Oberau

Oberau, Austria

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Oberau

Wildschonau is made up of three villages with separatre ski areas which are marketed together. Oberau is a tiny village close to the dense lift network of larger neighbours Auffach and Niederau, to which it is not lift-linked, A free local bus service links all three villages which also participate in the huge Kitzbüheler Alpen pass offering around 700km of trails on one ticket.

Summary

The Austrian ski resort of Oberau is in the Austrian Alps at an altitude of 936m, with 109km of marked runs.

Oberau is part of the Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau area with access to 109km of downhill skiing, with 83 marked pistes, served by a total of 46 ski lifts. In addition to the skiing in Oberau itself (109km of pisted ski runs), the appropriate ski Lift Pass will allow you to ski or snowboard in the other Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau ski resorts of Alpbach, Auffach, Kramsach, Niederau, Reith im Alpbachtal and Thierbach.

Ski Area Stats

Oberau Overview

The beautifully named Wildschönau region in the Hochtal area of the Tirol has four centres, each having small ski areas consisting largely of parallel ski lifts, the majority above Auffach and Niederau on either side of Oberau (the largest village). Mühltal has a couple of short drags up above it at Thierbach, the fourth village in thearea. Each village is about 3km (2 miles) apart, with Oberau in the centre of the triangle.

The Wildschönau attracts many international tour operators and has offered winter sports holidays since 1947 at Niederau. The area is famous for its picturesque resorts and beautiful mountain scenery, with much of the skiing on trails cut through forested slopes within the Kitzbüheler Alps. Visitors can indeed take advantage of the Kitzbüheler Alpen pass offering around 700km (440 miles) of trails on one ticket. However, the resorts are best known as beginner and family destinations, having successfully carved out a niche for themselves as archetypal Tyrolean villages offering good value and high standards of tuition.

All of the villages contain typical Tyrolean chalet style buildings, some of them centuries old. The church of St. Margaretha in Oberau is one of the Tyrol's most impressive historic buildings. Constructed in the 18th century the austere exterior hides the splendour inside where there are beautiful ceiling frescos from the Baroque era produced by the painter Jos. Adam Mölk from Munich as well as stations of the cross.

Altogether there are about 4000 people living in the area, around half in Oberau, which has the majority of the facilities, and a third in Niederau, marginally regarded as the liveliest village and with a few more guest beds than Oberau. The whole region is currently participating in a ten year plan to ensure that the region continues to successfully merge tradition and nature with the needs of modern living and tourism in the new millennium.

 Notable Ski Runs

The longest possible descent in Oberau is 7km long and the most difficult run is the 'WM Run'.

Skiing

The Wildschönau's skiing is a fragmented affair with the largest areas above Niederau and Auffach and half a dozen small separate beginner areas next to the villages themselves. A free ski bus links the various areas. Niederau has perhaps the largest area and most varied terrain, whilst Auffach, with largely intermediate category skiers, has the biggest vertical and highest lifts. Oberau itself has seven parallel drag lifts next to one another along a road that runs out above the village. They serve about a dozen short beginner runs on wide sunny meadows beneath the forest. There is also one longer drag serving an intermediate descent.

Niederau's skiing is the main attraction for advanced skiers with the three black runs all here, including an excellent mogul run beneath the new Markbachjoch gondola with a vertical drop of nearly 700 metres. Ski touring is another opportunity with a ski school guide. Auffach's two stage gondola accesses more than half a dozen reds and the most snowsure skiing in the area, including some above-treeline terrain where powder can build up that's pretty well absent elsewhere.

Cross country skiers will find 50km (31 miles) of trails along the valley floor.

There are a variety of pistes to suit all levels of skier ability, from Beginner to Expert.

Snowboarding

With a family feel, two thirds of the terrain graded easy and ninety per-cent of the terrain served by drag lifts, most of them T bars, Niederau and Oberau will not appeal to the hardcore 'boarder. There are plus points to the area however, including a fun park with half pipe at Auffach which, along with Niederau, has top to bottom gondola access. Niederau has some fun terrain with natural terrain features on the long fast black down from the gondola, so if you approach the place with an open mind, you can have a lot of fun. The Happy Ski and Snowboarding School offers tuition. There's also a Swatch Race 'n' Boarder Arena in Niederau.

Aprés Ski

Niederau is generally regarded as the liveliest choice of the three. The Dorfstub'n Fun-Pub there offers dancing and live entertainment every Sunday from 8:30 pm. The café at the Simmerlwirt is often lively as soon as the lifts closes and sometimes has live music.

All of the villages organise Tyrolean evenings several times weekly and the ski school in Niederau throws a snow party every week. Lively evening toboggan parties with glühwein and moonlit sleigh rides to fondue parties are the order of the day.

The local brew is a version of schnaps made from turnips!