St Anton Ski Resort Guide
Located in the Arlberg region, St Anton is part of the biggest connected ski areas in Austria and is consistently voted one of the best ski resorts in Europe. It is an attractive and lively town which bustles with skiers and snowboarders during the winter months.
Originally a small farming village, St Anton was early to adopt alpine skiing as a professional sport. The first organised ski club was first founded in St Anton back in 1901. The area was also the birthplace of Hannes Schneider – credited as the father of modern skiing. For over 100 years the popularity of skiing and St Anton have grown together and in 2001 the resort hosted the World Alpine Ski Championships in recognition of its pioneering attitude towards the sport.
These days St Anton is known throughout Europe as much for its hard-partying apres as its incredible off-piste ski area and excellent snowfall record. The daily afternoon parties start straight after the skiing has finished in the Moosewirt & Krazy Kanguruh bars – and end whenever you run out of energy (or money). Traditional Austrian music, beer & hospitality collide to make it one of the most memorable experiences of any St Anton holiday.
St Anton is a large resort town which spreads out along the valley it sits in. Some complain of feeling squeezed in along the foot of the mountains, but several high-speed lifts give easy access to the higher slopes from almost any point in resort. Stylish hotels and chalets can be found throughout the resort but everything tends to increase in price closer to the vicinity of the rowdy town centre. St Anton can be very expensive if you choose to stay on or around the main cobbled street – but the outlying areas of Nasserein and Oberdorf provide slightly cheaper and slightly more tranquil accommodation.
For more relaxing activities outside of skiing & snowboarding, St Anton has a wellness centre with both indoor and outdoor swimming pools plus steam rooms, saunas and a gym. There is also a climbing centre, tobogganing area and bowling alley near the main town centre.
If you’re looking for a hard-partying resort where drinking and dancing are just as important as the skiing then St Anton is definitely somewhere to consider – as long as both your wallet and your liver can take it.
Skiing in St Anton
Aside from the legendary nightlife found in the town centre of St Anton – this Austrian resort boasts challenging ski slopes, an impressive array of off-piste areas, and a huge connected system of pistes. Add to that the fact that it consistently has one of Europe’s best snowfall records – and you can see why it is worth getting a good nights sleep at least a few times during the week.
St Anton is part of the extensive Arlberg ski area with links St Christoph, Stuben, Lech and Zurs resorts. This relatively new combination provides 340km of slopes, plus nearly 200km of designated off-piste trails. All this is connected by 94 modern and highly efficient ski lifts which keep people moving at a steady pace throughout the area.
The pistes in St Anton and the Arlberg region are renowned for being challenging, and advanced skiers and snowboarders will definitely feel the best catered for. While the steep slope faces do favour those with more experience (or bravery) there are still a number of blue pistes for those who wish to improve their technique. Beginners may feel slightly hard-done by but there are gentle pistes to be found off the Gampen and Galzig peaks.
St Anton and the surrounding ski area offer miles and miles of pistes to explore for holidaymakers. There is a wide variety of terrain for all levels to be found within the Arlberg – but experienced skiers & snowboarders wanting fast, steep slopes and challenging freeriding will definitely take the most enjoyment from a week skiing St Anton.
