Trip to Lech scheduled

[sibhusky]

My daughter and I had been scheduled to go to Austria September of last year, then, of course, we had Covid show up. I think I got all my money back for cancellations, except for the plane. And that credit was ending next March. Because things are still really up in the air with getting in and the number of flights is still really limited, I gave up on scheduling for this fall and changed it into a far different trip, a ski trip. So we're booked into Lech in the Arlberg region in mid March. Our pension/hotel garni is close to one of the lifts. It should be an interesting and emotionally fraught trip as I'm on the downward part of my ski career and my daughter is a former racer/current backcountry skier who has been able to outski me since she was 8. But she hates skiing alone. I'm perfectly happy to ski alone and usually do because then I only have to please myself. Plus I can get by with my German (not that it will be needed), whereas hers consists of "Danke". I'm hoping to convince her to go with a guide at least one day, while pushing myself pretty hard this coming winter (after what can only be labeled a disaster this past winter).

Any tips for skiing there would be appreciated. I didn't find a SkiDiva Europe scheduled.

 

[santacruz skier]

My daughter and I had been scheduled to go to Austria September of last year, then, of course, we had Covid show up. I think I got all my money back for cancellations, except for the plane. And that credit was ending next March. Because things are still really up in the air with getting in and the number of flights is still really limited, I gave up on scheduling for this fall and changed it into a far different trip, a ski trip. So we're booked into Lech in the Arlberg region in mid March. Our pension/hotel garni is close to one of the lifts. It should be an interesting and emotionally fraught trip as I'm on the downward part of my ski career and my daughter is a former racer/current backcountry skier who has been able to outski me since she was 8. But she hates skiing alone. I'm perfectly happy to ski alone and usually do because then I only have to please myself. Plus I can get by with my German (not that it will be needed), whereas hers consists of "Danke". I'm hoping to convince her to go with a guide at least one day, while pushing myself pretty hard this coming winter (after what can only be labeled a disaster this past winter).

Any tips for skiing there would be appreciated. I didn't find a SkiDiva Europe scheduled.

Only that Lech/Zurs is on my list ! I have been to Kitzbuhel and Bad Gastein.

 

[sibhusky]

If anyone has skied in the Arlberg in March, how were the conditions? Weather?

 

[Après Skier]

Sorry I have no first-hand knowledge to share but would LVE to hear about your trip. The Arlberg is one of the places I would most like to visit.

Fraser Wilkins’ Weather to Ski provides insight on the snow in Lech and the Arlberg: where to ski for best coverage, where to ski for best visibility, etc. https://www.weathertoski.co.uk/european-resorts-a-z/lech-zürs-austria/ And graphical trends for Lech’s snowfall can be found at Snow-Forecast.com. https://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts/Lech/history. If I were a gambler I would bet you will have a marvelous trip.

There is nothing quite like the local perspective and since you understand German, you might consider posting queries on Alpinforum https://www.alpinforum.com/forum/index.php

P.S. Not looking to derail this thread but I would be very interested to hear about @santacruz skier’s impressions of Bad Gastein. In photos the town looks stunning. I’m also lured by the thermal baths and easy access via train.

 

[santacruz skier]

Sorry I have no first-hand knowledge to share but would LVE to hear about your trip. The Arlberg is one of the places I would most like to visit.

Fraser Wilkins’ Weather to Ski provides insight on the snow in Lech and the Arlberg: where to ski for best coverage, where to ski for best visibility, etc. https://www.weathertoski.co.uk/european-resorts-a-z/lech-zürs-austria/ And graphical trends for Lech’s snowfall can be found at Snow-Forecast.com. https://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts/Lech/history. If I were a gambler I would bet you will have a marvelous trip.

There is nothing quite like the local perspective and since you understand German, you might consider posting queries on Alpinforum https://www.alpinforum.com/forum/index.php

P.S. Not looking to derail this thread but I would be very interested to hear about @santacruz skier’s impressions of Bad Gastein. In photos the town looks stunning. I’m also lured by the thermal baths and easy access via train.

Quickly, Bad Gastein is a wonderful resort and definitely took advantage of thermal baths and facial to boot. It's a lovely village. I really don't remember that much about the ski area itself but skied every day and really enjoyed it. This was about 10 years ago but highlight of trip was a ski safari from Bad Gastein to Salzburg ! Involved mostly skiing and a couple of shuttle buses. But this doesn't answer @sibhusky 's question !

 

[altagirl]

We have skied it in March, but it was just over 20 years ago so may not be that helpful!

I do remember loving it though, as well as St. Anton and Ishgl. DH and I made a number of trips there during the time we were dating and lived in Germany/Italy - it was reasonably in between our two locations.

 

[SkiBam]

I was in Lech in March 2015 with a group. Had six days of skiing, and not one was bad. Covered the area pretty well, including two days at St. Anton. Did the White Ring (a good half day or longer tour - includes Zurs and Zug) which was wonderful. We stayed at an excellent hotel (Sandhof?), just steps from the lift. I know you asked about skiing there in March; as I recall, the skiing was excellent, but I must confess one of my main memories from this trip was the food at the hotel.

Now I'm thinking about it, I remember I had been to Lech once before, back in (I hate to even admit this) 1966. On that trip a friend and I stayed in a very nice pension in Oberlech. At that time, my skiing and my equipment weren't anywhere near as good as they are now, and faulty bindings caused me to fall, which caused me to break an ankle. I remember a long trip down the mountain on a toboggan, with the guy in front turning around to ask me "Gut, gut?" "Ya" said I - about the extent of my German. The memory is a bit vague now but my ankle was set by a doctor in Lech and I seem to recall I spent the rest of our time there sitting on the balcony of the pension watching avalanches across the valley.

Gosh, this has got me reminiscing about Lech. In fact, I did go there again, in the summer of maybe 1972 (again memories are vague). I was spending a summer travelling in Europe and visited the Swiss parents of my then-boyfriend (later husband) who wasn't with me. He had told his father I wanted new ski boots, so his father drove me from Zurich to Lech where I ordered custom-made Strolz boots (Strolz is still a big name in Lech.) I went back to get the boots at the end of my trip and they weren't ready! Sheesh! Anyway, Strolz eventually sent them to me in Montreal and my boyfriend did the foam injecting (a big thing then). I have NEVER had worse boots - they eventually turned my toenail black.

Anyway, I'm envious. Our ski group was to have gone to Val d'Isère in March of this year - maybe next? (Sorry for the longish post but Lech memories got the better of me...)