Luxury Skiing in Austria

Lech’s a looker, with 15th century houses and an onion-domed church completing the Alpine idyll. The ski area’s exclusive – strictly no more than 14,000 lift passes a day – and stonkingly snowy, with some of the deepest cover in all the Alps. And when it comes to suppertime, this place properly spoils you. In 2008 it gained the ‘World Gourmet Village’ status for the string of decadent dining spots here: Fux, with 15 Gault-Millau points, pairs Euro-Asian nosh with a 3200-strong wine list (stay for lounge jazz and whisky later on). And Mr Probost in the Griggeler Stuba garnered a whopping 18 points for his menus, crafted around local herbs. Shopping’s high-end like everything else, with the Sagmeister stores purveying the latest Kors and Valentino. And the spas? Well who needs to ski, eat or shop when chandeliered swimming pools, frescoe-celinged relax rooms and cavernous saunas await…

This Medieval mining town's retained its historic centre whilst becoming really rather avant-garde. Vorderstadt and Josed-Herold Strade are the main shopping streets, where the likes of Prada and Louis V. sit next to traditional shops selling dirndl. Once coaching inns, the Crayola-bright buildings now house fine hotels: with decadent trimmings like rooftop pools. Which you’ll need to swim off all the goodies here, with at least eight restaurants scoring high on the Gault-Millau guide. Mr. Senn at Restaurant Heimatliebe scores a whopping 17 points, a Michelin star AND 94/100 on the Falstaff Restaurant Guide. Alternatively, skiing does a jolly good job at post-feast work-out... And what a ski area – a true classic with everything from the speedy Streif to gentle blues, with views of the Wilder Kaiser massif every which way. January is Polo season if you want to squeeze in some spectating: they host the World Cup here and the "Players Night" gala dinner’s well worth bagging tickets for.

King of the Paznaun valley, Ischgl was once a humble farming village - now you’ll find boutiques, top-notch restaurants and glitzy clubs on every corner of its affluent, car-free centre. The shops here sell everything from Prada to Swarovski, on top of the latest ski gadgets and garbs. With 17 points, Restaurant Haubenlokal sees Austria’s youngest Gault-Millau awarded chef, Benny Parth, cooking up a storm. Other top-dogs include Lucy Wang, Schlossherrenstube and Trofana Royal. And if these leave you hungry for Michelin-recognised finery, just scoot over the border to Samnaun, where Homann’s has two stars. This Swiss resort is linked to Ischgl by the ski area – a high expanse crammed with every kind of terrain you can think of. When you’ve shopped, scoffed and skied the day through, après ranges from the wild bashes at Trofana Alm to bubbles at Champagnerhütte - finishing up at the celeb-haunt Pacha club of Ibiza fame.

You can’t really go wrong with a ski-spa resort. Whatever your whims - or Mother Nature’s for that matter - there’s something fabulous to do. These parts have long been a source of goodness: They say Cleopatra imported her beauty products from here back in the day. And with two thermal spas, 21 swimming pools and 50 saunas – BKK has the necessaries to ebb all aches away. But this is also a ski resort, and a cracking one at that, which makes regular appearances on the World Cup Circuit. If you’ve never skied alongside a bona fide champion, this is the place to do so with Olympic star Franz Klammer leading exclusive sessions. If you’ve never had a massage or sauna on a mountain, you can try that too… In the weirdly wonderful Thermal Cube. Most hotels also have their own spa offerings, and many come with highly acclaimed restaurants. A lot of them grow and farm their own produce, like the Ronacher where Chef Oberrauter has racked up a toque on the Gault-Millau guide. Shops aren’t in quite the same supply as saunas, but you can pick up Antique furniture at Antiquitäten und Bauernmöbel – not your usual ski holiday buy, but why ever not.

Zell’s more of a small city than a village, occupying a glorious position on the shores of Lake Zeller. And with a great size comes great variety: Of the hundred restaurants, many feature on the Gault-Millau guide (the Salzburgerhof has two toques). Plus you've oodles of choice when it comes to accommodation, from 5* hotels to high-end apartments. You’ll also find fabulous markets throughout the year selling food, knick-knacks and art – the Christmas one’s spectacular. Providing you can peel yourself away from the Tauern Spa, a roomy 20,000m squared with panorama saunas and TWELVE pools. Luxuries are extended to the slopes, with the local mountain, Schmitten, being served by Porsche cable cars (there’s a showroom in town, if this leads to an impulse buy…). There's variety up here too, with a total of 3 ski areas covered in the lift pass, including the brilliantly snow sure Kitzsteinhorn glacier.

Walk along the ‘Golden Gate Bridge of the Alps’ and the Glemm Valley comes into view – a priceless panorama of Sound-of-Music Salzburgerland as far as the eye can see. Step into Hinterglemm (or get a horse-drawn sleigh, one of the preferred methods of transport) and you’ll find things are a little more refined than party neighbour Saalbach. Welcome to HinterGLAM, where a gaggle of 4 and 5* hotels here host some of the finest facilities in the Alps. None more than the Alpine Palace: Its restaurant has two toques on the Gault-Millau guide, and there’s a wine cellar, cocktail bar and cigar lounge. It also has its own art gallery, a whacking great indoor/outdoor spa and a casino (a proper one – no mere cluster of fruit machines). The ski area isn’t bad either… It forms a chunk of the never-ending Ski Circus (one of Austria’s biggest) and the local area hogs some of the gentlest, prettiest descents.

It may be teeny-tiny, but that’s exactly what we love about Zurs: no crowds, no fuss - just you, your luxury lodging, and the mighty Arlberg. Most digs have doorstep skiing - no trudging here - and the bulk of them have been rated 4 or 5 stars. Rightly so: Beneath their typical Tyrolean cladding you’ll find fabulous suites, huge spas, fully stocked wine cellars and highly acclaimed restaurants like the Die Ente von Zürs. Of all the Arlberg ski area, Zurs’ long red runs and off piste see some of the best snow conditions (we’re talking a 10m pile up in recent years). For a real treat, this is one of the only resorts in Austria where you can go heli-skiing - fly to the Mehlsack at 2658m for insane views of the Arlberg and a guided, adrenalin-filled ski back to base. Now for those suppers and spas...

One of the classics, this is where Hannes Schneider developed Alpine skiing as we know it. Skiing here’s a coming-of-age ritual for any confident snow lover, with some of the steepest steeps and deepest powder trails you’ll ever see. The après is gloriously unbridled – the kind where you leave all cares on the ski lift, and let the merry chaos take over. Being two of the world’s most legendary bars, Mooserwirt and Kanguruh have to be experienced at least once, with never-ending beer on tap and raucous boots-on-table-tops-dancing. And as a resort that knows how to ski and party hard, this place also does luxury downtime to a tee. In the dining department, Raffl’s has FIVE restaurants of its own (from the award winning Stubn, to sushi at Seven Sky and fondue at Sticky Fingers). While Hospiz Alm up in St Christoph is the ultimate lunch-time stop off away from the masses. And when it comes to spas, Arlberg-Well has every facility and treatment you can dream of over a whopping 30,000m squared.

The fact that Mayrhofen’s just an hour from Innsbruck airport is a little luxury in itself – more time to enjoy the resort, whether it’s spent skiing, snoozing in a spa or sitting sipping schnapps. Snow lovers won’t know boredom, with the Ahorn Mountain to cruise and the Penken Mountain to conquer, plus oodles of off-piste and nearby ski areas to explore. In the pursuit of R&R, make the Strass Spa your terminus. Cosmopolitan called it one of the top ten spas in the world, and we’re inclined to agree: A Moroccan theme stretches over two floors, with fine panoramic views and a huge range of remedies. If it’s sterling food you’re after, the Siegahrd has earned itself 15 Gault-Millau points with a wonderfully modern take on traditional Austrian dishes. Or for a quiet sherry, Harakiri bar’s the place to settle.

It's all about the skiing in Solden: With three accessible peaks over 3000m and two skiable glaciers, the white stuff is divine. But even if you don’t touch a ski pole all week, you have to head up to the Gaislachkogl, where the Ice Q restaurant serves gourmet delights up at 3048m. Back in resort, the Otzaler Stube has received an eternal toque from the Gault-Millau guide. Sommelier-extraordinaire Martin has 30,000 fine wines to choose from, and when fit to burst you can always retire to the cigar lounge. It won’t take much temptation to ditch the skis for a day in lieu of the Aqua Dome Spa Centre, where futuristic bowl-shaped outdoor pools, sauna WORLD and an unending list of treatments beckon. There’s even Noah's Alpine Ark water world for kids – they’ve thought of everything. And if all that doesn’t give weight to this ski resort’s pedigree, the fact that Solden was chosen for the filming of 007’s Spectre sure will.