The party capital of the winter, Ischgl ski resort in Austria's Eastern Alps is THE place for an all-action experience both on and off the slopes, with the liveliest apres-ski scene once you've finished revelling in the great skiing, much of it on high altitude, snowsure, north-facing terrain.
Overview
High, snow-sure slopes, an excellent lift system and the best party scene in the Alps make the Austrian resort of Ischgl a great choice for a full-on ski holiday.The skiing here is excellent, but Ishgl prides itself as much on its parties as its pistes. The infamous Hotel Elisabeth with its booming Euro-pop and dirndl-clad dancing girls sums the resort up - it sits at the bottom of a long, steep red run that combined with the banging atmosphere inside the hotel will have you drinking far more beers than you intended.
Ski area
Ischgl's huge high ski area is the largest in the Eastern Alps, and provides world class and consistently good skiing throughout the season thanks to a mix of altitude and lots of north-facing slopes.Even the nursery slopes are at altitude, ensuring you're learning on good quality snow.
Intermediates will enjoy the Silvretta ski arena which opens up six valleys and the opportunity to ski over the border to Samnaun in Switzerland. The runs include long wide open cruisers of up to 7km in length. There are high alpine bowls and fun runs down through the trees.
Experts have several black runs and some excellent off-piste options, and the Silvretta Ski Pass also includes neighbouring (but not lift-linked) Galtür, Kappl and See, whilst the lift system is one of the best in Europe.
For boarders this is a world class destination, with the brilliant Playstation Vita terrain park providing five kickers, 15 elements on a row and an airbag jump, whilst the groomed and off-piste terrain is also extremely welcoming.
Off the slopes and apres-ski
Ischgl has extensive cross country skiing with 48km (30 miles) of prepared trails including loops for all abilities. There's also a 7km toboggan run and a great sports centre with free entry to the pool for under-sixes and a large pedestrianised area.Ischgl's Guest Kindergarten accepts children as young as babies. The ski kindergarten begins at age 3 and continues to age 5, whilst the Children's Ski School has its own adventure garden with fun terrain and cut-out fun figures for the kids to enjoy.
There are over 30 restaurants to choose from, with Tyrolean dishes naturally being the most common option.
But it's as a party town that Ischgl really excels; the Hotel Elisabeth (above), Niki's Stadl and the booming Trofana Alm are the classic venues for wild apres-ski action, whilst the resort starts and ends the season with huge free parties which have featured artists such as The Killers, Elton John and Kylie Minogue; the season opener is in town, the closing party on the mountain.
