St Christoph

Connected to the main St. Anton ski area, the pretty village of St. Christoph 1,771m (5,808 ft) offers world class hospitality in quiet seclusion and is home to one of Austria’s leading hotels, the 5-star Arlberg Hospiz Hotel with a superb new spa and fitness centre (opened in December 2004) and to the comfortable 4-star Ski & Spa Hotel Maiensee which is situated right next to the chair left for ski-in and ski-out convenience.

St. Christoph caters particularly well for families with young children. Parents can observe the progress of their children in ski kindergarten, while soaking up the sunshine from the comfort of the sun terrace at Hospiz Alm – one of the most popular lunch spots in the Arlberg. Built in 1988 using timbers from old farm houses, the rustic interior has massive wooden tables and a large open fireplace. A major visitor attraction is the big-bottle wine cellar storing the world’s biggest collection of bottles of between 3 and 18 litres, most of it Bordeaux and including many rarities. If the wine list leaves you weak-kneed, you’ll love the spiral slide down to the cellar and the loos which makes a great alternative to stairs for ski-booted patrons.

St. Christoph is also home to the  elite Bundes Ski Academy which trains future ski instructors and ski racers. The incongruous big blue building in the centre of the village is a sports hall used mostly for 5-a-side football, and nothing to do with skiing or tourism.