Things to do in Austria in Winter – Sport and Sights Beyond Skiing

When it comes to the things to do in Austria in Winter, you don’t only have to ski. Despite being the country’s greatest and biggest sport, there are plenty of other activities for sightseeing and adrenalin action. 

When the freshly green alpine meadows and the trail paths of the Alpine mountain peaks become coated in snow, winter in Austria becomes an entirely different landscape to play on.

Over 15 regions in Austria have established environmentally-friendly activities that get visitors closer to nature, proving that there is much more to Austria’s ski resorts and the surrounding areas and that winter holidays in Austria don’t have to be limited to traditional ski days. 

While the places to visit in Austria in winter are plentiful, Tirol tops my list as the go-to adventure playground for this season. The Kitzbulher Alpen region is one of them and is a great place to start. Tirol is undoubtedly synonymous with skiing, yet what many do not realise is the scope of other activities that you can engage in throughout your time here.

Whether you are a hiker, an outdoors adrenalin enthusiast, or a small town explorer, you certainly won’t be bored here when an Austrian winter season means getting to grips with its vast alpine arena via a host of alternative activities. And even if you decide to ambitiously ski Austria this season, maybe you might just be tempted to take to the powder differently on one of those days.

Winter Weather in Austria – When To Go

The all-too-important questions about when to visit Austria in a season centered around snowfall. What months does it snow in Austria? When is the best time for a winter vacation in Austria? How cold does it get in the Alps?

The coldest month in Austria is January since temperatures typically begin to slowly rise from February. Temperatures can get into the minus degrees quickly, and even down to -20 or more.

However, Austria weather differs as you move across the country and its varied landscapes. In the valley areas like Tirol, snowfall can begin as early as November and last until March, where you will often hear about people enjoying the last of the spring snow while the valley beds emerge in green below.

Austria in December is considered a peak time of the year where winter in the Alps and its valleys can be easily combined with festive activities in the big cities, like the Christmas markets in Vienna and Salzburg.

Winter in Austria – Where to Go

The Kitzbulher Alpen is one of the best places to visit in Austria in winter, with over 1,000km of slopes and activity areas. It covers the four regions of Brixental, St.Johann in Tirol, Hohe Salve, and PillerseeTal in the Kitzbuhel area, which includes 20 traditional Tyrolean villages.

St Johann is in the middle, with accessible train and bus links to surrounding areas.

Things to Do in Austria in Winter for Fast-Paced Alpine Action

Alpine Fatbiking in Kirchberg

A fatbike is a specially designed winter bike with oversized tyres up to four inches wide, giving adrenalin junkies access to some of the Kitzbüheler Alpen’s 400km of biking tracks. I sampled the Fatbike monster machine in Kirchberg, cutting through fresh snow, gliding downhill in the alpine forests and grappling with multi-inclined and curling tracks that landed me right into the heart of the wilderness away from the slopes.

READ MORE: Alternative Winter Sports in Austria

The Traditional Austria Toboggan Slide in Gaisberg

Many Austrians will attest to tobogganing being as much a part of their winter escapades and in their blood as ski. As one of the typical winter activities in Austria, everyone has tried it and knows it because every winter season is not complete without this must-do, much-loved tradition.

One of the best things to do in Austria, you’ll see children as young as five years old jump on the wooden sleigh chairs, ready to whirl down the mountain in a speedy spiral.

As an adrenalin junkie, I found it both exhilarating and, at times, completely frightening. It takes a while to learn how to control your toboggan, especially around the very precarious mountain track edges. Be prepared to take a tumble and for your feet to be tested as your only form of breaking.

I sampled this heart-racing activity in the evening at Gaisberg, where the yellowing lights guided us down the 3.5km track, stopping for dinner at a traditional Austrian mountain hut, Gasthof Obergalsberg, halfway between.

You will never forget this traditional Austrian way of getting down a mountain.

Snow Segway in Westendorf 

You might not have heard of it or seen it in a winter context, but with chained tyres, you can Segway in the snow.

Following the pathways through woodland, a one-hour Segway tour in Westendorf near St. Johann gets you completely off-track away from the skiers curving the mountain edges around you. We were the only ones within the Narnia-like hideaway, rolling carefree through untouched snow and rattling up and down small slopes in the woodlands.

READ MORE: Riding a Segway in Winter in Austria

Things to See in Austria in Winter at a Slower Pace

Tour St. Johann in Tirol on a Horse-drawn Carriage

The slow and romantic lull of a horse-drawn carriage takes you on a journey past the colours of St.Johann in Tirol’s building murals and the traditional Austrian architectural features that poke through the coating of fresh daily snow.

This is certainly a relaxing way to see a slice of Tirol beneath a blanket as you clip-clop through the scenic town and the surrounding valley – just one of many places to see in Austria here that make a show of dreamy winter scenes.

READ MORE: Things to Do in St. Johann in Tirol in Winter – Austria’s Sanctuary in the Alps

Best Things to Do During an Austria Winter Vacation: Nature Walks and Treks

Biathlon the Austrian Way in Hochfilzen

The Kitzbulher Alpen attracts athletes from all over the world, who converge on the lands of Tirol for a Biathlon (a skiing event that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting). But outside of the Championships that have been held here, it doesn’t mean you can’t try a Biathlon in Austria too. Well, a taster of it at least.

With 700km of cross-country tracks and 750km of prepared-cross-country ski trails, Tirol is scattered with different gradients of ground from flat to challenging. It’s ideal for classic and skating style and has a network of ploughed and secured trails for those wanting to embark on winter hiking. I got a short course in cross-country skiing and an introduction to the Biathlon sport in Hochfilzen.

We set up a small circuit for a lighthearted competition, skating in teams back and forth in a relay. In the afternoon, we leisurely hiked through inches and inches of pure white, powdery snow and up some light hills, which involved a few soft and giggle-induced tumbles. It’s much harder to try to pull the cross-country skis through knee-deep snow AND climb.

Snowshoeing in Kirchberg

Snowshoes were once the tool of hunter-gatherers during the cold season, and over time have been adapted to become a means for rambling through snowy forests. For those who love a winter walk, this activity makes for some great off-beat exploration as part of your vacation in Austria.

Snowshoes (which you strap onto your winter boots) have a large surface area to enable you to walk through thick snow and explore completely off-track – a more relaxed means of getting out the secluded corners of Tirol, where you can explore the area of Kirchberg.

Trekking with Llamas in PillerseeTal 

Hanging out with llamas makes for one of the more unique things to do in Austria. Whether in sun and snow, these animals reside all year round in the PillerseeTal region and you can go trekking with them as your trusty guide, spending a few hours to a full day in the Fieberbrunner mountains. Native to South America, the llamas can be found feeling very at home in the Kitzbulher Alpen, wandering the slanting alpine meadows and tiny villages. It is said they make great hiking companions – with distinct intelligent and funny personality traits, which can sense and therefore counteract stress.

It might appear gimmicky, but everyone enjoys getting up close to some of nature’s cutest creatures. For more insight into how it feels to have a llama as your trekking friend, I thoroughly enjoyed (and laughed at loud) reading this witty read on llama trekking in Tirol in the Guardian.

What to Do in Winter in Austria: Eat and Drink

Go Schnapps Tasting

Schnapps is a long-standing tradition in Tirol since the 1700’s – of family recipes handed down from generation to generation. Five million kilograms of farm-fresh fruit are used each year to produce the handcrafted schnapps from the thousands of craft distilleries scattered across the region. It’s what gives Tirol its stamp of quality.

Schnapps lovers can head to one of 41 distilleries open to visitors in Tirol, and while I’m not a huge fan, I still enjoy trying it in the hope that one day the taste just resonates with me. In the meantime, one can still enjoy the science behind its manufacture. This year, I got to experience schnapps tasting with the Edelbrandsommelier, Leo Trixl, in the Boutique Lodge of S4 Alm in Fieberbrunn.

In this case, we were not standing in front of a vat that looked like a time machine (as you would normally do) but presented with a box of tiny vials of liquid, each with a very different and distinct scent. From this, you could work out which you liked and the corresponding schnapps flavour would be given to you to try, later accompanied with tasty spare ribs.

Eat in a Traditional Austrian Mountain Hut 

The outdoors life and being active and at one with nature may be a huge part of Austrian winter tourism, but so is relaxing in a traditional hut for a mountain pit stop to try Austrian food. To replenish the calories from strenuous nature exploration, hearty food is always the order of the day, accompanied by the alpine view.

My favourites are Tiroler Gröstl (a hearty dish of potatoes and pork, known as a traditional way of ‘eating the leftovers’) and Kaiserschmarn (a type of pancake served with an apple sauce and cranberry jam), all washed down with a favourite Austrian soft drink called Almdudler or specifically in winter, a good warming mug of Gluhwein (mulled wine). Other top choices include Käsespätzle (an Austrian take on macaroni and cheese), Griessnockerl (fluffy dumplings in soup) and the classic Wiener Schnitzel. 

There’s always time to ski during winter in Austria, but when Tirol during this powdery season is a Narnia playground, what activities will you choose to try away from the traditional pastime?

Things To Know for an Austrian Winter Trip

Plan your time in this infamous Austrian Alps region – visit the Kitzbüheler Alpen website.

READ MORE:  Tirol is an adventure in all seasons if you are travelling in Austria outside of the winter season.

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Photo Credits

Fatbiking: © Chris Wasser

Horse and cart ride in St. Johann and huskies: © Mela Mörtenbäck

Snowshoeing: © Christian Lendl

Llama trekking: © Black Dots White Spots

Editorial Disclosure – I didn’t get to try every single activity listed (all in good time). However, they all come from high recommendation of friends involved in the #InAustria trip, created and managed by iambassador in association with the Austrian National Tourist Office, Tirol Tourist Board and the Kitzbüheler Alpen Marketing GmbH. Borders of Adventure maintains full editorial control of the content published on the site, including all ridiculous excitement about the snow.