ACCESS: An easy train from Innsbruck with great scenery along the way. Staying in town is not a requirement - we stayed in Gundhabing and the ski bus system is easy to use, or taxis if not. Walking around town, most accommodation could access lifts on either side of the value with ease. Staying in Kirchberg or Klausen would also be ok, albeit a bit quieter. It’s worth noting that the buses were patchy and infrequent - we opted for a taxi most nights which was around 15€.
Terrain: Lots to play with across the various hills. I spent two days on the Fleckham side and only checked out the Kitz side on the final day. In fresh snow, you could comfortably spend 5 days here. One aspect of note was a lack of expert terrain - some steep pistes existed but we did not ride anything challenging, in or off piste.
Park: A fun setup on Panker, SML rail garden followed by a SM jump line, easily lapped by a lift.
Off piste: A lot of options here. Kitz skiers seem not interested in off piste, meaning pistes are groomed to death but off piste is mostly untouched. I easily found fresh snow for all 3 days after a storm. The highlight was the face under the lone back bowl lift on the Aschau side.
Piste: Piste galore with some fast steep groomers if you’re into that sort of thing.
Food: Phenomenal huts across the mountain. Despite the reputation, food and drink were reasonably priced. The Fleckham valley run has a fun hut hop for end of day, although is was super icy.
Value: Lift prices were around 55-60€ a day which was excellent value. We rode a single older quad chair, everything else was a new gondola, 6 or 8 chair. Lift investment appears to be continuing too.
APRES: we were none too impressed on our first day. Bars were very quiet and little to no apres occurred. We were aware that it was late season so tempered expectations but it wasnt until we made some local friends that anything fun occurred. The Londoner was good.
Overall: If you don’t mind a bit of an uptight vibe, I enjoyed Kitzbuhel. I would recommend but will be unlikely to return, not to any specific reason but more just underwhelmed.
See our video here

We skied one day out of Hollersbach on a windy, cold day with no links to the rest of KitzSki because of the weather. Knowing we were coming back made it a good scouting mission but little else. Some off-piste runs hinted at what it could be in better conditions but this day wasn't it.

Four days later we returned on a big fresh snow morning and accessed via Pass Thurn. For such glorious conditions we were virtually the only people getting about the Jochberg-Resterhöhe area of KitzSki. The powder was deep and plentiful and all open for our fresh lines. A truly wonderful place for top notch powder adventure. Shout out to the Hanglalm hut nestled between the Resterkogel at 1894m and Zweitausender at 2004m for warming us up on this very cold day with their so very European ceramic heater set up.

After gobbling up all the powder in this area, our very generous driver took us first timers to Jochberg where we rode the massive 3-S Bahn across to the Hahnenkamm-Pengelstein area so we could take in Kitzbühel proper. In stark contrast to where we had come from, conditions skiing across from Pengelstein (1938m) to Ehrenbachhöhe (1802m) were none too pleasant but it picked up on the Kitzbühel town side of the valley allowing us to soak in the classic Kitz experience of the famous Streif et al.

This area from Hahnenkamm down was completely dominated by the setting up of the annual race event which was quite the sight to see. Coming from Australia you just don't grasp how full on it is in a serious skiing nation. The grandeur of it all complemented the sensational powder skiing perfectly making it a day to remember. Kitzbühel of course is all very fancy and busy and oozing $$$$$ and they can have it. Between you and I though, the skiing juice with no crowd is out of PassThurn where the only sound is you having the time of your life.

Visit here with confidence and ski great powder. Hazzah!
See our video here

There are many facets to the Kitzbuhel and the broader Kitzski resort, and whilst we have skied the main sector a few times, for reasons too mundane to bore you with, never made it to the Pass (Paβ) Thurn sector ........ until now. We experienced a fabulous few stormy mid-week January days in the sector in 2022 and finally had real in-depth exploration in and around Pass Thurn. We had such a great time here in vile weather that we were tempted to title this review 'Feral Weather + Deep Snow = Pass Thurn Excellence'.

On the first day we started at the Hollersbach base in the Pinzgau valley. The drive is as simple as it can ever be to a ski resort – flat, clear, lots of parking (read, empty car park). First in the car park, first on the Panoramabahn Kitzbüheler Alpen gondola (which travelled incredibly slowly in strong winds from the valley (807m) via the mid-station at Brietmoos (1,231m) to the peak of Resterkogel (1,894m). At the top, we were greeted by high winds, cold temps, light snow & zero other skiers. In fact, it felt as though we had our own private ski resort for the first two hours of the morning. And to top it off the wind and light snow had conspired to make the off-piste eminently skiable and in places, positively delightful. Does it get any more glorious at a major world class ski resort! It didn’t matter that the lifts linking to Jochberg & the 3-S bahn were closed due to wind. We had a wonderful time.

The key to the off-piste terrain in this sector of Kitzski is the number 76 trail. It provides return access to the many lifts lining the alpine zone, as well as the G1 Resterhöhe chairlift from Pass Thurn. The best terrain is easily accessed below the blue trails 70b, 71b & 72c. Not huge verticals, but just fun, well-pitched freeride terrain, and totally devoid of humans on this cold January day.

The final 630m vertical from Resterkogel back down to Breitmoos is a delight either on or off-piste. Two après ski bars are along the way if that way inclined (Toni Alm and the more spartan Barfeld).

Turns out the first day was mere reconnaissance for a real powder day a few mornings later in the week. Wanting to avoid the long down time riding the gondola up from Hollersbach, we went straight up to Pass Thurn by road. First car in the car park and first chair on a 30 to 40cm powder day. Glorious.

Despite bitter cold and howling winds, we skied unsullied deep powder laps for as long as our legs could muster. We came across one other group of 3 skiing the expansive off-piste terrain, and that was all! In the afternoon, the rest of the crew skied across to Kitzbuhel via the 3-S, whilst I drove the vehicle there.

Wandering through the old town centre of Kitzbühel was very different to previous visits. Covid, meant no après ski, mask wearing even outside in the main square and a sullen feeling all over. Not the way we planned to finish such an epic pow day, but such was travel at that time. Funny that nearby Zell am See (in Salzburgerland) was still pumping after-hours compared to Kitzbuhel (in Tirol).

On this trip we stayed in a fabulously priced modern 2-bedroom in the small hamlet of Pirtendorf near Mittersill. Mittersill provides all the shops and services one could ask for, and the location is great for an exploration of the many great local resorts including Zell am See and Kitzsteinhorn.

We could not believe how few people were skiing here in mid-January. Riding 6 and 8-seater chairs with no one else on the entire line is odd, but sooo satisfying. Sure it meant braving some fierce weather, but any true powder hound relishes the extremes and this was no exception. Kitzbuehel and Kitzski is a fantastic ski area when the crowds are low, we highly recommend checking it out in the quieter months of winter.

See our video here

A few cm of snow had fallen overnight so wasn't expecting much. But powder turns were found with very little effort. And no one else was there. It was like our own private resort in the Pass Thurn part of Kitzski. I don't know if that's usual or not, but I didn't care.

It's supposed to snow heavily in the next few days, so I'll be heading straight back up there......

Rated nightlife low because we were on the Mittersill side of the resort. Quiet it is! I hear Kitzbuhel is not......!
See our video here

Our visit to Kitzbühel in the stellar 2018/19 season during the mid Feb peak season saw a depressingly steady stream of 'liquid sunshine' (rain) in the village. At an elevation of less than 800m, this is not generally cause for concern, but no one likes rain in a ski resort in February (unless you are in Australia instead of Austria!). Fortified by a delicious dinner of venison & a shot of Wildschönau Krautinger schnapps (made from turnips, it comes with a decidedly confrontational scent & a taste that will challenge most), we slept well, ready for the morning’s onslaught.

The next morning dawned gloriously & a surprisingly excellent powder day in the upper half of the resort ensued. As it was a blue-sky Saturday, we found the piste trails to be busy by 10am, but they are wide enough to be tolerable. Lift lines were long & tetchy but moved swiftly thanks to the plethora of 6 & 8-seater chairs in the resort. A local referred to the lift line anarchy as ‘active queuing’ – a phenomenon common to many large European ski resorts in peak season. A line of 12 people across trying to squeeze through a 4 or 6-person gate is always doomed to have its issues & busy resorts like Kitzbuhel need to take a leaf out of the US, Canadian or Australian ski resorts book about how to effectively manage lift queues.

The singularly most pleasing surprise was that there was only minor competition for fresh tracks in the powder. It didn't take too much imagination to find some untracked powder, even after lunch.

Another great surprise was the quality & price of lunch at the excellent Melkalm mountain hut/restaurant. At the end of the day (or before it if you like), après ski is to a world's best standard - as expected of any great Austrian ski resort.

We only skied the Kitzbuhel - Kirchberg sector of the resort (less than half of the total) & will return to ski the rest later in the season. We understand other parts of the resort are alot quieter.

Like any ski resort, one can pay a premium for everything & Kitzbuhel is no exception. And like every ski resort there are also loads of great value options to suit every visitor’s needs. The village of Kitzbuhel is the most expensive location to stay. Next door, Kirchberg in Tirol offers better value & availability, plus it could be argued Kirchberg has the best lift access to the main ski area. Some awesome on-mountain hotels & 'huts' provide first tracks.

Often misrepresented as a playground of the wealthy, Kitzbuhel is accessible to all & should be experienced at least once in every snow lover's lifetime. It may suffer a little from "altitude deficit" in some winters & the crowds in peak season will test the patience of any non-European caught in its jostling lift queues, but Kitzbuhel delivers on most levels.

We had an awesome time at Kitzbuehel. We are sure you will too. The same rules apply as in all BIG ski resorts – ski midweek, get up early, get in front of the pack & reap the harvest!

See our video here

First time to Kitzbuhel (and first time skiing Austria) and we were not disappointed. I will say it was during the week (Wednesday, Thursday) so lift lines were nonexistent. This has as much to do with non peak days as well as the lift system. The lift system at Kitzbühel is amazing. Once off the base, the mountain is massive therefore spreading out the masses. Large gondolas, 8 pack shielded lifts with heated seats! Awesome!

On to the snow! Conditions on the first day were good. We skied the Hanenkaambahn side the first day. This is more of the tourist side. Lots of apres and nice town area. Packed powder and piste held up most of the day. Off piste we found several areas of untracked powder. Light was a little flat due to the overcast (forgot my bright lenses at home) but not too bad. Great day.

On the second day we skied the Jochberg side. This is where the locals ski. Wow! Bluebird day with a fresh 5-6” and conditions definitely a top 10 day. Piste were in excellent condition and off piste was almost orgasmic with plenty of untouched knee deep in the morning. Thursday was the busier of the days and as the day wore on the piste become a little scratchy. No problem plenty of off piste to be had. This place is massive. Would need at least 3-4 days to ski it all. Will definitely go back.
See our video here

Kitzbuhel is legendary for good reason.  Its massive integrated lift and snow-making systems, plus its perfect piste terrain are world class. Poor natural snow at the lower elevations and overcrowding are Kitzbuehel's achilles heel.

A great party town accessible by train from anywhere in Europe, Kitzbuhel boasts of having ski terrain open for over 6 months each year - that's alot of après drinking sessions. Better leave the car at home and take the train! We visited during the Hahnenkamm Race week and can attest to the drinking, singing & dancing capacity of the Kitzbuhel locals and visitors.

If it has snowed to lower elevations in Austria, Kitzbϋhel is definitely worth checking out.

See our video here