Garmisch Classic Ski Resort Germany
The quintessential German ski town of Garmisch Partenkirchen (or Ga-Pa for short) is ground zero for skiing in Deutschland. The town has the nation's largest standalone ski resort on its doorstep, complete with World Cup standard piste trails & a partly modern lift system - Garmisch Classic.
Nearby is Germany's highest peak, the looming Zugspitze (2,962m). The ski resort of the same name is the country's highest & most snow-sure, topping out at just below 2,720m. Both ski resorts are connected to Garmisch Partenkirchen by trains, cable cars, gondolas & cog railway providing a travel & ski experience worthy of anywhere in the world.
Garmisch Classic & Zugspitze are complimentary ski resorts - ski Classic in poor weather, head up to the glacier when the sun shines. The proximity of the Garmisch ski resorts to better known skiing areas in the Tyrol & Arlberg of Austria also make it a perfect addition (or perhaps a better starting point) to any European road trip or ski safari.
Pros & Cons for Garmisch-Classic Ski Resort
Pros
- Superb range of piste trails for all levels including advanced.
- Several fabulous ‘top to bottom’ piste trails that will bring speed-induced tears to your eyes - goggles on or not!
- Uncrowded once away from the base areas & during the week.
- Wonderful novice & beginner progression lifts & terrain on the upper mountain near Hausberg.
- Particularly good mountain restaurants & bars.
- Fun après ski at the Hausberg lift base area & in town.
- Interesting range & number of non-ski winter activities.
- Good value lift pass price linked with Zugspitze & including local train transport.
- Accommodation in nearby Partenkirchen is sublime, as is the ambiance of the ‘old town’.
- Excellent public transport access by train to two separate base areas.
Cons
- Relatively low elevation base relying heavily on snow-making.
- Extremely limited off-piste terrain.
- Overall terrain is in part confusing & difficult to navigate if uninitiated or in poor viz!
- Road to Garmisch can get super busy on weekends.
- Several important, long linking ski trails are tough on snowboarders.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Lift system is an interesting mix of old & new, depending on which side of the resort you ski.
- Several piste trails rated ‘intermediate’ would be ‘advanced’ in other resorts.
- Village is split between the fun (& newish) Garmisch & the beautiful, traditional Partenkirchen - with both being further than walking distance from the ski lifts.
- Few ski-in ski-out accommodation options (although there are a couple at the top of the resort).
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain
Garmisch Classic has an impressive set of statistics including a skiable vertical of over 1,300m & a longest run of 9km on north-aspect terrain. The slopes are very much all about the on-piste groomers. Advanced riders will enjoy the seriously fast valley runs, two of which are rated as intermediate, but should have sections marked in black! There are excellent lifts, trails & facilities for novice skiers in & around the Hausberg, but truly little for the freerider. Whilst we noted tree skiing opportunities, we doubt there would be many days where it would be skiable.
Check out the ski trail map for Garmisch below.
Skiing at Garmisch is certainly a magical mystery tour for a first-time visitor. The trail map is quite misleading in the distance between the highest lifted point at Osterfelderkopf (2,050m) and the top of the Kreuzeckbahn gondola. It is a long, long way. Snowboarders with no fitness OR T-bar riding skills may find out to their detriment. The ascent of Osterfelderkopf from the valley is quite the ride in an outdated cable car (the Alpspitzbahn) which fails to cope on busy days. Ride it early -first lifts. At the top is access to Garmisch Classic’s major, but limited, freeride terrain & the best snow quality intermediate piste on the mountain, albeit served by ancient lifts. The major piste trails are served by modern gondolas & chairlifts creating a sense of two totally different ski areas in the one resort.
The predominately tree-lined trails of Garmisch Classic make it perfect for skiing in any weather conditions - cloud, snow, wind & sun. But when the sun does come out or the cloud base lifts, we suggest complimenting your stay with a trip to the lift passed linked Zugspitze. Whilst not a huge ski area, the glacier & high alpine peak is spectacular & have a nicer range of intermediate trails that Garmisch - go figure!
See here for the Zugspitze ski trail map.
Lift Pass
All Garmisch lift passes of 1½-days+ duration include Zugspitze (if you want to go, and of course you should!). Lift passes of 3-days or more are called a Top Snow Card and are valid at a number of regional ski resorts in Bavaria & the Austrian Tyrol.
Where is Garmisch-Classic Germany?
Garmisch Classic is in Bavaria, southern Germany, near the border with Austria. In the village of Garmisch Partenkirchen, by road the ski resort is only 90km south of Munich & 65km north of Innsbruck, Austria. Both Munich (MUC) & Innsbruck (INN) are the gateway airports for Garmisch Classic.
Travel to the town of Garmisch Partenkirchen is an easy 2½hr train ride from Munich airport or less from the main station at Innsbruck. Once in Ga-Pa, the local bus & train network links into the ski resort as well as with Zugspitze's cable car to the peak or cog railway to the resort base. See here for the local Garmisch-Zugspitze train transport map.
Search & book here for train tickets to Garmisch & Grainau.
Garmisch Classic Accommodation
The village of Garmisch-Partenkirchen is the ultimate German holiday destination & has oodles of quality Bavarian hotels & guesthouses. Previously two separate villages, Ga-Pa has two distinctly different faces. Garmisch is the more modern, lively & commercial side of the ledger. The Partenkirchen side of town is the opposite, having retained much of its traditional architecture & charm, it provides the most pleasant accommodation location. The Partenkirchen old town has a lovely ambiance worthy of the best Austrian or Swiss mountain towns, particularly at night.
Search & book here for all Garmisch-Partenkirchen ski accommodation.
Closer to the Zugspitze ski area is the quiet village of Grainau, 4km east of the Zugspitze cable car base at Eibsee. The village is split into Untergrainau & Obergrainau. A train station on the Garmisch-Zugspitze rail line is in Obergrainau.
Ski Rentals, Lessons & Guiding
Ski rentals are available via our local partner in the centre of the village & at the mountain station in Zugspitze ski area. Receive a discount when you search & book via our Garmisch Ski & Snowboard Rental page.
Anyone wanting ski or snowboard lessons, or mountain guiding services can search, compare & book with our local partners via our Garmisch Ski Lessons & Guiding page.
Review
The Powderhounds visited Garmisch Classic in 2019 & found it to be a wonderful town & the perfect place to find one’s ski legs before heading into Austria. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read all the reviews.
See how Garmisch-Classic compares to the rest of the European ski resorts on the Europe ski resort ratings page.
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