Oberperfuss Ski Resort Austria
Oberperfuss ski resort (a.k.a. Rangger Köpfl) is a fun ski & sled resort overlooking Innsbruck in Austria. While the ski terrain might seem limited, the long skiable vertical, modern lifts, splendid views, wonderful hospitality & variety of activities make Oberperfuss-Rangger a great day (or night) out with the family. The resort's modern gondolas & rural atmosphere add more strings to the bow. Plane spotters will enjoy the long-distance views looking over, and directly along, the Innsbruck airport runway!
Pros & Cons for Oberperfuss - Rangger Köpfl
Pros
- Super fun 1,180m vertical, 6km long descents from top to bottom.
- Stunning views over Innsbruck.
- Awesome family-friendly access via two modern gondolas & a brand-new combi gondola/chairlift.
- Quality on-piste trails for families & intermediates.
- Sheltered tree lined piste trails for safe, skiing during winter storms.
- Interesting ski touring options from the summit.
- Excellent mountain huts & restaurants.
- Super value for money.
- Superb 10km sled trail that runs during the day & night until late.
- Wonderful friendly & accommodating staff.
Cons
- Limited on-piste diversity.
- Paying for parking is a nonsense.
- Limited off-piste terrain.
- Low elevation base is vulnerable to the vagaries of mother nature.
- Limited ski-in / ski-out accommodation.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Small ski resort.
- Quiet area of Innsbruck with a gloriously rural feel.
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain
The Oberperfuss skiing & snowboarding terrain may on first appearances seem ready made for families & beginners. However, the lower half of the mountain has a darkside worthy of the greatest thigh liquefying ski slopes in the world. Essentially variations of one extended ski run, the 17km of piste trails on a respectable 1,180m of vertical, range from intermediate to beginner to intermediate & then advanced for the last 600m vertical. The 6km top to bottom descent is a real doozy, taking in every type of snow surface along the way down the full vertical! From the open alpine summit, most of the ski slopes are tree lined with heavy pine forest, allowing perfect turns during low visibility storms.
Check out the ski trail map for Oberperfuss below. This one does not yet show the new combi gondola/chairlift at the top of the mountain.
The resort’s ski lifts underwent a recent renaissance with the installation of a beautiful 2-stage gondola from the base all the way up to 1,650m. The final 350m+ of vertical was until recently via a T-bar tow - just to remind you why skiers at small resorts are so hardened, but for season 24/25 has been replaced by a brand-spanking new combi lift - gondola and chairlift. A novice tow & the Egghoflift surface tow at mid-mountain make up the sum total. The placement of the Egghoflift is such that beginners & intermediates can stay in good snow above the steeps toward the base area.
For off-piste freeride or backcountry skiing, the summit of Rangger is the starting point for several cruisy tours down to a saddle then out to minor summits below Rosskogel. Descents can include dropping all the way into the adjacent Iraintal drainage, requiring transport back to the resort. At the bottom of the Egghoflift, off-piste descents through the meadows can be done through the hay barns to accommodation near Oberperfuss. Remembering the relatively low elevation of Oberperfuss, the length of vertical in the off-piste is determined heavily by depth of snow-cover down low.
Interlinked Lift Ticket with Ski+City Pass
Oberperfuss is part of Innsbruck’s Ski plus City Pass area which includes 13 ski resorts ranging from the small, like Nordkette & Patscherkofel, the in-between like Axamer Lizum Bergeralm, Glungezer & Schlick 2000, up to the larger such as Stubai Glacier and Kühtai (the highest resort base in Austria). A Ski + City pass is for a minimum 2 days & allows unlimited access to all 13 ski & sled resorts, plus a wide range of attractions in the city of Innsbruck. Getting a pass can make sense if considering using Oberperfuss as a night-time sled location but skiing elsewhere during the day.
See the Innsbruck Ski+City Pass resorts map.
Where is Oberperfuss-Rangger Koepfl Austria?
The Oberperfuss-Rangger Köpfl ski resort is in the Tyrol, only 17km (22min) drive from the centre of the world's greatest ski city, Innsbruck. The closest town to the resort is Oberperfuss, situated around the base of the ski area.
The nearest international airport for flight origins from within Europe & the UK is Innsbruck (INN), located a few minutes down the road. The runway lines up perfectly with one of the upper piste trails. The excellent Munich (MUC) airport is the gateway for everyone else.
From the Innsbruck airport, depending on where one is staying, the Line F bus shuttle gets one into town, or if your preference is to pre-arrange transport, one can book a private airport transfers or rent a car. Regular buses (bus route 4165) travel from Innsbruck to Oberperfuss via the local towns to the resort’s gondola base in around 35min (or less depending on the service).
From Munich, it is recommended to take a train to Innsbruck & then utilise local transport options from there. Search & book train tickets to Innsbruck here.
Anyone doing a day (or night) trip to Oberperfuss in a car will find ample parking near the base of the gondola but note that it is paid parking - a ridiculous notion considering the location. We hope the money goes to a good local cause! We recommended renting cars from Innsbruck airport.
For detailed information on getting around the area, see our Travel to Innsbruck page
Oberperfuss Accommodation
The village of Oberperfuss & its surrounding hamlets have a plethora of delightful, high quality rural lodgings to choose from. Many will come with their own herd of cows in a nearby barn! Wonderful farm-stays, guesthouses & apartments make up the majority of the offerings. A handful of hotels are available, the best of which is in central Oberperfuss, the Hotel Kleißl (Kleissl). Of the best guesthouses, Gästehaus Kofler is ski-in ski-out at the top of the first stage of the gondola, Gästehaus Huber is in a rural setting on the outskirts of Oberperfuss (& ski-in via the off-piste!), and the Studlerhof is just near the gondola base station. Other apartments, holiday homes, & rooms are in the area.
To see the full availability search & book via our Oberperfuss Ski Accommodation page.
Activities
One of Europe’s great winter activities involves sliding on snow in a way other than skiing, boarding or on your bum! Of course, it is sledding (or known variously by other names including, but not limited to - sledging, tobogganing, rodelbahn, schlitten). Whilst many non-Europeans associate sledding as a child’s activity, in the Alps, the trails carry just as many adults as children, and for good reason - it is a super-fast & super-fun activity.
At Innsbruck the premier sledding trail is the 10km beast at Oberperfuss. It starts at the Rosskogelhütte (1780m altitude) & finishes down on the edge of Oberperfuss village at 820m elevation. The descent can be done every day during winter, & two nights a week (usually Tuesday & Friday) under lights until early March. The view across the lower Inntal Valley at night (or day) is a beauty. From the top of the gondola (1,650m) a short walk is required to ascend to the official start of the trail at Rosskogelhütte. A few shots of the local liquor will assist in the gathering of courage required to tackle the descent at a pace! Two guesthouses along the route are available for further fortification of courage - Sulzstich & Stiglreit. The activity is including in a Ski+City Pass, or a special sledding ticket can be purchased.
Reviews
The Powderhounds visited Oberperfuss in 2018 & 2022. We loved the friendly staff, incredible location, rural atmosphere & skiable/sledable vertical. We need to return to fully check out the ski-touring options from the summit. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read our reviews!
See how Oberperfuss 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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