Stuben’s predominantly north-facing Albona includes some of the best skiing in the Arlberg and easy access to the entire Arlberg ski area – 85 ski lifts, 280km of pistes and about 180km off-piste – including St Anton and Lech-Zurs.
No matter where you stay, the Arlberg is one of the world's best
ski areas so it's worth making a plan to ski it as fully as
possible - Stuben, St Anton (Gampen, Kapal, Galzig, Schindler,
Valluga and Rendl), St Christoph (for lunch), Zurs and Lech
including the White Ring circuit, the Zuger Hochlicht runs above
and beyond Zug and Oberlech (also good for lunch). The hands-free
Arlberg ski lift pass also covers the Sonnenkopf ski area at
Klösterle which is a short bus or taxi ride (5km) from Stuben.
Ski and boarding on the Albona
Although the Albona has only a handful of marked red and blue
runs, the quality of skiing is good with around 1,000m vertical
descent of mostly treeless skiing. Stuben's beginner and
intermediate runs are mostly wide, not crowded and, with the
benefit of a long snow-sure season, snow conditions are almost
invariably good. There are a couple of black ski routes marked on
the ski map that run from Albonagrat 2,400m down to Stuben 1,407m
and Langen 1,228m, but it's not what's shown on the ski map that
attracts advanced skiers and boarders to Stuben, it's the wealth of
off-piste, low skier density on the Albona and Stuben's proximity
to St Anton and Lech-Zurs
Great skiing and boarding nearby in St Anton, St
Christoph and Lech-Zurs
From the Albona middle station there's an easy blue run leading
to the high speed chair lift at Alpe Rauz which leads into the St
Anton ski area. There's a superb long run (red then blue) from the
top of Schindler Spitze 2,660m back to Stuben 1,407m via Alpe Rauz,
but there's massive of opportunity for intermediates and advanced
skiers and boarders in St Anton and St Christoph is especially
worth visiting for lunch. And it's just a short bus journey from
Stuben to the ski lifts in Zurs which open up the Lech-Zurs ski
area including the popular White Ring circuit from Zurs 1,716m via
Madloch-Joch 2,438m to Zug 1,511m and Oberlech 1,660m to Lech
1,450m, then cable car up Rufikopf 2,362m and ski back from to
Zurs.
Terrific off-piste opportunities in Stuben and throughout
the Arlberg
Stuben typically gets several meters more snow each year than
nearby St Anton and Lech- Zurs and the Albona includes some of the
best off-piste in the Arlberg. And because there are fewer people
staying here - just 670 guest beds in Stuben - the off-piste stays
fresh in Stuben for longer than in other parts of the Arlberg,
which is why experts "in the know" often ski over from St Anton to
Stuben. Beyond Stuben there's a huge amount of off-piste skiing in
the Arlberg including the famous back of the Valluga descent from
St Anton to Zurs and guided heli-skiing at Zurs (weather conditions
permitting) which can be booked via the ski school in Stuben.