Ski Holidays in St Anton, Austria

• Snow Conditions in St Anton Austria +

  Snow report issued:	27th Mar 12
  Last snowed:	19th Mar 12
  Fresh snow depth:	3cm
  Depth at resort:	120cm
  Mountain depth:	360cm
  Piste state:
  Good (The best conditions can be found on the upper slopes)
  Weather report:
  Another glorious day
  Temperature:	4°C
  Open lifts:	80 of 84

  View St Anton snow history

• St Anton Resort Statistics+

  Slope Direction	N S E W
  Very Easy Runs	0
  Easy Runs	0
  Medium Runs	0
  Difficult Runs	0
  Toughest Run Name	Valluga - St Anton
  Skiable Vertical	1507m
  Number Of Lifts	85
  Top Lift Height	2811m
  Night Skiing	N
  Snowboarding Parks	1
  Half Pipes	0
  Swimming Pools	2
  Night Clubs	14
  Mountain Restaurants	12

• St Anton Piste Map+

  

• St Anton Transfer Times+

  Munich:	3 hours
  Friedrichshafen:	2 hours

One of the legendary resorts in ski history, St Anton offers spectacular skiing from a vibrant resort base. Unlike some of the other pioneers it remains as important today as a century ago. Located in the northern Austrian Arlberg region, the terrain surrounding it is vast, with more than 270km (170 miles) of marked ski runs shared between St Anton and its equally well known neighbour, Lech. Although there is no official link between the two by ski lift or piste, it's possible for good skiers to make the crossing with a guide.

St Anton has a long and extremely illustrious history in competitive skiing. The first ski club in the Alps was founded here in 1901 and the 'Arlberg technique' of downhill skiing was pioneered in the area, becoming the main way to ski at the time. Its chief practitioner, Hannes Schneider, taught the technique all over the world, effectively starting downhill skiing in Japan (where today there are 600 ski resorts) and in New Hampshire, USA, where he later settled in the ski resort of Cranmore to escape Nazi persecution after he refused to join their army.

St Anton has been a major force in ski racing over the past century, most recently staging the Alpine World Championships in 2001. Its status means that it has something of a hedonistic reputation on the slopes and in the après ski as it attracts the most daring skiers. At the same time because, like St Moritz, Lech, Courchevel, Cortina or Aspen, its significance in world skiing is so big and so long established, it has something of a cosmopolitan air.

• Skiing for Beginners+

  Because of its strong reputation with advanced skiers and snowboarders, St Anton is not usually the first place you would think to go to learn to ski. But people have learned to ski here for over a century, so on the other hand it would be nice to think you were learning on the same slopes as countless ski racers from decades past. There are perfectly good nursery slopes just above the village and, even though you may be a novice on the slopes, you could rapidly become an expert in the après ski scene. We can offer all inclusive learn to ski packages which offer better value (and reduced hassle) compared to buying rentals, lift ticket and tuition separately in resort.

• Intermediate Skiing+

  With more than 100 runs for intermediates, it can't get much better than St Anton. The Valluga area has some of the longest fast cruising pistes, up to 10km (six miles) long. The Galzig - with its spectacular 'ferris wheel' gondola lift offers a big choice of blues and reds as does the Gampen area. If you need to extend the choice still further hop on a bus over to Lech for much more terrain, all included on your Arlberg lift ticket.

• Advanced+

  One of the best ski resorts in the world for advanced skiers, in addition to the 30 black runs in the Arlberg, there are 200km (125 miles) of off piste trails left ungroomed. That's before the guides take you to terrain that is even off the off piste routes. The runs from the top of Valluga are particularly intimidating and you'll find steep mogul fields, chutes and gullies all over the mountain. The Arlberg ski school runs a range of courses to provide experience of different powder snow conditions to different abilities of skier.

• Snowboarding at St Anton+

  A freeriding Mecca, the Arlberg offers the kind of powder fields that boarding was born for. St Anton therefore has a reputation for offering some of the world's best natural terrain for boarding. There is a snow park for freestylers too, although unlike in most resorts this is the lesser attraction for most.

• Other Activities And Facilities at St Anton+

  The large Arlberg-well.com leisure complex has great swimming and spa facilities. The village also has bowling, indoor tennis as well as squash courts, ice skating and a good selection of shops and fashion boutiques lining the main street.
  
  If you can't bear to go indoors you'll find about 40km of cross country skiing trails, 70km (44 miles) of cleared winter hiking paths and a four kilometre (two and a half mile) long toboggan run. You can also take a sleigh ride.

• Apres Ski And Dining Out+

  St Anton is big on après ski with a choice of coffee and cakes when the lifts close or straight to beer and dancing on the table at one of the infamous après ski bars such as the Krazy Kangeruh or Mooserwirt.
  
  There is also a more sophisticated scene one step back from the loud bars, particularly evident in the culinary excellence which many of the restaurants strive for - some of them rewarded with recognition such as the highly sought after 'chef's hat' offered by the Gault Millau gourmet guide. There are more basic establishments in the list of 60 or so choices however, including several good pizzerias.

• Ski Holidays in St Anton suitable for Families+

  St Anton's Kinderheim nursery accepts children that are potty trained and aged two-and-a-half plus in their non-ski facility right next to the lifts. Children from three years old can take classes with especially trained instructors who are experts at making their days on the slope safe and fun for children. Their week in ski school is likely to include a number of 'themed' days including the excellent, "crazy faces day." A special 'Snowman' ski pass is available to children aged up to about eight (the pass is based on the year of birth of the child rather than precise age). This costs a flat rate of 10 Euros (at time of writing) regardless of the number of days on the slopes.