If you love skiing, Austria has some slopes for you. Austria has some of the largest, most scenic ski resorts around, making it the perfect place for a ski vacation. It may be difficult to pronounce most of the names on the following list, but you won't need to pronounce any word but "wow" as you ski down the incredible mountain slopes and hillsides. Here are the five biggest ski resorts in Austria to help you quench your thirst for fresh powder.
Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis
Our list begins with the fifth-biggest ski resort in Austria: Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis. The piste here (a piste is a ski run, usually featuring tightly compacted snow) is an impressive 122 miles, with interactive routes that can be mapped out ahead of time on the resort's website. There are slopes for every skill level here, as well as distinctive zones for competitive skiers and those who prefer to do some freestyling. There are also areas where children can play and learn to ski, making it a great destination for a family trip.
Silvretta Arena Ischgl-Samnaun
Silvretta Arena Ischgl-Samnaun has a piste of 148 miles spread out over the Tyrolean Paznaun and across the border into the Swiss Samnaun. What makes this ski resort unique, though, is that the entire thing is already extremely high up in the mountains: the resort itself is around 870 miles above sea level, with ski lifts that tower over the landscape at more than twice that height. If you love to shop as well as ski, you can go on a shopping spree in more than 50 duty-free stores before heading all the way back down the hills toward home.
Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fierberbrunn
When it joined with the Fieberbrunn ski resort around four years ago, the already hard-to-pronounce-for-non-Austrians Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm became the third largest ski resort in the country. By interconnecting with this other ski area, it now has a piste of nearly 168 miles. Referred to as "the coolest ski resort in the Alps," the Skicircus is home to ski championships, fun slopes, activities for children and multiple cozy winter huts to warm up in after a long day of enjoying the snow.
SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser - Brixental
As you can see from the webcam recordings on its official website, SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser - Brixental is not only big, it is gorgeous. While it comes just short of being the biggest ski resort in Austria, with a piste more than 176 miles long, it is the largest ski area in Tyrol. This place isn't just for master skiers, though. It also has children's areas and smaller snow parks for free-styling skiers, all maintained with a state of the art artificial snow-making system.
Ski Arlberg
The number one biggest ski resort in Austria is Ski Arlberg, which features a piste that is an incredible 189.5 miles long. Billed as the "cradle of alpine skiing" in Austria, this is the largest interconnected skiing area in the country and one of the five biggest skiing areas in the world. There are 189.5 miles of interconnected downhill slopes, 124 miles of deep snow runs and 88 cableways to help you get to each one. There are also ski slopes specially made for beginners, as well as fun parks and other attractions for children, or for skiers who need a break after coming down those monstrous slopes.