Cooksister | Food, Travel, Photography

Food, photos & faraway places

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • About me
    • Contact me
    • Work with me
    • Legal
      • Copyright notice & Disclaimer
      • Disclosure
      • Cookies and Privacy Policy
    • Press and media
    • Cooksister FAQs
  • RECIPES
    • Recipe Index – by course
    • Baking (savoury)
    • Braai/Barbecue
    • Breakfast & brunch
    • Christmas
    • Dessert
    • Drinks
    • Eggs
    • Fish
    • Gluten-free
    • Leftovers
    • Pasta & rice
    • Poultry
    • Pulses
    • Salads
    • Soup
    • South African
    • Starters & light meals
    • Vegan
    • Vegetables
    • Vegetarian
  • RESTAURANTS
    • British Isles restaurants
    • Dubai restaurants
    • France restaurants
    • London restaurants
    • Montenegro restaurants
    • New York restaurants
    • Pop-ups and supperclubs
    • Serbia restaurants
    • Singapore restaurants
    • South Africa restaurants
    • Sweden restaurants
    • Switzerland restaurants
    • USA restaurants
  • TRAVEL
    • All my travel posts
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Canada
      • Dubai
      • Cruise ships
      • France
      • Germany
      • Greece
      • Grenada
      • Hong Kong
      • Hotel reviews
      • Italy
      • Israel
      • Jersey
      • Mexico
      • Netherlands
      • Norway
      • Portugal
      • Singapore
      • Ski & snow
      • South Africa
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • UK
      • USA
      • Wales
  • PORTFOLIO
    • Freelance writing portfolio
    • Speaking and teaching
    • Photography portfolio
    • Buy my photos
You are here: Home / Travel / Austria / 7 reasons to take a Winter break in Kitzbühel, Austria

7 reasons to take a Winter break in Kitzbühel, Austria

by Jeanne Horak on March 22, 2017 8 Comments in Austria, Ski & snow

KitzbuehelChairLift1

There are a lot of reasons to love living in London:  the amazing art galleries; the wealth of historic buildings; the fabulous concerts of every type of music under the sun; the ready availability of cheap flights to every corner of the globe; and of course one of the most vibrant restaurant scenes on the planet. But one of the most unexpected reasons that makes me love living in the UK is the prospect of an annual ski holiday – a chance to swap the grey London for pristine white slopes and blue skies.   But as the person in my circle of friends who is somehow always tasked with organising said ski holiday, I am also familiar with the  stress of trying to find the right resort.  Which one has good restaurants?  Where will there be snow?  Will there be slopes for every level of ability?  And what is there for non-skiers to do? On a recent week-long visit to the stylish and atmospheric ski resort of Kitzbühel, Austria I found much to like and many of the abovementioned boxes ticked.  I thoroughly enjoyed my visit and here are seven reasons why you will, too.

KitzbuhelLogo

 

KitzbuehelJeanne

 

1.   Kitzbühel is snow-reliable

Kitzbühel is by no means the highest Alpine resort, with the village at about 800m and the highest point at about 2,000m But because of a combination of fortunate geography and extensive snow-making facilities, it has reliable snow and is traditionally one of the first non-glacier Austrian resorts to open for the season.  Because the city is set between the Kitzbühler Horn and Hahnenkamm peaks in a north-west facing dip, this means that the slopes face away from the sun and any snow that falls does not melt very rapidly. The fact that the slopes are covered in grass, rather than rocks, up to 2000 metres also means that far less snow cover is needed for the slopes to open.  And if mother nature does not play ball, the resort has 750 snow guns and cannons to ensure that the pistes remain pristine.

 

KitzbuehelSnowsure

 

2.   To watch the famous Streif downhill ski race on the Hahnenkamm

The Hahnenkammrennen are the annual ski races, held since 1931, and have been a fixture of the men’s World Cup since 1967 and take place every year in mid-January.  The most famous is the classic downhill  course, the Streif , which is regarded as the most demanding race course on the World Cup circuit.  The 3.3km long course starts at an elevation of 1,665m above sea level and vertically descends 860m.  It is a highly technical course featuring reverse banked turns with limited visibility, as well as super-fast flat gliding sections preceded by difficult sharp turns.  At its steepest (at the infamous Mausefalle section) the gradient is over 40 degrees.  The course record is just under 2 minutes (and an average speed of 106.9km per hour!) but you can also ski a more sedate version of the course called the “family Streif” which is a red run rather than black and cuts out all the jumps and treacherous bits.

 

KitzbuehelHahnenkamm

 

3.  To enjoy the 700-year old historic city centre and excellent shopping

Unlike some purpose-built ski resorts, Kitzbühel is a real living, breathing city with an 700 year-long history. Originally established as a copper-mining town, it retains a beautiful pedestrianised mediaeval town centre and a number of historic buildings such as the side-by-side Catholic and Protestant churches.  There is also an abundance of good shopping, from the usual ski resort shops selling ski gear, souvenirs and local produce, to upscale boutiques like Louis Vuitton.

 

KitzbuehelVillage1

 

KitzbuehelVillage2

 

4.  To enjoy the excellent restaurants

The fact that Kitzbühel is a living,  breathing city means it has the population to support a wide range of restaurants, from cheap and cheerful mountain huts serving rustic local cuisine, to upscale fine dining restaurants serving food that would not be out of place in London.  Highlights include the Winkler brothers’ restaurant at Gasthof Auwirt in Aurach; the Ganserln Alm with its view over the city; and Neuwirt at the Hotel Schwartze Adler.

 

KitzbuehelRestaurants2

 

KitzbuehelRestaurants1

 

Kitzbuehelrestaurants3

 

5.  To enjoy a variety of snow-based activities

Kitzbühel is understandably famous for its wealth of downhill skiing opportunities (see point 6 below) – but there are a number of other outdoor activities available to no skiers, some of which I tried.  There are 60 kilometres of well-marked (and well-used) cross-country skiing trails in and around Kitzbühel, including a high altitude trail and a floodlit trail.  We also tried snow-shoeing while we were there – an experience that I can best describe as running uphill on a soft sandy beach while wearing flippers. Still it provides an excellent workout and you can get through some surprisingly thick powder show when you have a pair of snowshoes strapped to your feet!  For the slightly less adventurous there is also winter hiking along the wealth of quiet and well-groomed trails in the area. Guided winter hiking/walking and snowshoeing tours are available from Monday to Friday throughout the season. The meeting point is at the Kitzbuehel Tourist Information Office, Hinterstadt 18, at 09:45 hours.

 

KitzbuehelSnowshoe

 

KitzbuhelCrosscountry

 

6.  An extensive system of modern lifts and well-groomed pistes

Kitzbühel has a total of 54 fast and modern cable cars and lifts serving its 179km of prepared pistes. Lifts are fast and high capacity, meaning queues are manageable even at busy times. But despite the Hahnenkamm’s fearsome reputation, the majority of Kitzbühel’s pistes are exceptionally family friendly (69 km blue, 77 km red, and 24 km blackl).  The blues and reds are wide, crusey and long – one of them is almost 7km long! Also be sure not to miss the spectacular 3S-Umlaufbahn (tri-cable gondola) which spans the 2.5-kilometre wide and 400-meter deep Saukaser Valley between the mountains Pengelstein and the Wurzhöhe.  It is little wonder that Kitzbühel  has been voted Best Ski Resort in the World on a number of occasions!

 

KitzbuhelSkiing

 

KitzbuehelPistemap

 

KitzbuehelLifts2

 

KitzbuehelLifts

 

7.  To experience a range of Winter activities and events

During the winter months there is a packed programme of events including a traditional Christmas market; a fireworks display at New Year; the Hahnenkamm downhill; the Snow Polo World Cup and (during the week that we visited) the Streif Vertical UP. In this patently bonkers night race, participants start from the finish area of the Hahnenkamm downhill ski race and run 3.3 kilometres UP the piste, climbing 860m in the process, to reach the start gate. The winner is whoever reaches the top first, by any means excluding motor powered assistance; and by any route they choose.  It is quite a sight to watch the start of the race on the piste and then watch the little bobbing headlights as they run up the icy mountain in the dark (and sometimes roll down, taking out other participants like skittles!).

 

KitzStreifVerticalUP2017

 

KitzStreifVerticapUP2

 

Having experienced the resort for myself it is little wonder to find that that Skiresort.de, the world’s largest test portal for ski resorts, has voted the Kitzbühel ski area as the “best ski resort in the world” in 2013, 2014 and 2015.  So if you are still looking for somewhere to have a late-season ski break, Kitzbühel is a resort that will tick all your boxes.  The closest airports are Innsbruck (97km/1hr), or Munich (165km/2hr).  There is also a train station in town served by a number of express trains.  For more information, see the Kitzbühel website.  And for another perspective on our Kitzbühel trip, have look at this brilliant post by Milou, the Dutch blogger who was with me on the trip.  I had never met her before but after 7 days we left as best friends (more like sisters separated at birth!) and we still chat every day.  As soon as you catch her sense of humour in the post you will know why we hit it off!

FURTHER READING:

  • Where to Eat In and Around Kitzühhel (Cooksister)
  • A guide to Skiing in Kitzbühel (Cooksister)

 

DISCLOSURE:  I visited Kitzbühel as a guest of Kitzbühel Tourism and was compensated for my time.  I was not expected to write a positive review – all views are my own and I retain full editorial control.

Let’s keep in touch!
You can also find me tweeting at @cooksisterblog, Instagramming as Cooksister, Snapchatting as Cooksisterblog or pinning like a pro on Pinterest.  To keep up with my latest posts, you can subscribe to my free e-mail alerts, like Cooksister on Facebook, or follow me on Bloglovin.

More deliciousness for you!

  • Saturday Snapshots #56Saturday Snapshots #56
  • DMBLGiT September – and the winners are…DMBLGiT September – and the winners are…
  • Taste of London Festive Edition 2015 – what I ateTaste of London Festive Edition 2015 – what I ate
  • Aubergine, Cape TownAubergine, Cape Town

Never miss a Cooksister post

If you enjoyed this post, enter your e-mail address here to receive a FREE e-mail update when a new post appears on Cooksister

I love comments almost as much as I love cheese - so if you can't leave me any cheese, please leave me a comment instead!

« Review: PURE Indian Cooking
An operatic dinner at High Timber »

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Milou says

    March 24, 2017 at 1:43 pm

    This was such an amazing experience. I had such a week of highlights, and one of them was meeting you. We must return someday!

    X

    Reply
  2. Rosana @ Hot&CHilli Food and Travel Blog says

    March 25, 2017 at 10:49 am

    It looks so beautiful, not a skier myself but this post makes me want to go. Love the night time scenery and the food look good too. R

    Reply
  3. Abi says

    March 27, 2017 at 4:50 pm

    Ah, I went there so long ago I was a child and ended up calling it Kitzburger! Lovely to see you had a good time there and that it satisfies as an adult!

    Reply
  4. [email protected] says

    April 29, 2017 at 10:18 am

    I went there many years ago – seeing the pictures reminds me of the beautiful town. It’s where I first learned to ‘ski’ …

    Reply
  5. ndemi says

    June 2, 2017 at 1:56 pm

    Wow!This sounds quite an adventure.

    Reply
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Never miss a Cooksister post!

Get my latest recipes delivered by e-mail!

Search over 500 recipes

Recently on Cooksister

  • Masalchi by Atul Kochhar – Indian street food in Wembley
  • Barbecued salmon with blood oranges and capers
  • Roasted Brussels sprouts with feta, pomegranate and pine nuts [GF, V]
  • Love Yourself healthy meal delivery [Review]
  • Antillean
  • Festive roast lamb with pomegranate glaze
  • Rustic blood orange and pistachio galettes
  • Cauliflower steak Welsh rarebit

Archives by month

Archives by category

Popular posts

Peppermint Crisp fridge tart - a South African treat
Oxtail and red wine potjie
Nigella's Bakewell slices & the Big Bakewell Taste-off
Gem squash 101: how to find them, how to grow them, how to eat them!
Jan Ellis pudding - a classic South African dessert
Roosterkoek - a South African braai essential

Featured on

Also available on

Anybody for South African chocolate-studded malva Anybody for South African chocolate-studded malva pudding? Think a lighter version of sticky toffee pudding with melted chocolate chunks drenched in a  creamy syrup... heaven 😍🇿🇦 #malvapudding #southafricanrecipes #southafricanfood #southafricandesserts
🌸🌸🌸Waltz of the cherry blossoms 🌸🌸🌸

#cherryblossomtree #londoncherryblossom #cherryblossomseason #sakuraseason #cherryblossoms2022 #floweringcherry #prettylondon #londoninbloom #springinlondon #blossomwatch #blossomseason #pinkpinkpink #mydarlinglondon
London cherry blossom season 🌸🌸🌸 My favou London cherry blossom season 🌸🌸🌸 My favourite time of year! 

#londoninbloom #springinlondon #blossomwatch #sakuraseason #blossomseason #londoncherryblossom #londonsbest #floweringcherry #explorelondon #mydarlinglondon #prettycitylondon #pinkpinkpink #londonbylondoners
🌷🌷🌷 It’s tulip season in London! Every 🌷🌷🌷 It’s tulip season in London!

Everywhere you look, these long-legged floral supermodels are adding a splash of colour to parks and gardens and I just can’t get enough of them! It’s easy to see how they inspired a collective buying frenzy in 17th Century Holland, called “tulip fever”, but today there are less dramatic ways to enjoy them. Here are a couple of suggestions of where to see them at their best:

🌷 The ultimate tulipalooza is the annual opening of Keukenhof gardens outside Amsterdam where 7 million (!) bulbs burst into life each Spring. This year the gardens are open 24 March-15 May (click on the link in my bio for FAQs and my top tips for visitors)

🌷In London, Kew Gardens always has spectacular displays of tulips; but you can also see excellent and free tulips in most of the Royal Parks such as Regents Park. 

🌷The Hampton Court Palace tulip festival is on until 2 May and the Hever  Castle’s Tulip Celebrations until 24 April - both within easy reach of London.

🌷The Morges Fete de la Tulipe in Switzerland takes place every year against the spectacular backdrop of Lake Geneva - it is on until 8 May this year.

I spotted these spectacular red frilly parrot tulips beside St Paul’s Cathedral yesterday 🌹 Where is the best display of tulips that you have ever seen?
Spring daffodils in London parks - can there be a Spring daffodils in London parks - can there be a happier sight?? 🌼 

#daffodil #daffodilseason #isitspringyet #yellowdaffodils #colourfuflowers #springbulbs #londoninbloom #springinlondon #narcissus #colourmylife #colourmehappy #colourinspo #spring2022 #londonparks #londonpark #blossomwatch
MASALCHI BY ATUL KOCHHAR - pan-Indian street food MASALCHI BY ATUL KOCHHAR - pan-Indian street food restaurant in Wembley

Remember to save this post so you can find it later! 🔖

[Invited] If you thought Brick Lane and chicken tikka masala or madras were all there is to know about the food of the Indian subcontinent, think again! In the shadow of the Wembley arch,  @chefatulkochhar has opened his first casual dining restaurant,  showcasing the rustic, spicy, diverse street foods of India. 

Highlights when I visited included:
1. Carrot halwa
2. Papdi chaat
3. Chicken 65
4. Tandoori broccoli
5. Smoky aubergine chokha
6. A snap of all our mains - you can read all about these and more in the full review on my blog - click the link in my bio or go to:
 https://www.cooksister.com/2022/04/masalchi-atul-kochhar-indian-wembley.html

What is your favourite dish from the Indian subcontinent? Let me know in the comments 🌶🌶🌶
Join me once again at my favourite (and London's b Join me once again at my favourite (and London's best!) supperclub 😍 #luizhara @thelondonfoodie

Last night we had an excellent 8 course Japanese comfort food menu, largely from Luiz's second book The Japanese Larder. Here's what was on the menu:
1. Grilled scallop on sushi rice with to wasabi tobiko, nori & Tobanjan spicy sauce
2. Mentaiko spaghetti with a spicy chilli, sake and cod roe cream sauce
3. Dango Jiru - Japanese chicken & dumpling miso soup with winter  vegetables 
4. Okonomiyaki, Osaka style - japanese pancake with cabbage, squid, pork belly, kimchi and bonito flakes
5. Kakiage & pickles - tempura of coriander, crabcakes, burdock & carrot tops, with pickled mustard greens
6. Iberico pork with a teriyaki butter glaze on nori blackened cauliflower
7. Nikkei Tai Goham - steamed sea bream rice with a yuzu & jalapeño dressing, cooked in a donabe clay pot
8. Apple tarte tatin with star anise, rosemary and almonds

At £60 per head, incl. a welcome cocktail and canapé, in Luiz's beautiful home, it is superb value and always super special ❤ Thanks for an amazing evening Luiz! 

#nikkeifood #londonsupperclub #londonsupperclubs #thelondonfoodie #japanesecomfortfood
🍒🌸 It’s cherry blossom season! 🍒🌸 T 🍒🌸 It’s cherry blossom season! 🍒🌸

There is no season in London that I love more than cherry blossom season! From March through to April, trees in various parks and gardens in London put on an amazing display of delicate pink and white blossoms - and everything in the city seems a little more magical. This particular tree near St Pauls must be among London’s most photographed, and it’s not hard to see why 💕

Did you know that...

🌸cherry blossoms are Japan’s national flower and are known as Sakura 

🌸In 1910, Japan sent the USA some cherry trees as a goodwill gesture… and the Dept of Agriculture inspectors nearly caused an international incident by burning them as they were carrying insects and diseases! But in 1915 Japan sent more cherry trees that survived the inspectors, and these marked the start of cherry trees in the USA.

🌸 Peak blossom season is usually only two to three weeks in March/April but is hard to predict as the weather and the subspecies of tree influence the timing.

🌸The cherry blossom capital of the  world is Macon, Georgia with 300,000 - 350,000 Yoshino cherry blossom trees.

🌸 There are over 200 different varieties of cherry blossom and some are purely ornamental (meaning they produce no cherries)

Where is your favourite place to see cherry blossoms in London or around the world? Let me know in the comments and happy blossom hunting! 🌸🍒🌸

#pinkpinkpink
A wonderful lunch in at Masalchi - the new street A wonderful lunch in at Masalchi - the new street food restaurant by Atul Kochhar in Wembley. Highlights included the amazing kiwi fruit mojito; chicken 65; lamb chops; chargrilled broccoli; and carrot halwa. [INVITED]  #masalchi #masalchiwembley #londonrestaurants #atulkochhar #atulkochharrestaurants
Load More... Follow me on Instagram

Follow Jeanne Horak-Druiff's board Recipes by Cooksister on Pinterest.

Cooksister

The South African Food and Wine Blog Directory

The South African Food and Wine Blog Directory

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

Latest Recipes

Salmon with blood oranges dill and capers
Brussels sprouts with feta and pomegranate
Roast lamb with pomegranate glaze
Blood orange & pistachio galettes
Cauliflower topped steak with melted cheese
Plate of potted smoked salmon with slaw and a glass of champagne
bowls of pistachio pomegranate bircher muesli
Brussels sprouts with chorizo & hazelnuts

SITEMAP

Home

Contact

About me

Recipe Index

Restaurant Index

Copyright & Disclaimer

Cookies & privacy policy




blog counter

© 2004 - 2022 · Jeanne Horak unless otherwise stated - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. You may not reproduce any text, excerpts or images without my prior permission. Site by RTW Labs

Copyright © 2022 · Cooksister on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Cooksister cookie consent
We use cookies to ensure you receive the best experience on our site. If you continue to use this site, you are agreeing to our terms and conditions. Accept
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT