Montafon Ski Area

Montafon ski season officially runs from early December until late April each year, but if there’s enough snow the ski lifts will open from mid November on Saturdays and Sundays. Montafon has a good snow record, boosted by modern snowmaking machines covering 40% of marked pistes to help extend the ski season and ensure good snow cover on long runs back down to villages in the valley.

Montafon ski region includes four main ski areas – Silvretta Nova, Gargellen, Hochjoch and Golm – offering family-friendly skiing with gentle beginner slopes and wide open runs for carving as well as challenging steep descents and deep snow skiing for advanced skiers including some of Europe’s best ski touring.

Silvretta Nova (1000-2400m)

The Silvretta Nova above St Gallenkirch, Gortipohl , Gaschurn and Partenen is served by three main lift systems. The biggest and best known of Montafon’s four mountain ski areas, Silvretta Nova has 114km of well-groomed trails (48% snowmaking), 7 ski routes, 25 (of 61) ski lifts, 8 mountain restaurants and 14km long descent from Schwarzköpfle (2300m) to the Valisera gondola station at St Gallenkirch.

Silvretta Nova includes excellent facilities for boarders and freestyle skiers. Silvretta’s Nova Park is the largest snowpark in Austria with a 120m halfpipe, an impressive array of jumps, kickers, rails, boxes and jibs. Nova Park is continually being improved each year to maintain its high ranking among the biggest and best snowparks in Europe.

Besides alpine skiing and boarding, Silvretta Nova has cross-country skiing and hiking at high altitude in the Bielerhöhe area which is at the foot of iconic Piz Buin (3312m) mountain with magnificent panoramic views of Verwall, Rätikon and Silvretta. Bielerhöhe is also the starting point for some of Montafon regions best ski tours, both day ski tours and week-long tours staying in refuge huts.

Schafberg (1423-2300m)

The Schafberg ski area above Gargllen – Montafon’s highest ski village – has 47km piste skiing (21% snowmaking) on wide-open meadow terrain, ideal for intermediates and beginners, 5 ski routes as well as moguls and plenty of opportunity for advanced skiers to ski deeper snow routes between the pistes and more adventurous routes such as Madrisa round tour, which involves skiing across the border behind Gargellner Köpfe (2559m) to the Swiss resort of Klosters and skiing back around Madrisa (2770m) same day.

The Schafberg ski area is served by 8 (of 61 ski lifts), including the main gondola from Gargellen (1423m) to Schafberghűsli (2130m) and 5 mountain restaurants, which are prettier and cosier than larger (but nevertheless impressive) mountain restaurants on Silvretta Nova and Hochjoch. Longest run back to Gargellen is 8km, with artificial snow-making, and opportunity to ski right down to resort level from end November through April. Although smaller than Silvretta Nova, and quieter than either Silvretta Nova or Hochjoch, Gargellen and Schafberg has plenty of good skiing and is especially good for families with young children.

Hochjoch (700-2400m)

The Hochjoch ski area is in the middle of the Montafon valley above Schruns and Silbertal. Hochjoch has 44km of groomed-piste skiing (45% snowmaking), 3 ski routes and is served by 17 (of 61) ski lifts, 7 mountain restaurants and the impressive Dreamland ski facility (5800m² outdoors and 250m² indoors) for children. Hochjoch has 1700m vertical elevation and a 12km long continuous run down to the Hochjochbahn cable car station in Schruns. The Alpin Sport Service centre on mountain at Kapellalpe is a well-equipped ski rental depot offering extensive selection of equipment for skiers and boarders including snowscooters and snowblades.

The majority of pistes are graded red or blue, with plenty of beginner runs close near the cable car station and restaurant on Kapell (1850m) and lots more beginner friendly skiing on blue runs higher up between Grasjoch (1975m) and Kreuzjoch (2395m). Advanced and expert skiers will not be tested by the marked runs, but there’s plenty of challenging off-piste including expert terrain above Herzee which is used to host extreme free-riding competitions and there are plans to cut some quite serious 50° degree trails for experts only from Freda to Silbertal.

An unusual feature and one of the highlights of the ski area is skiing the Hochjoch ski tunnel which is a 476m long tunnel through the mountain – the longest ski tunnel in the world.

Golm (654-2120m)

The smallest of four main ski areas in Montafon, Golm is just 10 minutes drive from the motorway exit at Bludenz. It’s also easily reached by train from Bludenz to Vandans and therefore popular with day visitors. Golm has 32km of mostly red and blue groomed piste (56% nowmaking), a couple of ski routes and a 9km long (mainly blue) run and nearly 1500m vertical down to the valley lift station at Vandans. Golm has 9 (of 61) ski lifts the main elements of which are the Golmerbahn gondola which rises in 3 sections from Vandans to Holzschopf (1000m) then to Berghof Golm and Panorama Restaurant Grűneck (1890m) with a middle station exit opportunity at Matschwitz (1520m).

Golm’s family friendly ski area includes the large sun terrace at Panorama Restaurant Grűneck is a good vantage point for parents to observe their children’s progress on the nursery slopes at the top of the Golmerbahn. Advanced skiers and confident intermediates can ski the 70% (30 degree) Diablo black run (10), the steepest groomed piste in Montafon.