Fendels Ski Resort Austria
The baby sibling of Kaunertal Glacier, Fendels Winterberg ski resort might appear easy to ignore, but all good powder hounds would do well to consider it as an affordable storm-day alternative to the glacier. Accessible by gondola from the valley, or direct from the attractive village of Fendels at 1,352m altitude, the upper mountain has a range of fantastic off-piste terrain, whist the on-piste is family friendly throughout.
Pros & Cons for Fendels Ski Resort
Pros
- Quality snow on northwest aspect.
- Good skiable vertical of 920m with several long top to bottom runs & routes
- Quiet during the week.
- Easy access by gondola from the valley or car right to the ski lifts.
- Pretty village with a rural feel in a splendid alpine location.
- Excellent novice/beginner skier resort.
- Fun freeride ski opportunities, including trees.
- Powder ski option when lifts are shut down elsewhere due to winter storms.
- Affordable lift pass.
- Several great mountain restaurants.
Cons
- Limited amount of piste trails and overall terrain.
- Aging, but still functional, lift infrastructure.
- Limited après ski & nightlife
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Quiet village locations
- May get busy if Kaunertal Glacier closes and the crowd heads across to Fendels instead.
- Nearby villages are relatively quiet & distant from the resort.
- No public transport directly to Fendels (but it does go to Ried, from where a gondola can be taken).
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lift & Terrain
The Fendels skiing & snowboarding terrain may appear smallish, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a worthy location to keep in mind if in the region. A skiable vertical of over 900m is nothing to be sneezed at, and neither is its north-west aspect terrain that includes some tasty looking freeride options. Below 1,900m the runs are lined with a protective boundary of mixed larch & pine forest, and above that, plus skiers right of the lifts to low levels, is a broad alpine bowls & steeps that should ride well on storm days when everything else in the valley is shut down. For beginners & intermediates, the piste trails hold more than enough interest for a day or two of sliding that won’t break the bank.
Check out the ski trail map for Fendels below.
Once up on the hill at the Fendels village (1,350m), for powder hounds there are only two lifts of any importance. The Sattelboden quad chair is Fendels main ski lift & rises 500m vertical. Above that the Plangger T-bar elevates one to the highest lifted point of 2,270m, providing access to the full skiable vertical and the traverse across to the alpine off-piste freeride terrain below Gamskopf. Beginners will enjoy the Hammer T-bar down low, plus its associated Kids Snow Park.
Lift Passes
Fendels ski lift passes are for the local ski lifts and the Ried <--> Fendels gondola. Passes are cheaper if staying in the village and have an associated 'guest card'. If one has a Kaunertal Glacier lift pass and the road or lifts are closed due to wind/snow (it happens!), the pass is also valid for use on the dorf (village) lift in Feichten as well as the ski lifts at Fendels. A free ski bus links the Fendels gondola valley station at Ried to Kaunertal Glacier (& vice-versa) 5 times throughout the day or between Feichten & Ried if the glacier road is closed due to poor weather.
See here for the full Kaunertal - Fendels resort map.
Where is Fendels Austria?
The Fendels ski resort sits pretty above the Oberinntal (in English, the over/upper Inn valley) in the Tirol state of Austria. Its tiny footprint sits juxtaposed against the Serfaus Fiss Ladis behemoth spread across the opposite side if the valley. The ski area is south-west of Innsbruck and 90km (1¼hr) by road. The nearest major transport hub is Landeck Zams, 22km (30min) to the north.
The closest international airport for travellers from within Europe & the UK is Innsbruck (INN). For everyone else it is Munich (MUC) or Zurich (ZRH), both around 3 to 3½hr drive away. The closest major railway station is at Landeck-Zams.
The Powderhounds endeavour to use public transport wherever possible & we travelled to the area of several occasions using the train & bus. Getting to Landeck Zams is simple as it is a major station on the line between Innsbruck & Switzerland. Landeck’s bus terminals have services to ski resorts near & far, but to travel to Fendels just requires the Route 210 bus (direction Nauders) and get off at Ried-im-Oberinntal. The journey on public transport from Innsbruck to Ried should take around 1½hr in total. If you need to get up to Fendels village, get a private transfer, or pay for a one-way gondola ride.
Search & book here for all train tickets to Landeck-Zams.
If hunting out a sneaky powder day, driving a rental car is the easiest way to get around. Parking in the resort village is free and ample.
For anyone cautious about driving on icy mountain roads, skiing at Fendels is made easier with its gondola access from the valley village of Ried im Oberinntal. No winding roads, just exit the motorway near Landeck-Zams, through the tunnel and park at the gondola base in Ried. Simples! Mind you, Fendels is 6½km (10min drive) up the hill from Ried, but unless staying there, it makes sense to use the gondola from Ried, if for no other reason than to minimise driving & traffic in the charming alpine village.
For hints, tips & warnings about getting to Austria ski resorts in winter, see our Travel in Austria page.
Fendels Accommodation
The accommodations available in Fendels ski resort are in the resort base village of the same name, Fendels or in the gondola connected valley village town of Ried im Oberinntal.
Search & book here for all Fendels ski accommodation.
Access to Fendels is via the valley village of Ried im Oberinntal, which provides alternative accommodation, as do nearby Pfunds, Prutz & Fendels. The Powderhounds have stayed in Pfunds and loved it. Pfunds has a wonderful balance of history, services, restaurants bars & hotels. Further afield, Landeck-Zams on the Innsbruck to St Anton train line makes a convenient base from which to explore the entire region.
Ski Rentals
Our local partners have two convenient equipment rental location in the centre of Ried-im-Oberinntal, and right at the gondola valley station. Receive a discount when you search & book via this Fendels (Ried-im-Oberinntal) Ski & Snowboard Rental link.
[AdListings collection="Europe" category="Austria Fendels" subcategory="Fendels Guiding"]
Nearby Ski Resorts
Fendels is close to several awesome Austrian ski resorts covering all the size, terrain & price possibilities. The high-altitude ski area of Kaunertal Glacier is one the most reliable for snow in the entire Alps and is accessible by ski bus from the Fendels gondola valley station Ried im Oberinntal. Nauders is a short drive up the valley toward the Italian border and provides sensational powder day riding, on-piste turns and mountain dining. The massive Serfaus Fiss Ladis has it all just across the valley from Fendels. Another small but interesting ski area is Venet, located at Zams, back through the tunnel to the Inn valley.
Review
The Powderhounds checked out Fendels in early February 2022. We think it is one of the small family friendly Alps ski areas that you need to keep in the back of your mind and open in case of emergency. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read all the reviews.
See how Fendels compares to the rest of the Austrian ski resorts on the Austria ski resort ratings page, or compare to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.
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