Austria had a great winter, with an unforgettable stint of record-breaking snowfall in January. Now, several months later and well past the date when most ski resorts have already closed for the summer, it's still a fully fledged winter wonderland in Austria! Over the past two weeks temperatures have been consistently cold and it's been snowing all the way down in the valleys. And although sadly most ski resorts will remain closed until the winter 2019-20 ski season, two Austrian resorts, Hochkar and Dachstein West, couldn't resist from re-opening for a sneaky ski weekend.
Most of us stopped watching the snow reports weeks ago. Who expects that much snow in the late spring? After Easter, which saw some late-season skiers take to the hills, most of the ski resorts started posting pictures of cows and flowers, instead of freshly groomed pistes. But in some parts of the Alps, the snow line dropped to altitudes as low as 400m above sea level, with regular snowfall even in the valleys. Word on the street in Austria was that it was the coldest month of May the country had experienced in 40 years.
Both Hochkar and Dachstein West have been closed for skiing since April. But there is more than enough snow for skiing on the slopes of both resorts, and good-quality snow at that! This has spurred the Austrian ski areas to re-open their slopes just for the weekend of May 18 and 19, to allow skiers and snowboarders to get one more taste of winter before the summer.
Hochkar is a ski area with around 20km of pistes located in Lower Austria. The ski area has slopes up to a maximum altitude of 1800m above sea level. At this height you can enjoy fantastic panoramic views. Overall, the ski resort is a good destination for those looking for a tranquil, relaxing holiday with beautiful nature. This weekend, in honour of the excellent snow cover, Hochkar will be offering skiing on Saturday and Sunday... and the lift pass is 100% free!
Skiregion Dachstein-West lies on the border between Salzburg and Lower Austria. During the winter ski season, this Austrian ski area boasts 140km of pistes, with slopes up to an altitude of 1700m above sea level. Dachstein West has also experienced heavy snowfall in recent weeks, and has announced it will open the 4-person Törleck chairlift and surrounding pistes from 9am to 3pm this Saturday and Sunday. Like at Hochkar, skiing will be totally free.
Insane amounts of snow in Dachstein-West!
Born and raised in the ski paradise of Vancouver, Canada, I learned to ski before I can remember, balancing precariously on my parents’ skis as they sailed down the hill. I started snowboarding in my teens and am now delighted to be exploring everything Europe’s ski scene has to offer!
