Austria · Arlberg, Ötztal & Vorarlberg · Travel guide
What a week in the Silvretta Arena really costs, why you can ski from Ischgl into Switzerland and shop duty-free there, and where in the Paznaun the quiet lives.
Photo: Flo Maderebner / Pexels
Adjust the values to your trip: the calculator updates live (EUR, converted from CHF estimates).
Estimates for orientation, not booking prices. Getting there means train or car from Switzerland, return, per person. Hotels vary strongly by season: current prices are behind the links below.
Money & payment: You pay in euros (EUR). Cards work almost everywhere; mountain huts and sausage stands often want cash. Tipping is expected: 5 to 10 percent, by naming the rounded total when you pay. In ski resorts a visitor tax of EUR 2 to 4 per night is added to the hotel price. Getting there: By train (ÖBB Railjet), car or a flight to Vienna, 2 to 8 hours.
Nine options in three price ranges, each among the best-rated on Booking.com.
Budget
Family-run four-star house in Galtür with half board at prices that buy you a guesthouse in Ischgl. Pool, sauna, ski bus at the door, cross-country trail behind the house. For families and seekers of quiet who visit Ischgl on individual days.
Family-run guesthouse 500 metres from the village centre with a traditional Tyrolean parlour, sauna and hot tub at no extra charge. Simple, well-kept rooms, breakfast included, ski bus to Ischgl nearby. For couples and families on a budget who want their own ski area at the door and Ischgl by bus.
One of the few garni houses in Ischgl, with breakfast and sauna, a few minutes from the valley stations. Rooms plain and clean, prices fair for Ischgl. For skiers who want to stay in the village and can do without half board.
Mid-range
Four-star superior house in the centre with the restaurant Stüva by Benjamin Parth, one of the most decorated chefs in Austria. Rooms in modern alpine style, rooftop spa, Silvrettabahn in three minutes. For connoisseurs who would rather eat than dance in the evening.
Family-run four-star hotel on the village street with half board, pool and sauna, Pardatschgratbahn in five minutes. Rooms with balcony, good value for Ischgl. For couples and groups who want to stay central and solid.
Four-star house on the quiet edge of the village with spa, indoor pool and half board, ski bus at the door and ten minutes on foot to the Fimbabahn. Rooms in Tyrolean style, many regulars. For anyone who wants Ischgl without bar noise outside the window.
Luxury
The five-star superior house of Ischgl with the gourmet restaurant Paznaunerstube, a large spa over several floors and its own après-ski hut. Silvrettabahn opposite. For anyone who wants the maximum in comfort in Ischgl and is prepared to pay for it.
Design hotel with clean architecture, Zen garden and pool, since the 1990s the counterpoint to the Tyrolean timber style. Spa, club in the basement, Pardatschgratbahn in three minutes. For guests who want design and nightlife under one roof.
Five-star house with art in every room, a large spa with outdoor pool and award-winning half board, right at the Pardatschgratbahn. Quieter than the Trofana, elegant rather than rustic. For couples with high expectations of cooking and design.
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239 kilometres of pistes in two countries, day ticket around CHF 72, six-day pass CHF 380 to 410, valid throughout the Paznaun. Group lessons from CHF 70 a day. Book online in advance; the pre-season is 15 per cent cheaper.
Marked ski circuit across the border with 35 kilometres of pistes, descent to Samnaun and return on the Twinliner double-decker cable car. Included in the ski pass, a full-day programme with duty-free shopping at the valley station. Go over in the morning, when the Swiss side is empty.
Three open-air concerts per season on the Idalp at 2,300 metres, end of November, around Easter and early May, with international stars. The ski pass or a lift ticket for around CHF 50 is the entry. Start 1 pm, then an hour's wait at the lift.
Thermal spa from 2022 with indoor and outdoor pool, sauna world, panoramic rooftop ice rink and views of the Pardatschgratbahn. Three hours around CHF 30, cheaper with a ski pass or Silvretta Card. Ideal for a rest day.
Double zip line over two kilometres and three sections from the Silvrettabahn middle station down into the village, up to 85 km/h. Around CHF 40 per person, summer and winter, one hour including queuing. From ten years of age.
22 kilometres of pass road with 34 hairpins from Galtür over the Bielerhöhe into the Montafon, June to October, toll around CHF 20 per car, free with the Silvretta Card. At the top a reservoir, boat and hikes to the Wiesbadener Hütte. Half a day to a full day.
Museum in the avalanche protection wall of Galtür on the 1999 disaster, on life in the high mountains and on Hemingway's winters in the village. Admission around CHF 9, an hour and a half, with climbing wall and café. Good on a snowy day.
Family park on the Dias-Alm above Kappl with play lakes, petting zoo, flying fox and adventure playground, in winter practice slopes for beginners. Lift return around CHF 25, free with the Silvretta Card. Half a day with small children.
From Galtür in two and a half hours along the track to the Jamtalhütte at 2,165 metres below the glaciers of the Silvretta, back the same way or by hut taxi. Free, hut with kitchen and overnight stay from CHF 40 in the dormitory. A ski touring base in winter.
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The Paznaun cooks Tyrolean mountain food with influences from the Walser and the nearby Engadine, and on top of that Ischgl has a density of award-winning chefs you will find nowhere else in a village of this size: Benjamin Parth at the Stüva, Martin Sieberer at the Paznaunerstube. On the huts of the Idalp it is solid and expensive, in the village the range runs from pizza to a twelve-course menu, and in Galtür you are most likely to eat the way the valley has always eaten.
Spicy mountain cheese made from hay milk, produced on the valley's alps in summer and matured for up to two years. As a cheese platter CHF 14 to 18 (about EUR 15 to 19), in the shop CHF 28 to 35 a kilo.
Tip:Every autumn Galtür holds the alpine cheese awards, when you can taste the prize winners directly.
Pressed cheese dumplings of grey cheese and mountain cheese, fried in butter, in soup or with coleslaw. CHF 12 to 16, the most honest meal on the huts.
Tip:In winter you can also reach the Bodenalpe on foot or along the cross-country trail, an hour from Galtür.
Fried potatoes with beef, onions and a fried egg from the pan, with coleslaw. The skier's lunch, CHF 18 to 24 on the Idalp.
Tip:At the Paznauner Thaya take a table from 11.30 am; by 12.30 pm everything is full.
Caramelised torn pancake with stewed plums and icing sugar, in Ischgl often with apple sauce. CHF 13 to 17, one pan for two.
Tip:Order it as a late lunch at 2 pm, when the terrace is empty and the pan is fresh.
The Stüva at the Hotel Yscla and the Paznaunerstube at the Trofana Royal are among the best restaurants in Austria. Menus from CHF 180 to 250 per person without wine; at lunchtime there is no cheaper option.
Tip:Reserve weeks in advance, during the week rather than at the weekend.
Venison and chamois from the valley's hunting grounds, as a ragout with dumplings or as saddle roasted pink, on the menus in autumn and winter. Ragout CHF 22 to 28, saddle CHF 35 to 45.
Tip:Ask about the house hunter; many landlords hunt themselves or know the one who does.
Half-moons of rye dough with spinach and quark, in brown butter with Parmesan and chives. CHF 14 to 18, best home-made.
Tip:You can tell home-made ones by their irregular edges and varying size.
Beer, Jagertee and schnapps from 3 pm in the bars on the valley run, with live DJ and dancing. Beer CHF 7 to 9, Flying Hirsch (Jägermeister with Red Bull) CHF 10.
Tip:Ischgl calmed the bars down after 2020, standing tables instead of dancing on benches, but quiet it is not.
Through markets and eateries with a guide, tastings included.
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The Paznaun runs 40 kilometres south-west from Landeck to the Bielerhöhe and the Silvretta, squeezed between the Verwall and the Samnaun group. It was settled in the Middle Ages by Walser from the Valais, who came over the passes and founded their village in Galtür; until 1500 Galtür belonged ecclesiastically to the Swiss Lower Engadine. For centuries the villages lived from mountain farming and from the mule traffic to Samnaun and the Montafon, and then there were the Swabian children, who every spring crossed the Arlberg to Upper Swabia to work on farms. Ernest Hemingway spent two winters in Galtür in 1925 and 1926 and wrote about them in "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" and in his memoirs. Ski tourism began in Ischgl in 1963 with the Silvrettabahn, and in 1978 the Ischgl lift company linked its area with Swiss Samnaun, which has been a customs-free zone since 1892 because for a long time it could only be reached via Austria. Out of this link grew the Silvretta Arena, one of the largest ski areas in the Alps across two countries. In 1995 Ischgl began the Top of the Mountain concerts at the opening and close of the season; Elton John, Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones and Robbie Williams have played at 2,300 metres in front of tens of thousands. In February 1999 an avalanche in Galtür buried 31 people, after which protective dams were built and the Alpinarium as a museum and memorial. In March 2020 Ischgl became known as one of the first Covid hotspots in Europe, which damaged the resort's image; it has recovered with a new thermal spa, quieter bars and a family programme.
From Zurich the ÖBB Railjet runs direct to Landeck-Zams every two hours, journey time around 2 hours, with a Half Fare Card and a Supersaver ticket CHF 20 to 40 (about EUR 21 to 43) each way. From Landeck the Postbus 4240 takes you to Ischgl in 50 minutes and to Galtür in 70 minutes, fare around CHF 8; in winter extra buses run on Saturdays, but the bus does not wait for late trains. Door to door, allow 3 hours 15 minutes from Zurich. By car you need 2 hours 45 minutes from Zurich via Feldkirch, the Arlberg tunnel (CHF 12 each way, vignette CHF 12 for 10 days) and Landeck, or from the Engadine over the Reschen pass and Pfunds. The third option is typically Swiss: drive to Samnaun (3 hours from Zurich via Landquart and the Vereina tunnel, or via Landeck), stay there and ski over to Ischgl on the ski pass. Samnaun is smaller, quieter and duty-free, but Swiss prices apply to the hotels there too. Once there you do not need a car: Ischgl has three valley stations in the village, the ski bus through the whole valley from See to Galtür is free with a ski pass, and parking in the garages costs CHF 12 to 18 a day. There is no Nightjet from Switzerland, but from Landeck a last bus leaves at 8 pm in the evening; after that the taxi is expensive at CHF 90.
The Silvretta Arena has 239 kilometres of pistes and 45 lifts between 1,400 and 2,872 metres, almost all above the tree line and therefore snow-sure from late November to early May. Three lifts lead up from Ischgl: the Silvrettabahn and the Fimbabahn to the Idalp (2,320 metres), the central hub with restaurants, ski school and concert stage, and the Pardatschgratbahn straight up to 2,624 metres, which gives you the fastest start in the morning. The pistes are wide, almost all red, superbly groomed, and the lifts are so modern that you rarely queue longer than five minutes. From the Idalp you drop over the Viderjoch or the Palinkopf into Switzerland down to Samnaun, a descent of 1,000 vertical metres, and come back up on the Twinliner double-decker cable car. Honestly: the Arena is not well suited to beginners, blue pistes are rare and the runs down to Ischgl are long, narrow and a battle in the afternoon. The Swiss side is sunnier and empty in the morning, because all the Ischgl skiers are still on the Idalp; ski over early and come back in the afternoon. The Smugglers' Circuits are marked tours across both countries with 35 kilometres of pistes, a good structure for the day. Freeriders find wide terrain on the Piz Val Gronda, opened up in 2013, avalanche equipment essential.
Ischgl has hardly any three-star houses; the village consists of four- and five-star hotels with spas. A four-star house with half board costs CHF 300 to 400 (about EUR 321 to 428) for a double room in January, five stars from CHF 600, one of the few guesthouses CHF 150 to 200 with breakfast. Christmas, New Year and the February holidays add 30 to 50 per cent, and in high season it is Saturday to Saturday. On top comes the local tax of around CHF 4 per person per night. Location within the village is secondary, because Ischgl is small and all three valley stations are within ten minutes on foot; more important is whether your room faces the village street or the mountain, because the bars make noise until 2 am. Kappl, eight kilometres down the valley, has its own family-friendly ski area and guesthouses from CHF 100, 15 minutes from Ischgl by ski bus. Galtür, ten kilometres up the valley at 1,600 metres, is the quiet Walser village with hotels from CHF 140 with half board, its own Silvapark ski area and cross-country trails. See at the mouth of the valley is the cheapest place, with a small ski area. Booking: for Ischgl in February and on concert weekends as early as early summer; January and March, two months is enough. Samnaun on the Swiss side offers hotels from CHF 180, often available at shorter notice.
A day ticket for the Silvretta Arena costs around CHF 72 (about EUR 77), the six-day pass CHF 380 to 410, and the pass is automatically valid in both countries. Buying online in advance saves around 5 per cent, the pre-season up to mid-December and from late March about 15 per cent. In return the pass includes quite a lot: ski bus throughout the Paznaun, discounted access to the Silvretta Therme and, on concert weekends, entry to the concert, which is not sold separately. The money saver every Swiss knows: Samnaun is a customs-free zone, so petrol, alcohol, perfume, tobacco and electronics are 20 to 40 per cent cheaper than in Austria and often cheaper than in Switzerland. The duty-free allowance for import into Switzerland is CHF 150 per person per day, with quantity limits for alcohol (5 litres up to 18 per cent, 1 litre above) and tobacco; if you ski over to Samnaun, buy small items such as sun cream and perfume, and fill the car up on the day you drive home, as petrol costs around CHF 1.50 there. Après-ski in Ischgl costs CHF 7 to 9 per beer and, from 10 pm, entry to the clubs. Hut meals on the Idalp cost CHF 18 to 25; self-service is cheaper than the Paznauner Thaya with waiter service. Ski hire CHF 35 to 50 a day, around 15 per cent less online.
Ischgl opens at the end of November with the Top of the Mountain concert on the last weekend of November and closes in early May with the second concert; in between there is often a third around Easter. On those weekends the village is sold out and hotels are 30 to 50 per cent more expensive, but the ski pass doubles as the concert ticket, and standing at 2,300 metres with Robbie Williams or Helene Fischer is an experience. The best time for skiing is mid-January (cold, lots of snow, low prices) and the second half of March to mid-April, when the Idalp has sun from 9 am to 4 pm and the snow up top is still good. February to early March is the busiest and most expensive. Early December is more snow-sure than most places in Tyrol thanks to the altitude. In summer, from late June to mid-September, Ischgl is a different village: quiet, half the price, with the Silvretta Card all inclusive, which most hosts include from one night and which covers lifts, buses, swimming pool, thermal spa and the Silvretta high alpine road. June and October are dead: lifts closed, many hotels shut. The Silvretta high alpine road is open from early June to the end of October, closed earlier when it snows.
Galtür is the counterpart to Ischgl: 800 inhabitants, no après-ski, a small, sunny ski area (Silvapark, 43 kilometres of pistes) with a day ticket around CHF 55 (about EUR 59), cross-country trails up to the Zeinisjoch and the Alpinarium, a museum built into the avalanche protection wall that tells the story of the 1999 disaster and of life in the high valley, admission around CHF 9. In summer the Silvretta high alpine road begins above Galtür: 22 kilometres and 34 hairpins over the Bielerhöhe (2,032 metres) with the Silvretta reservoir and on into the Montafon, toll around CHF 20 per car, free with the Silvretta Card, a classic climb for cyclists. From the Bielerhöhe, hikes lead to the Wiesbadener Hütte below the Piz Buin (two hours) or around the lake (two hours, flat). Kappl has the Sunny Mountain adventure park on the Dias-Alm for families and in winter a ski area with 42 kilometres of pistes, with the wide beginner slopes that Ischgl lacks. In Ischgl itself two things are new and good: the Silvretta Therme from 2022 with outdoor pool, sauna and a rooftop ice rink (3 hours around CHF 30) and the Skyfly, a two-kilometre double zip line from the mountain down into the village, CHF 40. The Jamtalhütte behind Galtür, with 1,800 vertical metres of terrain around it, is the ski touring centre of the valley and in summer is reached in two and a half hours on foot.
Take the Railjet from Zurich to Landeck-Zams in 2 hours (CHF 20 to 40 each way with a Half Fare Card and a Supersaver ticket, about EUR 21 to 43), then 50 minutes by Postbus to Ischgl. By car it is 2 hours 45 minutes via Feldkirch and the Arlberg tunnel, plus vignette CHF 12 and tunnel CHF 12. Once there everything is reachable on foot or by free ski bus, and the car sits in the garage all week for CHF 12 to 18 a day. You only need it if you stay in Samnaun or want to drive the Silvretta high alpine road in summer.
For two people in January: seven nights in a four-star house with half board CHF 2,100 to 2,800 (about EUR 2,247 to 2,996), six-day passes CHF 780, lunch on the piste and a few evenings out CHF 500 to 700, ski hire CHF 400, train from Zurich CHF 200. That is around CHF 2,000 to 2,400 per person. In a guesthouse in Kappl or Galtür with the ski bus you bring that down to CHF 1,400 to 1,600. Hotels are as expensive as in Switzerland; ski pass and food are considerably cheaper.
Yes. The Silvretta Arena ski pass is valid in Ischgl and Samnaun, and the border is a marker on the piste. In Samnaun there are duty-free shops right at the valley station and in the village; you pay in francs or euros, and cards work everywhere. Back to Austria you may bring goods for personal use; customs checks on the piste are rare but possible. Into Switzerland the allowance of CHF 150 (about EUR 161) per person per day applies, plus the alcohol and tobacco limits.
Three concerts per season on the Idalp: end of November for the opening, usually around Easter and early May for the finale, with names such as Robbie Williams, Helene Fischer, Lenny Kravitz or Alicia Keys. There is no separate ticket; the day's ski pass is the entry, also as a pedestrian with a lift ticket. The concerts start at 1 pm, after which everyone skis down at the same time or takes the lift, so expect an hour's wait. Hotels are full months in advance on those weekends and considerably more expensive.
Ischgl itself only to a limited extent: few blue pistes, long runs to the valley, loud in the evening. The ski school and the children's area on the Idalp are good, but the ride up takes time and the mountain is crowded. Families and beginners are better off in Kappl (wide practice slopes, Sunny Mountain) or Galtür (small, sunny, quiet) and take the free ski bus to Ischgl on individual days. From two days the Silvretta Arena ski pass is valid throughout the Paznaun.
Yes, especially for hikers, road cyclists and families. The Silvretta Card all inclusive comes free from one night with most hosts and covers lifts, buses, thermal spa, swimming pools and the Silvretta high alpine road. Hotels cost half the winter rate. The high alpine road, the Bielerhöhe and the huts of the Silvretta are the reason for the trip; Ischgl itself is very quiet in summer. Best time: early July to mid-September.
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