Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau
Two Tyrolean Valleys on One Pass · One of Austria's Prettiest Villages · Mid-Altitude Tree Skiing
A friendly Tyrolean area that joins two side valleys — the Alpbachtal and the Wildschönau — into one domain of around 114 km on a single pass, reached in under an hour from Innsbruck.
- 114 km Piste marketed
- 22 Lifts
- 820 m Base
- 2,026 m Summit
- 1,206 m Vertical
- 37 Pistes mapped
🎟 One pass: Ski Juwel lift pass covers every lift across the area.
Terrain & aspect
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced
Slopes mostly face NE — 74% on snow-holding, poleward-facing slopes.
Aspect derived from run bearings · OpenSkiStats / © OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
The area
Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau links two neighbouring Tyrolean valleys that sit either side of a wooded ridge above the Inn valley, an hour or less up from Innsbruck. On the Alpbachtal side the main skiing rises on the Wiedersbergerhorn above Alpbach, with a smaller sunny area on the Reither Kogel above Reith; on the Wildschönau side it climbs the Schatzberg above Auffach and the Markbachjoch above Niederau. Since 2012 a gondola over the ridge has stitched the two together, so the whole thing skis as one domain — the marketed figure is around 114 km of piste on a single lift pass, served by 45 lifts. It's a mid-altitude area, running roughly between 830 m and just over 2,000 m, which means a lot of the skiing is on or below the tree line rather than up on open glacier snow. Where you base changes the trip more than usual here, because the two valleys are linked on skis but a fair drive apart by road. What holds it together is scale and character: enough terrain to fill a week, wrapped around some of the prettiest villages in the Tyrol.
The combination of a genuinely good-looking village and a properly sized, gentle area. Alpbach is often called one of Austria's prettiest — a strict building code has kept it to timber-clad chalets rather than concrete — and having 114 km of mostly cruising piste on the doorstep, all on one pass, is a lot for a place this quiet and this easy to reach. It's an intermediate and family area first, honest about being mid-altitude rather than snow-sure, but for a relaxed week without the crowds or prices of the big-name resorts it's hard to fault.
Two valleys, one pass, and a lot of forest. Much of the skiing sits on or below the tree line, so it shelters well and holds its shape when the weather comes in — the runs thread down through woods to the village bases rather than dropping off an open bowl. It skis as an intermediate's area above all, wide reds and long blues off the Wiedersbergerhorn and the Schatzberg, with plenty of gentle ground for beginners and families. The top stations touch just above 2,000 m, so this is cruising and scenery country more than high-alpine steeps.
Best known for
Explore the villages
The pass is the same everywhere — the village you base in shapes the holiday more than the valley you ski. 4 base villages, one lift pass.
Alpbach
1,000 mVillage looks and a quiet, traditional base
A timber-clad village at around 1000 m, often named among Austria's prettiest — a strict building code has kept it to traditional chalets rather than concrete. It sits a little above the valley floor, quiet and charming, with a gondola up to the main Wiedersbergerhorn skiing.
Explore the village →Auffach (Wildschönau)
870 mDirect access to the Schatzberg and the long descent
The last village up the Wildschönau at around 870 m, at the foot of the Schatzberg gondola. It puts you nearest the area's highest terrain and the long 7 km run back to the valley, and it's the natural base for skiing the Wildschönau side.
Explore the village →Reith im Alpbachtal
640 mEasy arrival, value and gentle local skiing
The lowest base at around 640 m, down near the mouth of the Alpbachtal close to the main valley road and railway. Handy for arriving and generally better value, with its own gentle, sunny Reither Kogel area for beginners — but the first place to feel a warm spell.
Explore the village →Niederau
830 mA bit more evening life and a straightforward family week
The main village at the entrance to the Wildschönau at around 830 m, with the Markbachjoch skiing above it and a long history as a package base. The liveliest of the four in the evenings, though still a calm, family-oriented place rather than a party town.
Explore the village →- Alpbach The prettiest base — traditional chalets and quiet charm, with a gondola up to the main skiing.
- Auffach (Wildschönau) At the foot of the Schatzberg gondola, closest to the highest terrain and the long valley run.
- Reith im Alpbachtal The lowest and most convenient base for road and rail, with a gentle local area for families.
- Niederau The liveliest evenings and a straightforward family week at the mouth of the Wildschönau.
Alpbach for looks and atmosphere — the prettiest base, though the village sits a little above the valley floor and you ride a gondola up to the main skiing. Auffach in the Wildschönau puts you at the foot of the Schatzberg gondola with the biggest lift on your doorstep and the area's highest terrain. Reith is the lowest and most convenient for arriving by road or rail, handy and cheaper but the first to lose snow low down. Niederau suits anyone who wants a bit more evening life and a straightforward family week. Remember the two valleys are linked on skis but a drive apart, so pick the side you want to be based in.
Skiing, by level
A good place to learn. Both valleys have gentle nursery areas and easy blues near the village lifts, the Reither Kogel above Reith is a quiet, sunny spot for finding your feet, and the general lack of crowds keeps the learning slopes calm.
The core of the area. Long blues and wide reds run all over both the Wiedersbergerhorn and the Schatzberg, and the linked pass gives a confident intermediate enough variety to keep moving between the valleys all week without repeating much.
Enough to enjoy without being the reason you'd come. There are black pitches on the Wiedersbergerhorn and off the Schatzberg, and some steeper descents through the trees, but the area leans cruising and rarely holds you for long on the truly steep.
Not a steeps destination, and it doesn't pretend to be. After a fresh fall there are tree lines and off-piste pockets to be found on both sides, best with a guide and the right kit, but committed experts will read this as an area for a mixed group rather than a hard week's project.
Cross the ridge between the valleys
The link that makes it one area: ride up out of the Alpbachtal, cross the gondola over the ridge that has joined the two valleys since 2012, and ski down the far side into the Wildschönau — then work your way back the same way before the last lifts. It turns two decent local areas into a proper day out, and it's the thing to do at least once to understand how the domain hangs together.
The long run off the Schatzberg
From the top of the Schatzberg above Auffach, the descent back to the valley floor runs around 7 km — a long, mostly cruising drop through the trees rather than a steep test. It's the kind of run you can take at your own pace and repeat, and on the Wildschönau side it's the signature outing of the area.
A slow morning in Alpbach village
Alpbach is worth treating as part of the trip, not just a lift base. The timber-clad houses and the strict building code that keeps them that way have earned it a name as one of Austria's prettiest villages, and a wander through it — before or after a gentle session on the Wiedersbergerhorn — is a reminder that not every ski week has to be all vertical.
Snow & how the mountain faces
Honest about being mid-altitude. With a base around 830 m and top lifts only just over 2,000 m, the area depends on cold weather and a good snowmaking network rather than sheer height, and a warm spell can thin the lower runs back to the villages — Reith, down in the main valley, is the first to feel it. In a cold winter the tree-lined pistes ski well and the Schatzberg and Wiedersbergerhorn hold snow into spring; in a warm one you lean on the upper slopes and the machines. Most of the domain is covered by snowmaking, which is what keeps it dependable in the core of the season.
On the map
The area and its base villages on the live map — pan and zoom to explore. The official piste maps are one tap away beneath it.
Legend
Run difficulty
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced / Expert
- Freeride / Extreme
- Unknown
Run types
- Downhill — groomed
- Downhill — ungroomed
- Downhill — gladed
- Nordic (groomed)
- Ski tour
- ☾Lit (night)
- △Not patrolled
- →One-way
- ❄Snowmaking
Lifts
- Operating
- Operating (private)
- Non-operating
- Lift station
Slope-gradient grading
Downhill / ski tour
- Flat<3°
- Easy3–14°
- Intermediate14–22°
- Advanced / Expert22–45°
- Freeride / Extreme>45°
Nordic
- Easy<6°
- Intermediate6–9°
- Advanced>9°
Aspect (sun exposure)
- N — least sun
- E — morning
- S — most sun
- W — afternoon
Legend after OpenSkiMap
How to get there
Innsbruck (INN) is the natural gateway, ~approx 45 minutes to an hour down the Inn valley motorway. Salzburg (SZG) is a further option at ~approx 1.5 hours, and Munich (MUC) at ~approx 2 hours.
The Inn valley mainline runs along the foot of both side valleys; Brixlegg is the closest station for the Alpbachtal and Wörgl for the Wildschönau, with local buses up into the valleys from there.
Each valley climbs on its own road off the Inn valley, and the two bases are a drive apart even though the skiing links over the ridge. Ski buses run up and down each valley, so a car is useful rather than essential — most helpful if you want to sample both sides off the snow.
Best time to go
January and early February for the coldest, most reliable snow on the tree-lined runs down to the villages. Later in February and into March the days lengthen and the upper slopes still ski well, though the low bases soften in the afternoon sun. Austrian and UK half-term weeks are the busiest; a non-holiday week in January is the quiet, better-value sweet spot in an area that rarely feels crowded anyway.
- Season opensEarly-to-mid December, snow-dependent
- Season closesMid-April, earlier on the lowest runs
- Full lift coveragemid-December to early April
- Peak weeksChristmas / New Year and February half-terms
- Best snowJanuary into early February
Good to know
Can you really ski between the two valleys?
Is the snow reliable here?
Which base should a family choose?
Nearby resorts & areas
Other resorts within reach if you're combining trips or comparing.
Faces north © Bogdan Rîpă / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0) KitzSki
- Vertical
- 1230 m
- Pistes (mapped)
- 88
- Lifts
- 63
Getting to Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau
Book an airport transfer up to the resort, or pick up a car at Innsbruck (INN) — search and compare without leaving the page.
Ski data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via OpenSkiMap & Skimap.org. Basemap © OpenFreeMap / OpenMapTiles. · Weather data © Open-Meteo.com (CC-BY 4.0), ERA5 reanalysis. Village grouping & editorial: mynext.holiday. Transfers via Kiwitaxi; car hire via Travelpayouts.