Kitzbuhel

For ski affectionados Kitzbuhel is the most famous name in the racing calender, with the Hahnenkamm downhill (more correctly known as The Streif) a must see weekend in the World cup racing schedule. This is the most challenging of all the races and to ski this downhill requires pretty "Grande Cojones".

Kitzbuhel is a pretty traffic free medieval town with cobbled streets, quaint church and attractive buildings it is definitely one of the prettiest resorts in Austria and a big favourite of Snowfinders. The town has a really lively atmosphere apres ski time and some of the best fun bars in Austria.

With the recent addition of the 3S cross valley gondola the area has been opened up to include the areas of Jochberg and Pass Thurn. With the whole lift system being gradually brought up to date Kitzbuhel is proving increasingly popular for those seeking a more traditional ski resort. The one problem with Kitzbuhel is the village altitude of 760 metres which means in poor snow years the village is sometimes lacking in natural snow.  

For beginners there are free lifts at the nursery slopes of the Hahnenkamm and some good blues to progress onto.

Intermediates will find a range of great terrain and you can even do the World cup downhill if you visit after the event, it is narrow tricky and steep, quite how anyone can do this at 80mph is beyond us!

Experts will find some seriously steep pitches in the Steinbergkogel – Ehrenbachgraben area as well as some great off piste.  

The Kitzbuhel area is well know for its excellent mountain restaurants, these are many and compared to France offer great value for money.