe chairlift from Pass Thurn. The best freeride terrain is easily accessed below the blue trails 70b, 71b & 72c. Not huge verticals, but just fun, well-pitched freeride terrain, and totally devoid of humans on cold midweek days. Our motto for the sector is 'Feral Weather + Deep Snow = Pass Thurn Excellence'.
Check out the ski trail map for the Jochberg - Pass Thurn - Mittersill sector below.
Kitzbüheler Horn - Bichlalm
often overlooked by visitors to the region, Kitzbüheler Horn & Bichlalm are worth a visit particularly when the sun is shining & the snow is fresh. Sunny slopes, big views and a long valley trail are features of the zone. Bichlalm is just a nice spot to get away from the humanity everywhere else.
Check out the ski trail map for the Kitzbüheler Horn - Bichlalm sector below.
More to come …..