Skiing area
Did you know that...
The Gasteiner lift companies offer apart from the safe and comfortable transport of passengers a number of other facilities.
- Artificial snowing and preparation of pistes
- Accident prevention and piste rescue service
- Piste securing and avalanche protection
- Information by notice boards, loud speakers, cameras
- Planting of vegetation on the pistes
- Reforestation and tidying up of the meadows
- Care of walking paths and nature trails
- Providing ski busses, car parking spaces and shuttle bus services
- Organising special offers for children
- Organisation of events and competitions
- Providing premises for skiing and snowboarding schools, sport equipment hire and lots more…
Snow making
What were the mountains in winter without snow? And what has to be done to magic it onto the ski pistes?Every year many guests come to Gastein, a projected 80 percent race with their skis, carvers or snowboards over the pistes. Gastein has a piste area spreading over approximately 360 hectares. 44 lifts transport the winter sports enthusiasts in a safe and comfortable way up the mountain and the pistes are literally laying at their feet.
And the most modern snow making equipment will ensure when necessary that the important white is not missing. The Gasteiner Lift Company makes sure that 96 percent of a total of 201km of pistes have a snow guarantee and invest yearly in the expansion of snow making equipment. The tendency is increasing even more.
Our snow making equipment make snow in a very similar way to nature: the formation of frost. A special mixture of water and air is made, causing the water to make snow crystals. So this has nothing to do with chemicals!
Snow making equipment in Gastein: 537 low pressurised cannons and water sticks
Piste Preparation
To enable perfect piste preparation in our Gastein there are over 20 piste machines in action. A new piste machine costs approx. 270,000 Euro, that’s the cost of a one family house. 3 new piste machines are bought each year by the Gasteiner Lift Companies.The most important factors for optimal piste preparation are the weather forecast and the experience of our staff!
In general our pistes are prepared from evening until late into the night (approx 2.00 a.m.). Should a night with a clear sky follow the preparation, then the pistes the next day will be in a beautiful, compact and super condition to ski on.
When new snow is falling 20 percent of the piste machines are in action until 4.00 a.m. enabling the new snow to bind perfectly with the old snow before the lifts open at 8.00 a.m. Should this not happen then the pistes are very soft during the day.
If snow fall continues during preparation, then it can happen that, the snow fallen on the already prepared pistes in the morning, gives an impression that the pistes have not been prepared at all.
When the snow covering is very hard the piste machine is not always able to get rid of all humps and bumps to make the piste smooth once more. The piste will appear to be rough and full of ridges.
We would ask for your kind consideration, when, because of the high alpine altitude of our skiing area and very fast changing weather conditions, that it is not always possible to create perfect piste conditions.
Important Safety Advice
For us to enable you the offer of perfect pistes prepared daily, all pistes are closed for use after the lifts close between the times of 5.00 p.m. and 8.00 a.m.!During this time piste preparation and artificial snow making is carried out. (ATTENTION: ropes are used to close the pistes, you could endanger your life by crossing these!!!)
Lift Transportation
In Gastein throughout the past years increasing investments have been made enabling the renewal and expansion of the lift system. Cable cars are the best method of overcoming the great differences in altitude and crossing of difficult terrain. The system of lifts used depends on the situation and is decided by the constructors. In the Ski amadé 270 lift systems carry passengers comfortably up the mountains. 44 of them are found in the area surrounding Gastein.Gastein’s Lift Sytems
- Cable Car (e.g. Schlossalmbahn 2)
- Funicular railway (e.g. Schlossalmbahn1)
- Gondola (e.g. 8 seater Gondola Kasereben)
- Covered chairlifts (e.g. six seater Weitmoser chairlifts, four seater Angertalbahn chairlift with Bubbles, and many more)
- T-bars (e.g. Burgstatllift, Zirbenlift, and many more)
- Total carrying capacity: 70.118 Persons per hour
