Worldwide Ski Resorts • Austria • Oberau
Overview
The small, pretty village of Oberau is one of a number of a combination of similar small villages that together, make up the friendly, family orientated Tyrolean ski region of Wildschonau which has earned its reputation as a favourite ski destination. The village stands between the two other villages; Niederau, the largest and Auffach, the smallest. Oberau is the main centre for the region and like its neighbours is a typical mountain community with a wealth of attractive, traditionally built chalets. All three villages are linked by a free ski bus service. It is an ideal place for novices and was the site of the 2004 World Disabled Athletes Championships. Accommodation in the region is a little limited due to the total size of the area, but there is a good choice of both comfortable 3 and 4 star graded hotels and self catering apartments here that provide excellent value for money, including a number of pensions. There are also some very pleasant restaurants and bars in the village.
Profile
The resort stands at around 830m and provides direct lift access from the villages to a somewhat modest 64 km of pistes that are served by 28 lifts. The region’s reputation for guaranteed snow is a little shaky, although there are 15 km of snow making facilities on the mountains. In fairness,experts will find insufficient sport here to keep them interested for very long, although there are some respectable black runs and some good off piste opportunities to be found. The vast majority of the slopes will suit all levels of intermediate skier, although once again, the more confident will find the lack of area frustrating.
The resort is ideally suited to novices and improvers with a number of excellent nursery areas and progression slopes on which to hone early skills. The ski schools have received good reports with the exception that the classes can get too large. Snowboarders will find a warm welcome and benefit from a small park equipped with kickers, rails and a half pipe — but be warned, there are quite a few drags here.
Mountain Information
The slopes over at Niederau are mostly tree lined and are never higher than 1600 m. They get higher above Auffach to provide more open areas. The more testing runs are found at Niederau where one notable black provides a worthwhile mogulled run over a 700m vertical drop that is not for the faint hearted. Intermediates will find that the Markbachjoch and the Laner Kopfl, again at Niederau are good fun and should also explore the Schatzberg over at Auffach. Novices will probably want to stay around Oberau itself where the best nursery slopes are to be found.
Apres Ski
The après ski scene starts early here and is surprisingly lively for such a small family focussed village. There are a number of excellent bars with the S’No Blau Bar receiving particularly good reviews.
Austrian Resort Guide
Resort Information • Oberau
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Resort Height | 935m |
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Top Station | 1200m |
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Bottom Station | 936m |
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Vertical Descent | 264m |
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Drag Lifts | 7 |
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Chair Lifts | 0 |
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High Capacity | 0 |
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Opening Dates | Mid Dec - End March |
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Rating Expert | 2 |
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Rating Intermediate | 5 |
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Rating Beginner | 7 |
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Apres Ski Rating | 5 |
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Snow Reliability | 6 |
