Is Hintertux a good ski resort?
Hintertux is the place to ski when nowhere else can: its glacier is the only one in Austria that stays open every day of the year, so it’s busy in autumn with race teams and early-season holidaymakers. In winter it’s one part of the Zillertal 3000 pass, which also covers the much bigger lift-linked area above Mayrhofen and Finkenberg.
The four areas
- Hintertux Glacier: three gondola stages from Hintertux (1,500 m) to the Gefrorene Wand at about 3,250 m. Mostly wide blues and reds on the glacier, with the long Schwarze Pfanne down to the village when the snow allows.
- Penken, Horberg and Rastkogel: the main lift-linked area, reached by gondola from Mayrhofen, Schwendau (Horbergbahn), Finkenberg and Vorderlanersbach (Rastkogelbahn). It’s known for the Harakiri, often called Austria’s steepest groomed piste, and for the Penken snow park.
- Eggalm: a smaller, quieter area above Lanersbach in the Tux valley.
- Ahorn: a broad, gentle plateau above Mayrhofen, reached by a large cable car. Good for beginners; the run back to the valley is a steep black.
The glacier is not linked by lift to the other areas; ski buses run along the Tux valley between Hintertux, Lanersbach, Finkenberg and Mayrhofen.
Snow and when to go
The glacier makes snow a non-issue from October to May; it’s cold and can be windy at 3,000 m, and it closes in storms. The lower areas around Mayrhofen are mostly between 1,500 m and 2,500 m with plenty of snowmaking.
Getting there
Innsbruck is the nearest airport. Trains run to Jenbach in the Inn valley, then the narrow-gauge Zillertalbahn to Mayrhofen, with ski buses up the Tux valley to Lanersbach and Hintertux.
