Warth-Schroecken Ski Resort

Warth and Schröcken are two pretty and famously snowy villages in Austria's Bregenzerwald, that form the Warth-Schröcken ski area. This is lift-linked to Lech, Zurs and St Anton and so is a part of the massive Arlberg ski area with over 300kms of marked runs and 200km of off-piste.


Situated 10km apart, Warth and Schroecken (Schröcken in German; in English the umlaut is usually replaced with an ‘e’ but you do sometimes see ‘Schrocken‘) are two snowy alpine villages that share a small local ski area that is also part of Austria’s largest lift-linked ski area, the vast Arlberg. And snow is what they are renowned for: in most years Warth gets more snow than any other ski resort in Western Europe, averaging 11 metres each winter.

Whilst Warth and Schroecken are on the edge of the Arlberg ski area, the huge Auenfeldjet lift makes it easy for their visitors to ski into Lech-Zurs. As Zurs is also lift-linked to St Anton, St Christoph and Stuben, fit confident skiers, have access to almost endless pistes, ski routes and freeride opportunities. Be warned, however: it’s a long way to St Anton’s slopes and it’s not a journey you will want to make every day.

Being on the edge of the Arlberg means the local slopes above Warth and Schroecken get fewer visitors than their more glamorous neighbours, and the runs are less crowded. They can be accessed by a lift from the centre of Warth or from two base stations along the road to Schroecken that have some hotels close by, and which are connected to the two villages by a free ski-bus. There are pistes and ski routes descending into both villages so confident skiers can ski back at the end of the day. The 60km of local slopes are not very high (Warth is at 1494m, and Schroecken is at 1269m, and almost all the local skiing is below 2000m), but they are mostly north-facing and, of course, famously snowy. Beginners, particularly children, benefit from excellent ski schools and instructors. But there are challenges for advanced skiers too. The gradient of black slope 253 (“Ochsenkopf”) is over 70% in places and there is more steep stuff around the Jageralp Express lift.

Apres ski is a low key affair. And Warth and Schrocken are small villages so there’s not a great deal to do during the day besides skiing and other wintersports, including winter walking, cross-country skiing, dog sledding, snow-shoeing and tobogganing. There is also the option of driving to other less frequented ski areas in Bregenzerwald such as Au-Schoppernau, which is just 15 minutes away from Schroecken.

Getting to Warth-Schroecken is easy. It takes between 1 hour 45 minutes and 2 hours 15 minutes from Friedrichshafen, Memmingen and Zurich airports. Accommodation is cheaper than in the other Arlberg resorts, with good value family-run hotels, guesthouses and self-catered apartments.

Ski Equipment Rental in WarthSchroecken

Unsurprisingly, there is not as much choice as in larger resorts. Most of the equipment rental shops are near the centre of the villages or close to the lifts. ALPINRESORTS and SKISET offer discounts if you pre-book online and both have partner outlets in Warth-Schroecken.

Search Warth for accommodation and book online>

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Warth-Schroecken Ski Area

Warth-Schroecken ski area comprises 68km of mostly easy skiing on the Saloberkopf (2,050m) with runs to the villages of Warth (1,494m) and Schroecken (1,269m). The connection to Lech-Zurs provides access to the mighty Arlberg ski area, a further 300km of pistes and marked trails, and over 200 km of off-piste.

The Warth-Schroecken ski area is generally north-facing and overshadowed by the Warther Horn (2,275m), Karhorn (2,416m) and Auenfelderhorn (2,252m), which means good snow conditions are well preserved, especially later in the ski season. The exception to this rule is the area approaching the Auenfeldjet that links Warth-Schroecken to Lech and the rest of the Arlberg. This is a vital connection so the main red and blue runs are well protected by snow-cannons and vigorous piste-grooming, but the lack runs to the side can have large brown and green patches if the temperature heats up 

All together there are about 30 pisted runs including 13 blue runs (30km) and10 red runs (17km). There are also 19 kms of  pisted black runs and  ungroomed ski routes for stronger intermediate and advanced skiers. the longest of which is the relatively easy ski route from Korbersee to Schroecken. Most of the steepest pistes and routes are clustered around the Jageralp Express near Warth,

The ski area extends 10km east to west from Warth to Schroecken and rises from three base stations at altitudes of between 1500-1700m to 2050m and vertical drop of approximately 550m and 800m from the Saloberkopf to Warth and Schroecken respectively.

There are a number of Extra zones including a speedcheck, Salobercross with moguls and jumps and special areas for children close to the base station lifts in Warth and at Hochtannbergpass as well as designated areas for absolute beginners.

Warth-Schroecken ski area is good for beginners and early intermediates and also offers challenging freeride skiing off-piste. Although the ski area is not particularly high, Warth-Schroecken receives an average of 11m snowfall each season and the mostly north facing slopes are snow sure well into April.

More experienced skiers will exhaust the on-piste opportunities within a day or two, and will want to use the two-way Auenfeldjet lift to ski over to Lech-Zurs and the rest of the Arlberg area, including St Anton. But for experienced off-piste skiers and boarders there are interesting opportunities for freeriding off-piste with a guide closer to home, including off-piste descents from Warth to Lech and from Lech to Schroecken via Mohnenfluh (2,542m). They can then move on to more extensive off-piste challenges beyond the Auenfeldjet in the rest of the Arlberg, particularly in Stuben and St Anton.  

Warth has direct access to the ski slopes through the village centre lift. There is also a free bus service that connects the two villages of Warth and Schroecken and accesseshigh speed chairlifts rising from 3 base stations - the 4-person chairlift at Warth and 6-person Jägeralp-Express chairlift at Hochkrumbach and the 6-person Saloberjet chairlift at Hochtannberg. There are also more distant bus connections with two other nearby ski areas: Au-Schoppernau and Damuls..

The free bus service stops often at designated bus stops (look out for the yellow and green H sign) and outside most hotels, making it easy to move around between ski areas, and if you have your own car there is ample free car parking near the lift stations and especially at the top of Hochtannbergpass close to the Saloberjet chairlift.

Easiest access to the ski area is from hotels in Warth, especially the super stylish Steffisalp Hotel which claims to be just 7 seconds from the Steffisalp Express chairlift. If you stay in Schroecken you'll need to take a short free bus ride to Hochtannberg and the Saloberjet ski lift or continue a couple of stops to Hochkrumbach to the Jägeralp-Express ski lift; both are fast 6-person chairlifts with bubble covers.

Warth-Schroecken Ski Lifts & Lift Passes

Warth Schroecken’s ski lift system carries up to 28,000 riders per hour on a total of 14 ski lifts including 3 T-bars and 2 chairlifts which serve the beginner slopes. To access the much bigger Arlberg ski area you can take the Auenfeldjet lift to Lech, but you will need an Arlberg pass to ride it.

Warth-Schroecken Ski Lifts

The ski area extends 10km from Warth to Schroecken with a 500m vertical drop from Wartherhorn (2000m) down to Warth (1494m) and nearly 800m vertical from Saloberkopf (2050m) to Schroecken (1269m).

The bulk of the lift capacity is delivered by eight high-speed chair lifts - four 6-seater and four 4-seater chair lifts - most of which are equipped with pull-down bubble covers, most of which extend 1000m-1500m distance and 300-450m vertical rise.

Access to the ski area is from one of three base stations, each of which includes car parking for day visitors. From east to west, there are high-speed 6-person bubble chairlifts rising from each of three base stations at Warth (1500m), Hochkrumbach (1600m) and Hochtannbergpass 1679m) nearest Schroecken.

Hochtannbergpass (1679m) - half way between Schroecken and Warth - is the biggest base station and the main access point for guests coming by car or free ski bus from Schroecken (4km) and for day visitors from Au Schoppernau (10km).

Link to Lech-Zurs, Stuben and St Anton Arlberg

The Auenfeldjet lift provides a fast two way link to Lech and back for holders of the Arlberg ski pass. This means all of the Lech-Zurs ski area can be easily accessed from either Schroecken or Warth. To get to St Anton, howvere,  you will either have to start early and ski fast, or time your arrival in Lech to coincide with the departure of the bus to St Anton which is still the fastest way to get between the two resorts. You have to pay extra for this bus service but it’s not expensive.

Warth-Schroecken & Arlberg Ski Passes

Lift pass prices are approximately the same as most other Austrian resorts. Expect to pay around EUR42 for a Warth-Schroecken adult day pass, or if skiing for 2 ½ days or more, you should buy a Bregenzerwald 3täler lift pass, which is valid for all ski areas. 

There's a free ski bus service for lift pass holders that runs - 9 stops - between Warth and Schroecken and continuing between Schroecken and Au-Schoppernau.

To ski in Lech-Zurs and the rest of the Arlberg you will require an Arlberg ski area pass. This is the most expensive pass but covers a vast connected area, stretching all the way to St Anton and back.

Warth-Schroecken Lift Companies

Ski Lift Warth GmbH & Co
A-6767 Warth 51
Bregenzerwald, Vorarlberg, Austria
Tel: +43 (0) 5583 3601-0
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.warth-schroecken.at

Ski Lift Schroecken Strolz GmbH
A-6888 Schroecken 10
Bregenzerwald, Vorarlberg, Austria
Tel: +43 (0) 5583 4259-0
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.snowworld.at

Warth-Schroecken Beginners

Beginner skiers and boarders in Warth-Schroecken are recommended to start from the Saloberjet base station at Hochtannberg or Wannenkopf in Warth, where there are good slopes for first time beginners and instructors for skiing and boarding.

Beginner skiing in Warth Schroecken

Facilities at Hochtannberg include ski school office, ski hire, beginner lifts, a special area designated for first time beginners and easy access via chairlift to the blue runs running down from the Saloberjet and Karhorn chairlifts. So no matter whether you are staying in Warth or Schroecken, if you are a beginner we suggest catching the ski bus to Hochtannbergpass.

Beginners can ride the short Kuchlbahn chairlift and warm up on blue 10 before they ski the long easy blue (31) to the Jägeralp-Express chairlift or ride the Saloberjet chair to Saloberkopf then ski blue (19) to the Karhorn chairlift which opens up a number of easy blues at higher altitude. There are long easy blue runs 30 and 29 dropping 449m vertical from the top of the Karhornbahn down to the Jägeralp-Express chairlift, then ski blue 20 and ride the Wartherhorn chairlift and work your way from left to right via Hochalpbahn to get back to Saloberkopf.

Practice skiing blue run 4 a few times, which drops a little more steeply down the fall line, and improve your turns as you gain experience skiing the same run. Keep your eyes open for skiers coming from other directions when you reach the lower section towards the bottom of the Saloberjet chairlift, which is usually very busy. If you're up for another blue or some red run skiing try blue 8 or red 9 which run respectively to the bottom of the Sonnencruiser-Auenfeld and Sonnenjet-Auenfeld chairlifts.

Warth-Schroecken ski area is not the best for rustic mountain huts and restaurants high on the mountain. The Jägeralp Hotel and après ski bar complex at the bottom of the Jägeralp-Express is a handy pitstop and worth visiting for lunch.

Better still, and not to be missed, is the Berghotel Korbersee which overlooks a frozen lake and is a great place to go for lunch. It's easily reached via Falken chairlift and blue run 5. Beginners can return to the main ski area via the Falken lift and blue 7.

Alternatively when snow conditions and visibility are good, more experienced 'beginners' skiing in mixed ability groups might like to try the easy "red" ski route from Korbersee down to Schroecken then catch a bus back to Hochtannbergpass to rejoin the lift system.

Ski Schools & Ski Lessons in Warth-Schroecken

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Warth-Schroecken Intermediate

With 56km marked ski runs in Warth-Schroecken including about 10 red runs), 10 black runs and seven ungroomed but marked ski routes, opportunities for intermediate skiers are good but limited. Competent intermediates can cover the ski area on piste in a couple of days, and will then want to move onto Lech and the rest of the Arlberg.

Access to the Arlberg involves taking the Auenfeldjet and Weibermahd lifts to Lech-Zurs where there are plenty of blue runs, red runs and ungroomed ski routes. And if these ever get exhausted, there are even more nearby at Stuben and St Anton.

Although you can ski to both these resorts after using the Flexenbahn lift from Zurs, to maximise your time on snow, it’s worth taking the bus from Lech to Alpe Rauz (for Stuben) or St Anton, as that is still the fastest route.

Alternatively, if you have skied all the runs in Warth-Schroecken and don’t want to buy an Arlberg pass, there is challenging on piste skiing for intermediates including steeper runs nearby at Diedamskopf (Au Schoppernau), which is 15 from Schroecken and 25km from Warth; and much more extensive fast red-run skiing opportunities 11km further west at Damuls-Mellau.

Both ski areas are easily reached by car or using the free ski bus service. If you only have time to visit one, Damüls is the more interesting of the two.

Warth-Schroecken Advanced & Expert Skiing

Warth-Schroecken only has about 17kms of black pisted runs and ungroomed trails. Therefore, you might easily assume that there’s not much challenging skiing for advanced skiers here, but you’d be wrong.

Warth-Schroecken has 11 black pistes - that is more than in the rest of the Arlberg ski area resorts put together. Not all of them are terrifyingly steep but there are challenges if you want them. The gradient of black slope 253 (“Ochsenkopf”) near the Saloberjet is over 70% in places so we recommend doing its less steep near neighbours 251 and 252 first before tackling this. Parts of run 283 near the Jageralp Express lift are also seriously steep.

There are plenty of freeride and ski touring possibilities locally. It's not uncommon to see skiers booting up Saloberkopf (2050m) towards Auenfelderhorn (2292m), turning right well before the summit and skiing off-piste towards Lech via the lower slopes of Karhorn (2416m). Best known descents are to Karhorn, Bűrstegg or Salober. returning via the  Auenfeldjet or the more challenging descent off the back of Mohenfluh (2544m) all the way to Schroecken.

There is more easily accessed powder between the Saloberjet and the Jageralp Express, but this is best explored with a guide because it can be avalanche prone.

Guided Hike & Ride Odff-Piste Tours are available with Warth and Schroecken ski schools including 5-day packages including avalanche and safety training.

Advanced skiers will want to head over to Lech, then onto Zurs, Stuben and St Anton. All these resorts have hardly any black runs but have huge amounts of off-piste and freeriding. To get the most out of it, and keep you safe, you should hire a guide. If you won't do this then stick to the official ski routes, marked on the piste map. But remember these are not patrolled, and those that are classified as 'Extreme' usually deserve their grading, and only very good skiers should tackle these.

Warth-Schroecken Mountain Restaurants

Most of the restaurants serving the ski area are located close to base station lifts at 1500m with just four restaurants at higher up in the ski area, but bearing in mind it’s just 300-500m vertical it’s easy to ski down to the restaurants at the foot of the ski lifts.

Mountain restaurants higher up in the ski area include the popular Korbersee with sun terrace overlooking the lake, Berggasthof Auenfelder near the bottom of the Sonnencruiser-Auenfeld lift, and, over towards Warth, Punschhűtte , which is mid-mountain off run 20 and close to the Wartherhorn-Express chairlift and Skihűtte Hochalp off run 19 near the Hochalp chairlift. The Korbersee is especially recommended and it's worth getting there early or phoning ahead to make a reservation. Get there by riding the 2-person Falken chairlift then ski beginner friendly blue (5) or red run (5) to the Korbersee.

Mountain restaurants at the foot of the ski lifts include the SB & S1 Salober restaurants near the Saloberjet chairlift at Hochtannberg, Berggasthof Adler, roadside half way between Hochtannbergpass and the Hotel Jägeralp (ski-in via the blue from Korbliftle and ski-out via red route 7) which is worth the little extra effort to get there, the Jäger Stube'n at Hochkrumbach and Skihűtte Steffisalp & Schirmbar at the bottom of the Steffisalp-Express chairlift in Warth.

Hotel Korbersee, Fam. Schlierenzauer. A-6888 Schroecken
Tel: +43 (0) 5519 265 Web: www.koerbersee.at

Berghotel Auenfelder Hütte, Andreas u. Martin Jochum. A-6888 Schroecken
Tel: +43 (0) 664 411 1251

Punschütte, Bickel Armin. A-6767 Warth
Tel: +43 (0) 5583 3557. Web: www.walserstube.at

Skihűtte Hochalp, Fam. Jäger. A-6767 Warth
Tel: +43 (0) 664 413 9108. Web: www.jaegeralpe.at

SB & S1 Salober Treff, Brigitte Wiethüchter. A-6767 Warth
Tel: +43 (0) 5583 4260

Berggasthof Adler, Markus Strolz. A-6767 Warth
Tel: +43 (0) 5583 4264. Web: www.hoteladler.at

Jäger Stube'n, Family Jäger. A-6767 Warth
Tel: +43 5583 4250. Email: [email protected] Web: www.jaegeralpe.at

Skihütte Steffisalp & Schirmbar, Karl Wiener. A-6767 Warth. 
Tel: +44 (0) 5583 3699. Web: www.steffisalp.at

Warth-Schroecken Villages

Warth and Schroecken are small snow sure villages situated approximately 10km apart at either end of the Warth-Schroecken ski area in south eastern Bregenzerwald and bordering the Arlberg.

Warth (1494m) is a charming alpine village with around 200 inhabitants and accommodation for up to 1,000 guests. Although Warth is only 10km from Lech, the road between Warth and Lech is always closed in winter because of avalanche risk, but it's easy to ski between the villages, either on piste or off-piste.

Warth has direct access to the ski area via the 8 seat gondola lift Dorfbahn Warth near the centre of the village. But there are also hotels and other accommodation near the other lift base stations. 

Schroecken(1269m), is a similarly small and pretty village with 240 inhabitants and up to 800 guest beds. If staying in Schroecken you will need to drive by car or take a 10 minutes free ski bus ride to the Saloberjet chairlift at the top of the Hochtannbergpass. Look out for the elevated section of road on stilts - a seriously impressive piece of construction engineering!

While Warth offers easier access to the ski area and a better choice of upscale accommodation, an advantage of staying in Schroecken is that you can end each ski day skiing the easy but enjoyable 5km long ski route - the longest run in Warth-Schroecken - from Korbersee down to Schrocken.

Neither village has much to offer in the way of shops or other activities for non-skiers apart from winter walking, tobogganing and just chilling out in pretty alpine surroundings.

There's a free shuttle bus (Dorfbus) between Warth and Schroecken and a regular bus service (Bregenzerwald Line 40) linking Warth-Schroecken and Au-Schoppernau (20km).

Search Warth for accommodation and book online>>>

Search Schroecken for accommodation and book online>>>

 

Warth-Schroecken Bars & Restaurants

Warth and Schroecken are small villages where après ski is limited except for the occasional umbrella bar and more sophisticated après ski in hotel bars and restaurants. This appeals to many families and couples who return year after year, but if looking to party until the early hours Warth-Schroecken is not for you.

Pub "Best Of" Tel: +43 664 905 1857
Sennkuchi / Hotel Jaegeralpe Tel: +43 5583 4250
Kaminbar / Hotel Steffisalp Tel: +43 5583 3699
Umbrella Bar / Hotel Steffisalp Tel: +43 5583 3699
Cocktailbar / Hotel Wartherhof Tel: +43 5583 3504
s'Finale Umbrella Bar / Hotel Wartherhof Tel. +43 5583 3504
Alpen Lounge & Bar / Hotel Lechtalerhof Tel: +43 5583 2677
s`Walserberg / Hotel Walserberg Tel: +43 5583 3502
Kellerbar / Hotel Tirolerhof Tel: +43 5583 2867
Dorfcafe Tel: +43 5583 3615
Almblick / Hotel Widderstein Tel. +43 5519 400
Holzschopf Tel: +43 5519 340
Ritter`s Cafe Bar Bistro Tel: +43 5519 30331
Bauernstube Tel. +43 5519 30332

Warth-Schroecken Other Activities

Warth and Schroecken are small ski villages so there’s not a great deal to do in winter besides skiing and other wintersports including winter walking, cross-country skiing, dog sledding, snow shoeing and tobogganing.

Bregenzerwald region generally has excellent facilities for other winter sports activities with 300km of cross-country skiing and 200km prepared and well-sign posted winter walking trails. They also make a special effort to ensure good facilities and instruction where needed for dog sledding, snow shoeing and tobogganing. And Warth-Schrocken is no exception.

Cross country skiing

Warth-Schroecken has 18km of cross-country ski tracks on the Hochtannbergpass including blue beginner tracks (5km) at Jägeralpe and Kalbelesee, red tracks for intermediates (4km) at Simmel and more advanced black cross-country tracks (8km) at Falkenkopf and around Korbersee. Use of the ski tracks is free if staying in either of the villages (otherwise EUR 5 daily). Courses can be booked through the ski schools in Warth (Tel: ) and Schroecken (Tel: +43 5583 40045) and cross-country ski equipment can be hired at Sport Schneller (Tel: +43 5519 201) in Schroecken. Au Schoppernau nearby is one of the three largest cross-country skiing areas in Bregenzerwald with 62km of well prepared tracks including 50km classic and 12km skating tracks.

Winter walking

Warth-Schroecken is a favoured destination for winter walking with over 20km of well-maintained winter walking trails through scenic surroundings on the Hochtannbergpass. The walking path from the Kalbelesee to the Korbersee takes about 1 hour and allows skiers and walkers to meet for lunch at the popular Berghotel Korbersee.

Dog sledding

And if you want a break from skiing, cross-country skiing or walking, you can book a husky dog sled ride for adults or children and explore the ski area sitting down. There's a husky trail from Saloberkopf to Korbersee, which includes a stop off at the romantic Korbersee restaurant. The tour costs around EUR200 and takes 3-4 hours. Alternatively, you can join a husky dog sledding work shop. Each participant has his own sled and 2-3 dogs and after learning some basic commands including how to brake, you set off on your own on a 1km route around Kalbelesee. The workshop costs EUR80 for one person or EUR110 for two people and lasts approximately 2 hours. Tours and workshops available from Marc Van Landeghem (Tel: +43 664 2407 422) www.bauern-stube.at. Once a week, Schrocken Ski School (Tel: +43 664 2525 200) arranges special husky tours for children (EUR 13 per child).

Tobogganing

And if you enjoy tobogganing or have not yet tried it, there's an easy 700m long toboggan run from Hohi in Warth, which is open daily and floodlit at night until 10pm, and the a 500m long Schrockbach toboggan run in Schrocken which is also floodlit at night. You can rent a toboggan in the villages

For more information contact the tourist office

Warth-Schrocken Tourist Office
Heimboden Nr. 26888 Schroecken
Tel.: +43 5519 2670
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.warth-schroecken.com

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