This is a short summary of the Obertauern ski weekend in December, 2016. Famous for early snow, it makes for a perfect spot to kick off the winter season.

At the beginning of December, all we could think of, was to get back on the slopes. We searched the map and found Obertauern, a small town in the east part of Salzburgerland. We read only good things about this place so we were excited to see it on our own. Only three hours by car divided us from the city of Vienna and white covered landscape of Obertauern.

Snow Rich

Obertauern is one of the snow richest places in Austria. One researcher found out that Obertauern has the greatest snow depth in the whole country. What’s better is that the snow stays long and do not melt that easy, thanks to the good climate conditions and high elevations of the Obertauern valley.

The weather prognosis for the first ski day was sunny and a few degrees below zero, giving us great conditions to explore area and take tons of pictures. There was no fresh snow, but slopes were excellent prepared and well groomed. We ski until the end with full sun, just enjoying the view but we kept things easy because it was the first time this season we were on boards.

Austria’s Snow Bowl

On day 2 on slopes again, we pick our favorites of the previous day and we went off the paths to look for the best places to take pictures. What’s great is that we could circulate the area and take pictures from around. Obertauern is easy to go around because it has a shape of a bowl.

There are many possibilities to learn ski for beginners but also offers challenging runs for more advanced skiers and snowboarders as well as many difficulty-degrees in between. There is the black piste Gamsleiten 2 which is one of the challenging slopes of the valley.

Living on the slopes

Obertauern is a town you rarely see in Austria since much of it is related to skiing and snowboarding. It has many possibilities to stay overnight and offers services you need for a longer stay. Many of Obertauern’s lifts reaching down to town which allows for easy access by foot from all over town. Most of the hotels are even located directly next to slope, which is most comfortable.

We finished the day in one of the huts. All in all it was a great weekend for us, we got a great first impression of Obertauern, but we still feel there is much more to explore so we want to be back.

For practical information, check our Obertauern travel guide here.