Stubaital
Ski Resort

The Stubai Valley offers traditional Tirolean mountain holidays and excellent glacier skiing within easy reach of Innsbruck and Innsbruck Airport. You can therefore stay either in the valley or in the picturesque old town of Innsbruck itself and commute to the skiing: there is a tram service to Fulpmes and buses to the individual ski areas. But there is nothing suburban about Stubaital’s magnificent alpine scenery, with 80 glaciers and over 100 peaks above 3000m, topped by the Zuckerhütl peak at over 3500m.

The Stubai Glacier is open for skiing most of the year and is frequently named the best glacier ski area in the world. It’s certainly Austria’s largest, and probably the biggest in the world, with about 25 lifts (10 of which rise above 3000m) and 30 runs. In winter all the skiing, including even the home runs back to the car parks and valley-level lift at Mutterberg, is above 1695m, and most of it is above 2600m and north-east facing, so snow quality is excellent, although the cold can be a problem. There is skiing for all standards: absolute beginners have good, high-mountain nursery slopes at Gamsgarten (2620m); improving novices and less confident intermediates have about 10 easy blue slopes that cover most of the ski area including descents from the 3210m Schaufelspitze or “Top of Tyrol”; while intermediates and above can choose between a handful of pisted red runs, a solitary black and about 10 official ski routes which are usually left ungroomed. Keen off-piste skiers, freeriders and ski tourers can use the high lifts as starting points for even longer itineraries with a guide. There are long ski routes back to the two base stations at Mutterberg, although beginners and less confident intermediates will have to return in the lift because there is no easy way down.

Schlick 2000 is the ski area above Fulpmes, the main ski resort in the valley. This has skiing above and below the treeline, from 1000m to 2240m. Although there are fewer than 10 numbered pistes, they each have several variants and there is a good mixture of nursery slopes, blue pistes, red pistes, black pistes, an official ski route and some very unofficial off-piste for which you will need a guide.

The other Stubaital ski areas, at Serles above Mieders, and Elfer above Neustift, have few pistes for skiers but excellent tobogganing runs, winter walking paths and snowshoe trails, excellent cross-country skiing trails throughout the valley and several ice skating rinks. This reflects the view that downhill alpine skiing is just one of several activities you try on a winter holiday here.

All ski lifts in Stubaital are included in the Stubai Super Ski Pass and there are ski schools and guides based in all the main villages.

Staying in Stubaital

Stubaital offers good accommodation in hotels and guest houses in three main villages – Meiders, Fulpmes and Neustift – or in tiny hamlets such as Ranalt, Falbeson, Volderau, Krossbach and Gasteig – closer to the glacier. The Alpensporthotel at Mutterburg is also within walking distance of the glacier base station. The free Stubai Valley bus service connects villages, hamlets and lift stations. There is not much nightlife because the accommodation is quite scattered, and what there is, is mostly in Neustift and Fulpmes. An alternative option is to stay in Innsbruck and commute daily to Stubaital and other ski resorts using the free ski-but service from Innsbruck.

Recommended Hotels in Stubaital

Alpensporthotel, Mutterberg
Relais & Chateau Hotel Jagdhof
Alpenhotel Kindl Neustift
Alpeiner Nature Resort Tirol Neustift
Happy Stubai Hotel Neustift
Sporthotel Neustift
Vitalhotel Edelweiss Neustift
Schönherr Haus Neustift
Hotel Forster Neustift
Hotel Angelika Neustift
Hotel Erika Neustift
Hotel Waldhof Fulpmes
Hotel Montana Telfes

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Stubaital Strengths (+) & Weaknesses (-)   

+ Good skiing for all abilities
+ Snowsure glacier skiing
+ Wide choice of quality accommodation
+ Good transport infrastructure
+ Easy to get to
+ Good facilities for families and beginners