KitzSki Ready For Winter
After a colorful autumn, white will once again be the dominant color in the KitzSki winter sports paradise in the coming weeks. A particular focus of the investments for the coming winter season is on improving the slopes and snowmaking. The main goal is to increase safety for skiers and to achieve even better slope quality.
The piste is the star of KitzSki: 233 kilometers of slopes and 58 lifts are waiting to make guests' vacation or excursion as varied as possible. This year there are many unique offers for ski fans, with the focus being on fun, especially for children. For those who prefer cross-country skiing, tobogganing or hiking on the winter trails specially laid out on the mountain, KitzSki also has additional offers here.
Investment focus: slopes and snowmaking
With a series of piste corrections, additional modern and efficient snow generators, the further expansion of snow pipes and pumping systems as well as the purchase of three new high-performance piste machines, the focus throughout the ski area is on the sustainable improvement of the range of slopes as KitzSki's most important product.
Efficient and state-of-the-art technology for the Streif:
An example of this year's investment focus is the improvement of snowmaking for the Streif downhill run, which was implemented together with the Kitzbühel Ski Club.
Until now, the water temperature from the reservoirs on the Seidlalm was up to twelve degrees. Thanks to the modern cooling tower system, the water is cooled down to 5 to 6 degrees. In addition, the pumping capacity was increased from 265 to 480 liters per second. This investment reduces the time required for snowmaking by half and also saves electricity: twice as fast and more economical.
Simple physics is the key: whether a lot or a little water runs through the pipes, the power consumption of the snow cannon does not change. From now on, however, the water from the reservoirs will be colder when it reaches the snow cannons. This means that more snow can be produced because colder water crystallizes more quickly. The basic snowmaking on the Streif now only takes around 80 hours instead of 170. This significantly improves the snow reliability at the Hahnenkamm races.
The faster and more sustainable snowmaking on the Streif is of course not only for the World Cup races, but also for all guests of the Kitzbühel cable car, who love this infamous course so much. This is a joint project in which the Kitzbühel Ski Club - as the organizer of the Hahnenkamm races - is contributing financially. The World Cup races will take place this World Cup season between January 24 and 26, 2025, with the Super-G making a comeback on the Streif.
Chairman of the Board, Mag. Anton Bodner, on the new investment: "The long-standing, trusting and good partnership with the KSC has helped a lot to realize this joint project. We are both proud and grateful."
Skiresort.de: Awarded as the world's best ski resort
The ongoing investments in improving the ski area and in the focus on sustainability and digitalization not only pay off for the guests, but also confirm KitzSki's pioneering role. This is probably one of the reasons why the resort can be pleased about the award 'World's Best Ski Area' with an overall test result of 4.9 out of 5 stars on Skiresort.de, the world's largest test portal for ski areas.
"Every year, the ski resort experts at Skiresort.de bring their worldwide test results straight from the slopes. They check and evaluate according to 18 criteria: from the size of the ski resort to snow reliability and family friendliness to the range of huts and environmental friendliness. So far, over 4,500 ski resorts worldwide have been evaluated," says Oliver Kern, Managing Director of Skiresort.de.
Winter start 2024: Resterkogel training center starts on November 8th
Traditionally, KitzSki starts the winter season with the Resterkogel training center, this year on November 8th. There are already over 400 line bookings for the first few weeks from national and international squads as well as ski clubs and junior teams.
Two factors make the season opening in late autumn possible: a snow depot of around 30,000 cubic metres, which is pushed together within a few days after the end of the winter season using piste machines, and the ideal location of the Resterkogel. It is a north-facing slope and, especially in autumn, the sunlight is almost zero. The depot measures around 14 metres at its highest point and is a mixture of natural snow and artificial snow. The ecological footprint remains as small as possible, because this snow does not have to be produced in late autumn. This saves energy and water. The loss due to melting in summer is kept within limits and amounts to around twelve percent. The depot is covered with recyclable foil and a white glacier fleece.
The Kitzbühel cable car company is committed to creating ideal training conditions on the Resterhöhe every year from late autumn onwards. The offer is primarily aimed at young athletes, squad runners and top athletes and is also seen as an investment in national and international young talent. Traditionally, amateur skiers also like to take advantage of the offer on the Resterkogel on the weekends.
KitzSki has been an official training area for the German Ski Association for several years. The training slope on the Resterkogel is regularly used at the start of the season in preparation for the coming ski season. Wolfgang Maier, Alpine Director of the German Ski Association: "The long-standing partnership between KitzSki and the DSV promotes junior and competitive sports in the German Ski Association and contributes to the positive development of winter sports. This also creates an offer that gets children out in the snow at an early age. The main focus is on one thing: that the youngsters have fun."
Highlights and specials for families and action junkies
In the world of young carvers and boarders, fun is the most important thing! KitzSki is taking this into account this year, with an even more diverse range of attractions in the snow parks and at the expanded Jufenbeach:
Every age, every level – the KitzSki freestyle playgrounds offer everything from gentle mini jumps to varied obstacles and big kickers.
The Kitzbüheler Horn offers ideal conditions for perfect family skiing days. In and around the Trattalmmulde, a real fun paradise has been created with the SnowX course. The same applies to the Resterhöhe Snowpark, where a series of events for children and young people in various formats are planned this year. A particular highlight is the Jufenbeach Skill Park, which attracts visitors with a parallel slalom, a mogul slope, an airbag and the ski movie course.
Winter enjoyment: Offers away from the ski slopes
In the Kitzbühel cable car ski area, you can experience nature and the mountains in a special way, and not just on skis: with around 20 kilometres of marked and groomed winter hiking trails on the Hahnenkamm, the Ehrenbachhöhe, the Kitzbüheler Horn, the Bichlalm, in Jochberg and on the Resterkogel, you have an offer that is second to none.
To get to the toboggan run on the Gaisberg in Kirchberg, you can take the chairlift up. There you will find the 3.5-kilometer-long groomed toboggan run, which has been awarded the "Natural Toboggan Run" seal of approval. A very special experience for families with children during the day and for "Hüttengaudi visitors" in the evening (Tuesday to Saturday).
The training conditions on the two KitzSki high-altitude trails – on the Kitzbüheler Horn and the Resterkogel – delight cross-country skiers throughout the winter season, as they offer another treat: a fantastic panorama. Especially in early or late winter, high-altitude trails offer a safe refuge for cross-country skiers.
Ski touring on the slopes is becoming increasingly popular. There are three major advantages to the five signposted ski tours on the Gaisberg, the Bichlalm, the Resterkogel (x2) and the Schwarzkogel: the ascent track is groomed, the surrounding ski area is secure and use is still free at KitzSki.
The KitzSki app – everything in view
For a perfect overview of cable car and slope status, alternative winter offers and important local information such as webcams, weather, arrival and hut guides, we recommend the KitzSki app. A particular highlight of the KitzSki app is the tracking function, which records the day's skiing in altitude and kilometers traveled. Ski passes can also be purchased in the app and loaded as a "mobile phone ticket".
IKON Pass – Partner in the global ski network
KitzSki is the only Austrian partner of the global ski association IKON Pass. In the coming 2024/25 winter season, over 50 ski resorts worldwide from the USA, Canada, Asia, South America, Oceania and Europe will be partners of the IKON Pass. In Europe, these are Chamonix in France, Dolomiti Superski in Italy, Zermatt in Switzerland and KitzSki as the only mountain railway in Austria. Since 2021, IKON Pass access at KitzSki has tripled and in summer 2025, a bike offer will also be included at KitzSki for the first time.
BOGNER: New partner, new location
For the first time this year, the Kitzbühel cable car company is inviting people to the traditional winter start press conference in Munich at the BOGNER premises to announce the offers and specials. Both events focus on winter sports. The positive image and awareness of winter sports are to be further promoted with joint marketing and sales opportunities from KitzSki and BOGNER. This includes joint activations and BOGNER's participation in the annual winter start press conferences.
"Above all, the long-standing partnership with the German Ski Association (DSV) and the associated international media presence during the DSV's training and racing events on the Resterhöhe or at the Hahnenkamm races were the reason for us to explore how KitzSki could also become part of this successful partnership. We are therefore very pleased that we have now managed to hold this press conference here and enter into a cooperation with BOGNER. Together we will try to further expand our expertise in winter sports and thus bring as many guests as possible to Kitzbühel to ski," says board member Mag. Christian Wörister.
New staff house for KitzSki employees
The people in charge at the Kitzbühel cable car are equally proud of the groundbreaking ceremony in the summer for the construction of a modern staff building in a central location right next to the Hahnenkamm cable car. The complex comprises a total of 60 residential units. The central location to the workplace, the city center and the perfect connection to public transport offer great added value for employees. In addition to the Hahnenkamm cable car, the cable car's administration office and the Kitzbühel-Hahnenkamm stop (train and bus) are within two minutes' walk.
The solution implemented by the Kitzbühel cable car company is sustainable in many ways. The quality of the apartments, the building materials used and the energy generated by a photovoltaic system on the roof all meet sustainability criteria. Heating using an underground storage system including deep drilling and a heat pump ensures reduced CO2 emissions.
Chairman of the Board, Anton Bodner: "This pioneering project also takes demographic developments into account. The situation on the job market and the fact that qualified staff must be recruited from other regions or countries makes this new building absolutely necessary."
With a total cost of around 14 million euros, construction of the staff building is scheduled to be completed by autumn 2025. In addition, 60 underground parking spaces and an office space will be created there.
Mobility solutions as a central concern of KitzSki
KitzSki not only offers first-class slopes, but also environmentally friendly travel options. In cooperation with the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB), Deutsche Bahn (DB), Postbus AG and other mobility partners, you can get to the ski area comfortably and sustainably - without a car.
For winter sports enthusiasts from Munich and the surrounding area, the KitzSkiXpress from Geldhauser offers a perfect alternative to travelling by car. The 5-star long-distance coach travels daily from Munich, Holzkirchen and Rosenheim directly to the KitzSki ski area. The price includes not only the journey, but also a day ski pass and an on-board breakfast. With this offer, you can reach KitzSki relaxed and well looked after, without having to worry about traffic or parking.
