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Guest journalist writes about Sölden, Tirol

April 7, 2014 By

It was with some trepidation that I agreed to go skiing – after all I’m a beach holiday type of girl and I imagined dire scenarios of shivering in the snow, sliding down the mountains on my bottom in comedy Bridget Jones style.

However, when my husband showed me photographs of the Austrian apartment we’d be staying in, in Zwieselstein, perfectly placed between two major ski resorts, Hochgurgl and Sölden, in the Tirol region of Austria, I was halfway to being convinced.

The mountain views from the balcony were absolutely stunning. We arrived on Saturday evening and went to dinner at the Hotel Neue Post.

By the time I was tucking into the Wiener Schnitzel, one of many Austrian specialities and a glass of extremely palatable Grüner Veltliner, I was warming to this holiday.

We hit the slopes in Hochgurgl, on Sunday morning and by then I was converted.  If nothing else, the wide blue skies and the awe inspiring views were incredible.  I sat on the terrace of the Hotel Hochgurgl, sipping a fresh orange juice before girding my loins to put on my skis.

But I needn’t have worried at all, there are a plethora of wide blue runs in Hochgurgl and as I inched my way down, I realised that while skiing for the winter Olympics might be a little tricky, cruising down at your own speed is surprisingly easy to achieve.

I’m still no expert at skiing, but what with the mountain air, the sunshine and all that exercise (not just sliding down on my bottom), I’ve never returned from a trip abroad, with quite such a good post-holiday glow!

I’ll certainly be heading back to Tirol next year for more of the same.

by Melanie Fallowfield

Filed Under: Sölden

Mark Warner starts marketing Zell am See apartments to agents

March 21, 2014 By

World-class holiday operator, Mark Warner, will soon be marketing the latest  Zell am See apartments developed by VenturePlus AG, the owner of Kristall Spaces.

Travel Weekly is a leading business magazine for the UK travel industry and features the new Mountain Lake Resort in its latest edition to promote the operator’s latest addition to its alpine portfolio.

Zell am See apartments sale

Filed Under: Zell am See

A Good Rate Of Exchange: Investing In Austrian Ski Properties While The Pound Soars

March 6, 2014 By

Kuhtai1

The focus on the Olympic games reminded the nation and the world of the joy of skiing. Whether it’s cross-country or downhill or freestyle, few activities lead to a life-time love affair quite like skiing. Brits who want to turn their hobby into a money-making operation can consider investment properties in Austria by purchasing rental units for the millions of skiers who take to the Austrian alps each year. Austria has enjoyed significant growth in their recreation sector, having climbed to the second-highest market share in global skiing expenditures with nearly 25 percent of the market world-wide. With a supply shortage for new units, there’s a consistent and strong demand by tourists as well as native Austrians for ski rental units on their next vacation. Furthermore, the Austrian economy has vastly outperformed its European-Union cousins and neighbours, having grown steadily while other ski-hardy nations like Italy have seen their finances shrink.

Skiing in Austria

More than anything else, however, the driving factor for any British interest in an overseas investment is the favourable exchange rate. With 1.2 Euros to the pound sterling, as of the last 7 years there has never been a better return on spending for Austrian rentals. The rate by which Brits win out is especially large in comparison to foreign investors, since the pound is cruising in comparison to the flat American dollar or Japanese yen. Since these are non-resident homes, furthermore, British citizens will not be taxed as Austrian homeowners. Indeed, there’s even an annual 1% VAT rebate for all Austrian spending. With each unit fully furnished and managed on-site, it’s not necessary to have to jet from the UK to Austria since each property can be controlled remotely.

British financial advisors have been pushing for more and more purchases overseas. MGM’s UK office has noted that the market for Alps ski rentals has increase substantially in only a single year, with more than half the units in popular areas having been sold. This is partially a reflection on the guaranteed rental yields, but also an indication of how Britons have chosen to place their finances into tangible investments like foreign real estate instead of on-paper investment plans. Buyers interested in flexible purchases for Austrian units can choose the size, location, and scope of their property in order to take on an investment that fits their needs and budgets.

Filed Under: Development News

Everything You Should Know About Ischgl Off The Slopes

March 6, 2014 By

ischgl nightlife and events

Although this gem of a skiing town on the Pardatschgratbahn ropeways is better known for its runs than anything else, there’s plenty to do once you’ve put up your skis and want to get a bite to eat. Most of the restaurants in town are part of the hotel, though some stand on their own, and the superb cuisine of the city is, along with the ski slopes, an ample incentive to consider purchasing apartments for sale in Ischgl. Perhaps the best-known and highest-rated is the Grillalm within the Gramaser Hotel, offering five course Salnerhof and Jägerhof. Those who want a faster bite can sink their teeth into the pizza and Tirolean appetisers available at Bära Falla and the hamburger joint Allegra. Due to the proximity to the Italian border (less than 20km away), there’s plenty of great cucinas, including the Toscana.

Of the highly-rated restaurants in the town, the Alpenhaus features beautiful design and self-service (as well as table service) with tart pastries considered some of the best in town. Live bands and even disco music are mainstays at Paznauner Thaya, known throughout town for their pizza, chicken salads, and spicy prawns. The Pardatschgrat has a massive, ornate glass-walled interior that often has fewer crowds than the competition. Finally, the Swiss side of Ischgl features the Alp Bella, a restaurant built in the style of traditional ski huts and lodges, featuring classic Austrian and Swiss dishes like rösti.

Once the meal is done, it’s time to go into “après” mode and go out on the town (which can start as early as the afternoon, depending on your ski schedule). The two most popular bars in town, the Trofana Alm and the Schatzi, both feature lively atmosphere and plenty of good drinks. The Schatzi is as well known for their drinks as for the dancing girls who wear only the minimum amount of clothing. Cross the river, and you’ll find the Kitzloch, a rowdier place where you’re more than welcome to dance on the table tops, even if you’re still in ski boots. Those who want a higher-tempo evening can check out Niki’s Stadl and the Feuer and Eis watering holes; a quieter joint is the Kiwi or the higher-price Guxa.

Filed Under: Galtür

Finding The Perfect Powder In St. Anton

March 6, 2014 By

St Anton

There’s so much rumour and hearsay about the best snow conditions at ski resorts that they’ve become modern-day fabled cities of gold like El Dorado. One resort that consistently stands out above the rest, however, is nestled in the Tyrolean Alps in the western tip of Austria. St. Anton am Arlberg, more commonly known as St. Anton, has a great reputation for skiing by day and partying by night, with emphasis on both quality and quantity of snow. More a traditional resort than a set of ski lodges, the dynamics of the town’s recreation scene make property investment in St Anton a good bet for year-round productivity rather than seasonal income.

Location provides the impetus for quality snowfall in St. Anton. It’s part of the highest hills in all of Austria, receiving snowfall from heavy clouds blown in on three sides from the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and the Baltic. With profound snowfall each winter, the Valluga basin gets global attention for its runs, often to the point where experts and professionals tackle the most difficult courses with glee. Verticals drop as far as one thousand meters on a single mountain side, where the sun doesn’t shine with enough duration or intensity to cause the deep, light, fluffy snow to become wet and heavy. British instructor Graham Austick runs a skiing school in St. Anton devoted to capitalising on the great powder.

Tourists and natives alike flock to St. Anton to ski, since the lift pass gets them on the main runs as well as nearby runs in Lech or Zurs (both of which are more forgiving to novice ski enthusiasts). Once the last light comes to a close, visitors flock to any one of the various bars and clubs that offer pulse-pounding music and drinks to skiers as well as instructors. Without traffic on the main street, everyone gets around on foot, from the buses heading to the slopes to the saunas that let you sweat away the day’s slopes.

Filed Under: St Anton Tagged With: ,

The Newest Attraction In Galtür: Indoor Swimming Pool

March 6, 2014 By

Swimming pool in Galtür

There’s plenty of reason to love the ski resort town of Galtür, which rises over the Stausee Lake on the border of Tyrol and Vorariberg. The town sport’s centre, which includes a restaurant, squash courts, a rifle club, and the Silvretta Hall for occasions of note will now expand to include an indoor swimming pool. With the expansion of the sports centre comes a great time for property investment in Galtür Ischgl due to the decision to expand the town’s operations and integrate the community into the events.

Each year, the sports facility needs a significant amount of finances in order to stay afloat due to the number of visitors who make use of the site and the scale of operations. Galtür Mayor Anton Mattle reports that the pool operation will cost between 200,000 and 300,000 Euros to operate each year. Most of this revenue will come from the cable car tickets that skiers purchase in order to get up and down slopes, but the community of Galtür itself will still need to cover the cost of about 50,000 Euro. With the need to build a new lift project and run cable cars, Mattle noted that it would be difficult to find the equity to finance every project.

A City Council meeting in August of 2013 put paid to the plans to expand the sports center. A 100,000 Euro grant was made available for the Department of Village Renewal by the sixty persons sitting on the Citizen’s Council. Some 120 town citizens, including young people invested in the centre, came to the meetings in order to make their voices heard. Finally, the decision was made to expand the centre and to make it more amenable. A 6,000-square meter area will be used for events and activities, with further health projects for the city to be accelerated. In the near future, the Council will appoint an operator to deal with the project and its development in order to complete the pool’s construction.

Filed Under: Development News, Galtür Tagged With: ,

Finding The Right Stuff: Testing The New Skis For Next Season

March 6, 2014 By

Martin Bell Ski test in Kuhtai

Just like F1 drivers need to make sure their tyres can hold up under the power of their vehicle and the tight turns of a course, so too do skiers need to know that their equipment will be able to handle the intensity of a winter on the slopes.  Each year, the Snowsport Industries of Great Britain (or SIGB) hosts a testing session in the Austrian resort town of Kühtai, two kilometres above sea level.  Two dozen different ski runs flow in and out of this village, making it a perfect spot to test out equipment, while also providing property investment in Kühtai with ample opportunity for solid returns.  This serves as the third year that Kühtai has served as the testing grounds for SIGB and each year has proven the wisdom of hosting the tests in the city.  For a week prior to the ski equipment testing, Kühtai has reaped twenty-five centimetres of snow, with another 50 set to fall over the next ten days.

Who will be headlining the testing runs?  Martin Bell, who holds the distinction of the highest placement by a male Briton in the UK’s Olympic history, helps to run through the process along with skiing racer Edward Drake, freeskiing professional Peter Seight, and the co-director for the British Alpine and Snowboard School Becci Malthouse.  In addition to these professionals, a dozen trainers and instructors were on hand to see the runs through.

Testing out new skis may seem like a dream come true for many enthusiasts, but these pros need to go through as many as 14 different pairs in the span of a single day in order to determine the qualities of the equipment.  Skis are graded on everything from flexibility on long turns to the response on hairpin turns, and the testers give general performance reviews upon finishing the course.  No less than 764 pairs of skis will get a workout (a total value of over £300,000 worth of equipment) from brands like K2 and Salomon.  The results of the ski tests will be published in the Telegraph as well as Ski and Snowboard Magazine.

Filed Under: Kühtai

The St Anton White Thrill – 19 April

March 2, 2014 By

Fancy taking on 500 skiers in this classic race down an unprepared piste from the Vallugagrat to the valley, 9km below?

Check out the mass start. Another reason to love St Anton.

Filed Under: St Anton

Robbie Williams concert in Ischgl in May 2014

February 10, 2014 By

As part of the 50th anniversary of the Silvretta Cable Car and the 20th anniversary of the big Top of the Mountain Concerts (since Elton John first sang on the Idalp in 1995), Ischgl has booked Robbie Williams to perform on 3 May 2014 at 1300 in a special Top of the Mountain Concert.
robbie_2386114b

He is planning to play with his Big Band at 2,300m and will perform amongst other tracks his new number-one album “Swings Both Ways” on the giant open-air stage.

Another excuse to enjoy the summer and late spring snow conditions.

Filed Under: Galtür

A rise in interest for Austrian resorts, especially Kühtai

February 4, 2014 By

Thanks to “The Jump”, a new reality TV programme in which celebrities compete in winter sport disciplines, there has been a recent upsurge in enquiries for Kühtai as a holiday destination.

The 12 participants including 5-times Olympic Gold Medal Winner Sir Steve Redgrave, Melinda Messenger, Marcus Brigstocke & Amy Childs took part in the different challenges ranging from speed skiing to ski jumping and the 2-man bobsleigh.

Graham Bell, Eddie the Eagle and Britain’s Gold medal winning Winter Olympic athlete Amy William were all on standby to coach the competitors.

Kühtai was an obvious choice for the staging of the event.

It is less than 40 minutes from Innsbruck and its airport which is served by Easyjet and many international carriers. Also, the pistes are uncrowded and at over 2,020m there is always lots of snow.

Filed Under: Kühtai
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