Aerial view of the Ötztal Valley in winter, Austria

Season Dates: December to April

HALLO,
ÖTZTAL VALLEY

Home of Ötzi,
the 5,300-year-old
Iceman

The Ötztal Valley gives school groups two linked ski areas, Hochoetz and Kühtai, with Sölden close enough for a ski safari day. Snow-sure slopes, a quiet village base at the entrance to the valley and a four-star superior hotel make it one of the easiest valleys in Austria to run a school trip in.

RESORT INFORMATION

Altitude Range 820m – 2520m

No. of Ski Lifts 23

Marked Pistes 90km

Longest Run 7km

FOUR-STAR SUPERIOR HOTEL

The hotel at dusk in winter, Ötztal Valley

Lounge with fireplace at the hotel, Ötztal Valley

Heated indoor pool at the hotel, Ötztal Valley

A FOUR-STAR SUPERIOR HOTEL AT THE VALLEY ENTRANCE

A spacious four-star superior hotel above a quiet village at the entrance to the Ötztal Valley, with Tyrolean peaks on every side. It works well for school groups: peaceful surroundings, a short private transfer to the slopes and the kind of shared spaces that make evenings easy to run.

Students and staff stay in premium rooms with en-suite bathrooms, and the hotel takes groups of up to 100, so a school can have the place to itself with 80 pupils or more. Breakfast and dinner are hearty buffets in the large, cosy restaurant, with a hot lunch on the mountain each day.

The social spaces are the real strength here. There is a games lounge with table football and board games, a cinema-style projector room for movie nights, and a yoga and relaxation studio used for the evening sessions. For staff, the wellness area has a heated indoor pool, saunas, steam rooms and a fitness room for the end of a long day.

The Hochoetz gondola is 5km away, and the group travels there each morning on a private ski transfer. Heated ski and boot storage, Wi-Fi throughout and attentive, family-run hospitality round off a base that is comfortable, secure and simple to supervise.

ACCOMMODATION FACTS

Type:

Four-star superior Alpine hotel

Accommodates:

100 Students and Staff

SGS Star Rating:

Ski Lift Distance:

5 km private transfer

Facilities:

En-suite Rooms Wifi On-site Restaurant Indoor Pool Games Room Heated Ski Storage

The hotel lit up on a winter evening, Ötztal Valley

Suite living area with mountain views, Ötztal Valley hotel

Dining table set for dinner, Ötztal Valley hotel

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SKIING IN THE ÖTZTAL VALLEY

Hochoetz and Kühtai share one lift pass and give a school group two very different mountains in a week, with a day in Sölden for the big descent. Wide learning slopes, high-altitude snow and quiet pistes make for steady progression from first-timers to the confident.

Pupil in a Schools Go Skiing bib carving down a wide piste

Snow-Sure, High-Altitude Skiing

The Hochoetz-Kühtai ski area runs from 820m up to 2,520m, and Kühtai itself sits at 2,020m, one of the highest villages in Austria. That altitude means dependable snow from December through to April, with the Hochoetz side adding snowmaking on its main runs. Across the two areas there are 90km of marked pistes and 23 lifts, with the longest run stretching 7km from top to bottom.

School ski group in Schools Go Skiing bibs lined up with the peaks behind

Two Areas, One Lift Pass

Hochoetz is the gentler of the two, with wide, scenic slopes above the tree line that give beginners and intermediates room to build confidence without crowds. Kühtai is higher and steeper, with longer reds and a handful of blacks for students who are ready for more. Both areas have a clear layout, so lessons are easy to run and groups are easy to keep together, and the daily transfer from the hotel drops the group at the Hochoetz gondola each morning.

Ski lesson in Schools Go Skiing bibs with the instructor

Lessons, and a Ski Safari to Sölden

Ski lessons are with MaliSport Skischule, a family-run school with more than 25 years of experience in the valley. Students ski in groups of eight to ten per instructor for a minimum of five hours a day, with a supervised lunch on the mountain. Midweek, a private 45-minute transfer takes the group to Sölden for a ski safari day: glacier skiing, a 2,000m vertical descent and one of the longest runs in Austria at up to 15km.

TAKE A LOOK AROUND

Explore what’s included on a Schools Go Skiing trip to the Ötztal Valley.

Two pupils in Schools Go Skiing bibs ready to ski

SKI EQUIPMENT HIRE

Skis, poles, boots and a helmet are all included and fitted by MaliSport, our ski school partner in the valley. Students leave their skis and boots at the shop beside the Oetz gondola each afternoon, so nothing travels back to the hotel and mornings start quickly.

EAT AND DRINK

The package is full board. Breakfast and dinner are buffets at the hotel, with hearty Tyrolean dishes alongside the familiar, and a hot lunch is served on the mountain every ski day. Dietary requirements are catered for with notice.

ACTIVITIES

Evenings mix in-house and out. A guided torchlight hike through the snowy village paths, a swimming evening at the Aqua Dome spa in Längenfeld, yoga in the hotel studio, a handmade jewellery workshop, and movie nights and games in the hotel lounge.

Snow-covered forest and mountains in the Ötztal Valley

TRANSPORT

Innsbruck airport is 40 minutes from the hotel, with Memmingen around two hours and Munich just under three. All airport and ski transfers are private coaches arranged by us, including the daily run to the Hochoetz gondola and the ski safari transfer to Sölden.

We have used this company for our year 8 school trip for the past two years and are returning for our third year running. I cannot speak highly enough of all of the staff.

– Harrodian School

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HALLO, ÖTZTAL VALLEY