Winter Sports in the Alps: Bergeralm, Tyrol, Austria
There are various great ski resorts in Tyrol, and one of them is located just between the city of Innsbruck and the Italian border. As it is often overlooked, I’d say: grab your skis, snowboards, or whatever you use to enjoy the beautiful mountains and let’s start with all the fun in the white powder.
The ski area I’m talking about is the Bergeralm, located about 20 km south of Innsbruck, right before the Brenner and the border to Italy. If you have ever been around Innsbruck and got there from the south, you surely will have seen the resort, as one of the slopes is just next to the A13 motorway that connects Austria to Italy. While looking at a ski resort when driving on an Austrian motorway might not be that impressive, skiing right next to such a major road is surely a different kind of experience. Also, the parking area and main gondola of the resort start right underneath the motorway bridge, which is an impressive view from down there.
But now let’s focus a bit on the slopes and lifts. One thing that seems to be unique, or at least I can’t think of any other chairlift one like that, is the “Kombibahn Hoher Turm”. As the German name already implies, it is a lift that is a gondola as well as a chairlift, meaning there’s one gondola followed by two chairlifts and so on. Why, you might ask? Well, I was not too sure at first how useful it really is, but as it is a very new chairlift, the footrests are very narrow. For every seat there’s a tiny footrest, perfectly suited for skiers, but for snowboarders these are not too comfortable, so we suggest boarders take the gondola. Also, everyone prefers a different way to get up a mountain and here you are free to choose. In summer, there’s only the gondola bringing hikers to the top of the mountain. I might have to add that it seems as if the Kombibahn is not always a combination of gondola and chairlift, as during my last visit, very early in the 2019/2020 season, it was only used as a chairlift.
At the time of my last visits, the slopes were in perfect conditions and you can also find slopes of different difficulty levels. There’s even one slope named after Manfred Pranger, a very successful Tyrolean alpine skier who retired just a few years ago. This slope is marked as “very difficult to ski on” and only suited for experienced skiers and I, personally, am a huge fan of the Bergeralm’s difficult slopes.
Just like any other ski resort, you'll find various huts just next to the slopes. What I found particularly interesting is that when taking the main gondola, you'll find an Apres Ski bar next to the valley station as well as next to the upper station. At the one next to the valley station you can start partying as early as 2 PM, so even the lazy ones among you will be entertained. As I'm not the biggest Apres Ski fan, I've never tried out the bars.
Honestly, I think the Bergeralm is a resort that might be a bit overlooked as it is located a bit farther away from Innsbruck than other resorts, but in my eyes I’d say it’s still rather close and I think you can truly enjoy yourselves there. One thing you have to keep in mind is that, due to its location on the Brenner motorway, I do not recommend going there on a Saturday as you risk being stuck in traffic for a very long time on the way there and back. Especially, as soon as it gets warm enough for people to head south to Italy for spring vacations. Believe me it happened to me more than once.
If you are planning on heading to the Bergeralm, I recommend you check out the link below to get directed to their official website, where you can obtain all the latest information about snow, weather and road conditions. Be sure to also check the traffic information to be sure you’re not stuck in a traffic jam.
The SNOW CARD TIROL & FREIZEIT TICKET TIROL are valid for this resort.
If you, instead, are not sure about which ski resort to choose for your next adventure, head to the link below to read about many more resorts that have different kinds of advantages. If you cannot find the resort you are looking for, leave a comment with your suggestion or write me a message.
Little disclaimer: none of these posts are sponsored. Sponsored posts are clearly marked and if you are curious about how I handle that, I suggest you read about that here.