Join Adam Attew to discover what makes Leogang, Austria, a phenomenal ski destination.
FACTS
SEASON START & END: Open early December to mid-April
SKI ALTITUDE: 830m-2096m / Vertical Drop- 1266m
PISTES: extensive range 80% Beginners / Intermediate; 20% Expert
LIFTS: fully linked across the Skicircus (made up of Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Feiberbrunn) with 70 lifts (29 cable cars, 21 chair-lifts, 20 T-bars)
SLOPES: 270km of pistes across the Skicircus
SNOWMAKING: 90% of the Skicircus is supported by snow-making facilities
LIFT TICKET 2022/23 Ski Pass: Adult: from 66 Euros – 1 day / from 338 Euros – 6 days
LANGUAGE: German
AIRPORT: Nearest airports are Salzburg 69km (1:10 hours) / Munich 191km (2:30 hours)
TRAIN: Nearest station is Leogang station. Good train connections from Innsbruck, Salzburg and Munich.
BUSES: The bus system around the Leogang is free.
SKI FACTS: Leogang is one village in the vast Skicircus area comprising Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn; runs are 140 km blue , 112 km red and 18 km black slopes. There are 60 cosy ski huts.
Discover the town
A traditional mountain settlement, Leogang delivers the cosy, pretty and picturesque Alpine village feel with great connections across the entire Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn ski area. It has a mix of old and new buildings that work well together. Situated 70 km southwest of Salzburg, the area is known as the ‘Home of Lassig’ which loosely translates to ‘home for the laid-back’, which suits the vibe here and why we keep coming back for more.
A visit to Leogang is all about ecology and working with nature so we recommend staying at the beautifully designed Forsthofalm Holtz Hotel for ski-in/ski-out access and phenomenal food, or the beautiful Hotel Puradies with its stunning architecture, delicious organic cuisine and its ambitious plans to become 100% energy self-sufficient very soon.
If you want to explore more of the local area, book a horse-drawn sleigh ride with Hermann Mitterlechner who will take you to the Zieferhof farm where Bernhard Perwein the farmer will teach you all about his local organic yield and let you try some of his delightful produce too. One dining experience that we cherished was the “hutessen” at Huwi’s Alm at Priesteregg, where you can cook your food on what looks like a tin hat! The surroundings are cosy architectural bliss and the food is utterly delectable.
Skiing
The skiing around Leogang is fabulous. Directly linked via uber modern lifts to the huge ‘Skicircus’ area which covers 270km (Saalbach, Hinterglemm, Leogang and Fieberbrunn), and with the ski ALPIN CARD one can explore a combined total of 408km of pistes with a further 121 lifts in the Schmittenhöhe area of Zell am See and the Kitzsteinhorn glacier resort at Kaprun. It’s one of the largest ski areas in Austria and has terrain to suit all standards of skiers and snowboarders.
The surrounding mountains are stunning – with the Pinzgauer mountains and the Kitzbühler Alps included, it enjoys a great snow record not least for its altitude. It only takes 12 minutes to get from Leogang to the top of the mountain thanks to the fast 8-person gondola.
Also because Leogang is at one end of the Skicircus it tends to have less traffic making for quieter pistes and more peaceful surroundings; however if one craves a little more, take a full day to ski the Skicircus’ ‘The Challenge’. The tour covers a whopping 65km of piste, 32 lifts and 12,400m of altitude. It’s a 7-hour marathon so you better have your legs ready and fresh wax on your planks.
There are several mountain huts to eat, drink and be merry in. We had a fabulous time during the White Pearl Mountain Days celebrations at the Hendl Fischerei with DJ, live musicians, hearty mountain food, lots of Champagne and an altogether awesome vibe.
The modern architecture is also pretty cool, with stunning views from almost everywhere you sit. For something a little more traditional there is the Alte Schmiede with its vast timber building, the interiors are that of classic Alpine antiquity and the verandas are vast.
The restaurant serves a multitude of classic Austrian dishes, so you will certainly not be disappointed. For some extremely fine dining on the mountain, ski over to Hinterglemm to check out Wieseralm with its very local produce, the cows graze the surrounding slopes in summer!
BEGINNERS –
As part of the Skicircus Leogang has a good selection of nursery slopes particularly around the L10 and L11 lifts. Once beginners establish their ski legs, they can venture up the mountain to explore the various blue pistes.
INTERMEDIATE –
About 90% of the area is well-suited to intermediate skiers, so consider the whole mountain a great snowy playground. Having access to the four zones – Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang and Fieberbrun – is a big bonus to the amount of pistes available.
ADVANCED –
The pistes around Leogang provide a pleasant warm-up opportunity for advanced skiers. Head to toward the bottom of the valley for the nearest black slope and be sure to check out the black pistes of the Schattberg and Zwolferkogel over on the Saalbach Hinterglemm side of the mountain.
– OFF PISTE –
The Skicircus provides some great Freeride zones especially around the Saalbach Hinterglem area with access via dedicated routes that are signposted to unprepared pistes. There is something for all levels of off-piste skiers from those making their first tracks in powder to the advanced heroes! Check out the local Freeride section of the Skicircus website for more information. Always take a qualified mountain guide with you to find the best snow and keep safe.
LEOGANG on its own – 11 Blue /4 Red /2 Black
The Leogang area of the Skicircus has some great pistes and some remind me of those in the USA, especially the beautiful tree lined pistes, great if the visibility is bad. I particularly liked the very long slopes of 212/211 and 206/205/203 back down to Leogang. The final descent, piste 205 back to the Forsthofalm Hotel followed by a cocktail on the veranda was always a fun way to end the day. Of course it is worth skiing the entire Skicircus to make sure you discover the endless treats throughout this fabulous Alpine playground.
ECOLOGY & SUSTAINABILITY
– The Leoganger Bergbahnen cable car company has been heated from the nearby biomass heating plant since 2006; this includes a co-heating partnership with neighbouring hotels.
– The Stocklalm restaurant, groomer workshop floors and the whole Asitzbahn middle station are heated via energy created by the drive motors of the Asitzbahn cable car.
– During Spring the new Asitz II reservoir fills up with melt water removing the need to pump snowmaking water up from the the valley.
– Snow cannons and cable car systems have been hydraulically and electrically optimised to increase efficiency and reduce energy consumption, for instance, since adopting this new system, the Steinbergbahn gondola consumes 151,000 kilowatts less per hour
– Leogang has been awarded: “Umwelt Blatt Salzburg” sustainability award in 2017
– Credited by the Austrian Ministry of the Environment for its commitment to climate in 2018.
– In 2019 Leoganger Bergbahnen was the first Ski resort to become a partner of the “Climate Energy Strategy Salzburg 2050”.
– In many local hotels, electric cars are made available to guests and nine of the hotels now have in-house biomass heating plants, wood chip heating systems and composting plants.
– Many of the Snow Grooming machines are fitted with snow depth gauges enabling the drivers to spread snow efficiently and make it last longer.
– In 2004 the “Respect You Limits” initiative was implemented, whereby huge areas of the mountains were dedicated to nature, banning all types of skiing.
– Leogang has the most organic farmers and shops in all of Austria.
For more information on the Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrun area visit online. For more information exclusively about the resort of Saalfelden-Leogang visit online.
The Skicircus is located in the region of SalzburgerLand, for more information on the entire region including other ski resorts including Altenmarkt/
The Bespoke Black Book travelled with Eurotunnel Le Shuttle to get to the Austrian Alps. Book your trip with Eurotunnel Le Shuttle from as little as £87 per vehicle (up to 9 passengers) each way for a Short Stay Saver ticket (valid for 5 calendar days) or £110 per vehicle (up to 9 passengers) for a Standard ticket (for any duration).
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