Bad Gastein, Austria

Resort Overview for Bad Gastein:

An international resort of town-sized dimensions, Bad Gastein in the Hohe Tauern mountains has a long history of tourism pre-dating winter sports by many centuries. Today it is a town of grand appearance with classically designed hotels with shades of white and pale yellow cutting up in to the skyline. The town grew up, as its name might suggest, on 17 natural healing thermal springs which still rise directly beneath it as they have for the past 3000 years. After a hard day skiing the 250km (170 miles) of trails on the Gastein Valley Pass it's possible to bathe in the open air in the rock swimming pool complex filled by the hot natural springs.

Bad Gastein's spa treatments were recognised as far back as the 13th century, but its skiing potential only came to light in the 1950s after the first cable car in Austria was opened here in 1950 and the Ski World Cup of 1958 subsequently drew further attention. However the resort remains as famous for its curative abilities as it does for its winter sports facilities, with the healing powers of the Gastein Thermal Gallery particularly highly praised. This was created by miners digging for gold who discovered that, despite the hard work, their rheumatic pains were getting less, not greater.

The sense of the importance of water to Bad Gastein - be it bubbling up through the rocks below or turned to snow on the mountains above, is everywhere, and emphasised most visibly perhaps by the spectacular waterfall that cascades down by the town.

The Skiing in Bad Gastein:

The Gastein ski area, one of Austria's largest, is separated in to four areas, served by three resorts and several small additional lift base areas. The ski area is centred on Bad Gastein, the biggest settlement in the valley. The largest of the ski areas begins on the Stubnerkogel mountain above Bad Gastein and is more-or-less lift-linked, via the small Angertal Ski centre, to the skiing on the Schlossalm above Bad Hofgastein. A second lower area, reached by train or bus down the valley, links Grossarl (in the next valley) to Dorfgastein at the bottom of the Gastein Valley, over the Kreuzkogel Mountain (2027m). The third and highest ski area is the small sector above Sport Gastein which has a base at 1600 metres and a snow-sure top lift at 2685m on the Kreuzkogel mountain. The off-piste powder trails down from here are particularly highly regarded.

Bad Gastein has a second ski area of its own, on the Graukogel from which the Kamikaze descent is a popular run for good local skiers. The Ski amadé ski pass covers all of the resorts in the Gastein Valley and most of the surrounding areas too, with trains and bus services linking the various ski areas between 8am and 6pm so long as you use these when skiing or snowboarding.

Après Ski in Bad Gastein:

The night life of Bad Gastein is more sophisticated than at most ski centres with theatre, concerts in the Kongresshaus, public reading room and ballroom dancing on offer as well as a wide range of bars, restaurants and night-spots. The Casino Bad Gastein also offers a wide range of gambling opportunities.

Accommodation in Bad Gastein:

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Chalet Gastein, Sleeps 34 Welcome to Chalet Gastein! Chalet Gastein is quitly situated on the pedestrian zone of the sunny...... View details