I revisited Axamer Lizum in early March 2024 ostensibly to check out the resort in sunny conditions (it was socked in and a blizzard on my last visit!), and also to see how the new top-to-bottom gondola had changed the ski area.

Half of Innsbruck seemed to be on the mountain on this particular sunny Friday, but the lifts appeared to cope quite well with the traffic. Some of the pistes in high traffic areas were suffering (i.e. getting bumped & icy), but all in all the huge number of visitors dispersed across the mountain, and despite a full car park at the base, it did not feel crowded.

Having skied incredibly deep powder up high at Stubai Glacier & Schlick the previous 2 days, I was interested to see how tracked out Axamer was. Turns out the previous day had attracted a fair crowd (it was sunny after all), as the resort’s entire off-piste was heavily tracked. It had been a relatively lean few weeks for big powder days near Innsbruck, so the high visitation was understandable. Sadly too, by the time I visited, not only was it completely tracked out inbounds, but the snow quality had also been impacted by sun and mild temperatures.

All was not lost though. Light, dry powder existed on the backside of the Hoadl summit & from Hoadlsattel (saddle) down to the Kemater Alm mountain hut, plus throughout the sidecountry, (particularly on shaded north-aspects). A massive number of skinners were setting tracks & skiing lines in the sidecountry up and around the spectacular Kalkkögel range of peaks that form Axamer Lizum’s backdrop. Several impressive skin trails climbed the couloirs up to the gorgeous 2,556m Ampferstein peak & around the 2,571m Malgrubenspitze (something I will do next on my next visit to Axamer).

With the sun out I got to see the full utility of the magnificent Hoadlhaus mountain restaurant. The massive sides of the ‘outer’ terrace were raised providing a stunning view across to the distant Schlicker Seespitze & Schwarzhorn. Even though a self-serve restaurant, the food here is top-notch and well-priced, plus the view is priceless.

Worth knowing if coming here by car is that the parking at first glance appears to require payment of a daily fee, but in reality, it is free when one purchases a lift pass. You do need to get a free parking receipt generated from one of the car park ticket machines though, and it involves using your lift pass. Buy your lift pass first, then sort out the parking.

Regarding the ‘nightlife’ score of 3 paws. If staying in the resort or nearby village other than some après ski in the afternoon, it only rates a 1 or 2, but if staying in nearby Innsbruck it rates a 4 or 5, hence the middle of the road score. On this visit I stayed in a fantastic value guesthouse in Axams. The village of Axams has some lovely traditional elements at its heart. It is low altitude though, and on this visit it was completely snowless, green and warm.

The terrain around Axamer Lizum has a bit of everything for skiers that aren’t afraid to push beyond the resort boundary, and the new gondola has vastly improved access to it. From the beautiful Hoadl summit you can scan the surrounds & choose your own adventure. When the temperatures are cold & the snow is low in the valley, this ski area is one the best you will ever slide at. Just avoid coming on a weekend or blue-sky day because the Innsbruck locals will be out in force.

See our thoughts on the pros & cons of the ski resort via the Axamer Lizum overview page.

See our video here

You would think that an Austrian ski resort with Olympic heritage close to a major city, plus a high elevation base, a lift ticket under €40 & superb north-facing terrain would be overrun with skiers all season long. But we have found that is simply not the case when it comes to Axamer Lizum near Innsbruck. As the photos show, Axamer was deserted & the snow was deep. Powderhounds pleasure!

Whilst it is let down by some ancient & slow lifts, we had a sensational few days riding deep powder at Axamer in early March with the entire mountain to ourselves. Perfectly groomed piste trails, off-piste freeride variety above & below the tree line plus the excellent mountain huts & summit restaurant (the extraordinary Hoadlhaus) all conspired to provide an awesome ski experience.

We stayed in Innsbruck, but if had the opportunity again, would have stayed a night on the mountain in one of the ski-in, ski-out hotels in the base area. The village of Goetzens is an option too. Taking the public bus up to the resort, it is possible to ski 6km of piste trails on 1,100m vertical all the way down to the valley via the Birgitzköpfl. Gotta love a good European valley trail!

Axamer Lizum highlights a major reason to ski Austria. So much choice & so few skiers during the week, & when the sun is not out! Timing might be everything in skiing, but good management beats good luck every time. So, if you are driving down the motorway heading to the skiing behemoths of St Anton, Ischgl or Soelden on a powder day during the week, stop, reverse & head up to Axamer Lizum instead. Your bank balance & sanity wont be disappointed & the ski experience will be fantastic. Best avoided on a sunny weekend though when the Innsbruck locals all come out to play!

See our video here

Briefly visited the medium sized resort of Axamer Lizum on a weekend, so it was unfortunately quite busy. However, its high elevation base meant the snow was sensational and all the off piste routes including off the backside looking across to Oberperfuss were open and looked great.

Overall has some excellent ski in / ski out accommodation, very good intermediate piste trails, some interesting off piste and glorious views from the upper mountain dining areas.

We look forward to coming back next season and skiing it fully .................... on a weekday!
See our video here

When we visited Axamer Lizum there had been a fresh dump of 20cms of powder overnight, the skies were bright blue, and it was very crisp – probably about -25 degrees Celsius. The conditions were absolutely perfect and the powder was exquisitely dry. The only problem was that there was an almost non-existent base. There were fresh tracks galore to tease us, but we didn’t have “rock-hoppers” to make the most of the many many sharks lurking just below the surface.

And even though there was beautiful powder on the sides of the piste, the groomed runs were horribly icy.

Due to the inadequate snow base, the main black piste was closed, but it was enjoyable to head up the chair lift to the little mountain hut and enjoy the gorgeous views (and then download). Whilst the area is renowned for relatively low snowfalls, the presence of many avalanche fences seemed to suggest that this isn’t always the case.

Even if we had struck gold with the snow, the one day trip would probably have sufficed. Like the other Innsbruck ski resorts, Axamer Lizum is not a large resort so there’s only enough terrain to warrant a visit for a day, or perhaps two at the most.

The tram lift was pretty cool but unfortunately the other lifts were painfully slow.
See our video here