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TRAVELLER

THERE ARE A FEW GOOD

reasons to recommend

the Hotel Elisabeth in Ischgl. Sitting directly beside

the Pardatschbahn, the Austrian resort’s main cable

car, this four-star Alpine lodge gives guests the chance

to wolf their breakfast

brötchen

and be up in the

mountains while most of the town’s other skiers are

still lugging their gear across town.

The wide, sweeping runs in the Ischgl-Samnaun ski

area are some of the best to be found in Austria, and –

as all seasonaires will tell you – the oportunity to carve

up virgin pistes without too much hassle is a priceless

commodity. Even if you don’t make it up to the slopes,

there are few better places in Ischgl to enjoy panoramic

views over the Tyrolean mountains than from the

penthouse pool on the seventh floor.

However, the hotel really comes into its own at

the end of the day. Sitting at the bottom of a long,

steep red run, it is the first stopping-off point in the

après-ski trail – enabling skiers to hop directly from

their skis and straight towards a well-earned drink,

while still in their boots. From there, it’s just a short

hop to the jam-packed Trofana Alm (

trofana-royal.at/

trofana_alm

), where revellers can be found swinging

their glasses around in time to the thumping music

The mountains can actually get remarkably warm in

April, so you’re more likely to be shoosing down in a

T-shirt than a jacket, and will probably return home

with a panda-eyes tan from wearing your goggles.

But back to the après ski. The thing that really

makes partying in Ischgl so unique is the Top of the

Mountain events that they hold here each year. The

first of these is at Easter, the second marks the end of

the season on 30 April. The headline acts were yet to

be announced as we went to press, but last year The

Killers were the star attraction, so it’s no surprise that

this is one of Austria’s biggest annual rock events.

Other recent Ischgl bill toppers have included Sir

Elton John, Kylie Minogue, Katy Perry and the Scissor

Sisters (

pictured on previous page

). When you take

into account that the winter finale is held in a truly

spectacular venue – the lift-accessed 2,320m Idalp

Plateau in the heart of the mountains – you can see

why it brings in the crowds.

The best part of the skiing day at this time of year

is often late afternoon and there are several cracking

options available. For instance, if you’re up for an

adrenaline-fuelled end to your exploits on the slopes,

you could try to time things so you take a ride on

There’s stacks of elbow roomon the slopes,

minimal lift queues andmaximal sunshine

in true Austrian style; and the legendary Nikis Stadl

(

nikis-stadl.com

), with its somewhat infamous

oompah-style music, is just a few more moments away.

Welcome to the number-one party town in the

Alps. You may be forgiven for thinking that this is the

sort of place best enjoyed at the height of the season,

but you’d be entirely mistaken. In fact, while most

mountain resorts across the world are starting to wind

down for another year, as winter moves into spring,

things are actually picking up here – and it’s not just

in the many après-ski venues across Ischgl either. This

town is a wonderful late-season option, as much for its

skiing as its nightlife. It’s part of a vast 238km ski area

and much of it is above 2,000m, so there’s still plenty

of natural snow in April and it’s backed up by a state-

of-the-art snowmaking system.

Heading out at the end of the season provides an

entirely different experience to the cold dark depths of

January or February. With most skiers having enjoyed

their annual winter break during the peak months,

there’s stacks of elbow room on the slopes, not to

mention minimal lift queues and maximal sunshine.

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