Apres Ski in Schladming
The Town of Schladming
Schladming is a small, historic mining town, dating back to the early 14th century in the heart of the Schladming-Dachstein-Tauern-Region in Styria.
The attractive town centre, with its tempting tea rooms, is close to Salzburg and day excursions to Salzburg can be easily arranged. Six hundred years ago, then a walled town, Schladming was known principally for its rich silver, lead, and copper ore deposits. It was rebuilt around 1525 after a revolt by miners and peasants when most buildings were burned to the ground. This led to an inevitable decline in the mining industry.
Schladming is also linked with two of Austria’s greatest skiing icons. The legendary Franz Klammer won the first of his 25 World Cup downhill victories on the difficult Planai course in 1973. More than a quarter of a century later, Hermann Maier, started his extraordinary come-back to top-flight racing in Schladming after almost losing a leg in a road accident in 2001.
Over the years many of the Austrian ski team have attended Schladming’s celebrated Handelsschule ski academy. It was also once the haunt of the young Arnold Schwarzenegger, born nearby in Graz.
Apres-Ski in Schladming
Schladming’s nightlife is lively but rarely too rowdy. Opposite the Planai gondola, Charly’s Treff also known as the Planaistub’n is complete with photographs of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Loud music announces the usual party atmosphere at Onkel Willi’s – once amusingly described in the Guardian as “a goldmine disguised as a ski emporium…inside, you can’t breathe; outside, you can’t hear”.
Later, revellers move on to establishments like The Pub, La Porta, close to the old town gateway, and the Hanglbar (ten-pin bowling in the basement, with lanes hand carved into the rock).
The Sonderbar disco, beneath the Hotel Rössl, is well attended by late-night party-goers and offers a choice of three bars, which tend to be busy.
Restaurants in Schladming
Schladming offers a good selection of restaurants – more than 40 all told – with everything from fine dining at the Hotel Post to Giovanni’s universally acclaimed pizzas.
The Talbachschenke, a converted wine cellar offers traditional Austrian Grill cuisine. The Dorf Stockl, in the centre of Rohrmoos is a mountain restaurant with a celebrated a la carte menu in the evenings. In the basement, you’ll find the Knappenkellar – a restaurant-cum-disco-cum night-club.
One of the most popular haunts is Erlebniswelt (Adventure World) at Rohrmoos, with its Knappenkellerdiscotheque, Pfitschigogerl bar and Dorfstöckl restaurant. If you want to make yourself heard (a rarity during après ski), try the Talbachschenke.
Other agreeable places to meet for a drink include The Pub and The Beisl, just off the main square. There are two other discos in the vicinity: the Sport Alm in Ramsau and the Erlebniswelt in Rohrmoos.
The Siglu Bar has a daily Jägermeister competition, with live music on Mondays, and Thursdays, hits from the 1980s and 90s on Tuesdays, “pay for one drink, get two” from midnight on Wednesdays, Ladies Night on Fridays and cheap drinks on Saturdays. Austropop 4 Ever is the Sunday night ‘attraction’.
The Szenario, which specialises in freshly baked baguettes has a grill evening on Thursdays and a “pop-song” evening to celebrate the “best of 50 years of music history”. It warns guests: “You may overstay and still be here at sunrise!”
The X-Small bar has music, cocktails and “some of the best Austrian wines” to wash down pizzas and baguettes and the Café Niederl in the middle of the town square serves delicious cakes.
Other Activities in Schladming
The Schladming-Dachstein region offers plenty of activities for non-skiers. Besides a range of other sports (winter and summer) many of the hotels have Wellness Spa facilities and Salzburg – Mozart’s birthplace – is a worthwhile excursion.
Schladming has an exceptional toboggan run (floodlit at night), from the top of the Hochwurzen (1,850m) down a spectacular 7km run into the valley, and there are almost 306km (190 miles) of cross-country trails in the region and 30km (19 miles) of winter walking paths. There’s night skiing too. Other alternatives to skiing include snow-shoeing, skating, curling, hot-air ballooning, paragliding and sleigh rides, usually combined with a restaurant visit.
The local swimming complex features an all-year-round heated outdoor pool with a slide fountain and a wave machine. The indoor sports centre at the 4-star Sporthotel Royer includes a large pool, bowling alley, table tennis, indoor tennis, squash, a shooting range, a sauna, a solarium, and a massage and beauty parlour.
Day trip excursions to Salzburg can be arranged.