Skiing & Snowboarding Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschoenau

Boasting over 113 km of marked skiing trails & routes Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau stretches across two valleys all connected by gondolas, chairlifts & ski bus. With a total skiable vertical of 1,200m (and an actual skiable vertical of 1,070m), the resort is typically Austrian, with modern and perfectly integrated lifts & infrastructure, plus an even spread of terrain in fabulous alpine, forest and rural surrounds. The skiing & snowboarding experience at Ski Juwel can be as good as anywhere in the Alps.

Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau Skiing Highlights

The ski & snowboard highlights at Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau are many & varied. Tick off the following when at the resort.

• On a bluebird powder day head immediately across to the Hornbahn chairlift in Alpbachtal early for delicious fresh turns before the pack arrives.
• Complete a full sightseeing tour of the resort. From Alpbach village, take the bus to the lowest point at the valley station at Reith im Alpbachtal and then link everything up using the buses & gondolas all the way to Niederau. Do it in the opposite direction if staying the Wildschoenau sector of the resort. Remember to return to the top of Schatzberg before lifts close otherwise you may end up in the wrong valley for the night!
• During a cold winter storm, ski the 250m of vertical from the Galtenberg surface tow (or from the ‘mid’-station on the gondola above Inneralpbach. Alpine meadows, light forest, hay barns & fences provide a near perfect Austrian powder day ski experience within sight of the car park (assuming the viz is that good!).
• For great sidecountry turns from the top of the Gipfelbahn chair, head south along the ridge up to the minor summit of Hahnkopf (1,902m) & drop into the western side following the 850m vertical of terrain all the way through alpine, forest & rural landscapes down to Inneralpbach. Alternatively, once the resort is tracked, climb the Wiedersberger Horn (2,128m) from the top of Hornbahn chair and ski the bowl and ridges into forest, before exiting on snow-covered summer roads back into the resort at the bottom of piste41a, just above the Wiedersbergerhorn gondola mid-station.
• If conditions allow (i.e. snow is to low elevations), study a good topographical map and work out all the lift accessed off-piste freeride options in the region. A good example is from the mid-station of the Verbindung gondola (heading up to Wildschönau from Inneralpbach) and then skiing down and across to Alpbach village.
• If the weather is poor, snow level is to low elevations & visibility is lacking, check out the Niederau sector of Ski Juwel where the tree lined runs provide a little more shelter, but note its runs are best for more advanced riders. Hell, check it out even if the weather is good as it has the resort’s most challenging pistes!
• Challenge yourself to ski all the top to bottom valley runs without stopping. There are at least eight to try (plus a variations). In Alpbachtal there are three (including one route to Inneralpbach that tends to be groomed), Wildschoenau has two (including a route to Thierbach village – often groomed!) and Niederau has three or four depending on how they are linked (including two routes – often bumped!).
• Don’t forget to try out the sledding trails at Niederau and Auffach. This is an essential part of any Austrian ski holiday – you will love it.

The Ski Juwel skiing & snowboarding terrain is generally east-facing (with the exception of Niederau & the backside of Gmahkopf), so skiing with the sunrise can be absolutely glorious. Terrain is split between 4 sectors, of which two are lift interlinked to form the main ski area, the other 2 are accessible via the free local ski bus. The main two sectors comprise the bulk of the ski resort. Spanning from between the Wildschönau village of Auffach (875m), up over the Schatzberg (1,900m), down to the Alpbachtal village of Inneralpbach (1,050m), back up to Gmahkopf (1,900m) (& to the highest lifted point at Hornalm, 2,032m), then finally down to the Wiedersbergerhorn gondola valley station at 830m altitude. Two smaller sectors flank either end. To the east, the Niederau sector has steep, shaded north-aspect terrain above the village (828m), rising up to 1521m at the highest lifted point. To the west of the main ski area, Rieth im Alpbachtal (703m) has a simple north-aspect, local ski hill with an impressive skiable vertical of around 600m.

An undoubted highlight for most visitors will be the long valley trails at Ski Juwel, ranging in length from 5 to 7km, they provide a leg muscle quivering option for every ability. Whilst all rated intermediate the easiest of them is probably the 7km, 1,025m vertical jaunt down to Auffach from Schatzberg. The most difficult is the descent down to the valley station of the Wiedersbergbahn. A fast 5km, 1,070m vertical drop, it will definitely get the heart pumping. The third major trail is the wide meandering piste 47 into Inneralpbach. Its 5km+ length and 850m vertical is quite popular and carries a lot of skier traffic on any given day. It is possibly the busiest trail in the resort.

Ski Lifts

The lifts at Ski Juwel are as diverse as one could expect at a large resort. Numbering forty-six in total (or 45 depending on how you count!), all the main access points are served by gondolas allowing an easy start to the day for skiers, boarders & pedestrians alike. Chairlifts serve the main skiable alpine sectors. Surface conveyors & tows tend to be in novice learn to ski areas.

The already thoroughly modern set of ski lifts was improved recently with the replacement of the Hornbahn 2000 with a new high-speed, hooded 6-seater chair. The name of the lift hasn’t changed, but the comfort on the lift certainly has.

Trail Maps

Check out the ski trail map for an overview of the Ski Juwel's extensive lifts & terrain.

Ski Juwel Trail Map

Lift Passes

Lift tickets at Ski Juwel are still in the realms of the reasonable affordability. With the season running from early December to early April, lift passes are cheaper from season start to just before Christmas, and again from mid-March to season end.