The Ski Arlberg ski area is situated in the

Arlberg Arlberg () is a massif between Vorarlberg and Tyrol in Austria. The highest peak is the Valluga at . The name ''Arlberg'' derives from the tradition of the "Arlenburg", who are said to have once established themselves on the Tyrolean side of the A ...

massif in the states of

Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( , ; gsw, label= Vorarlbergisch, Vorarlbearg, , or ) is the westernmost state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with the ...

and

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

(

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

). Since the winter of 2013–14, the villages of Lech, Oberlech, Zürs and Zug have been linked to the Warth- Schröcken ski area which makes Ski Arlberg the largest connected ski area in Austria.

Geography

Since 2013, the ski resort includes the villages of Klösterle,

Lech Lech may refer to: People * Lech (name), a name of Polish origin * Lech, the legendary founder of Poland * Lech (Bohemian prince) Products and organizations * Lech (beer), Polish beer produced by Kompania Piwowarska, in Poznań * Lech Poznań ...

, Oberlech, Schröcken,

St. Anton am Arlberg Sankt Anton am Arlberg, commonly referred to as St Anton, is a village and ski resort in the Austrian state of Tyrol. It lies in the Tyrolean Alps, with aerial tramways and chairlifts up to , yielding a vertical drop of . It is also a popular su ...

, St. Christoph am Arlberg, Stuben, Stubenbach, Warth,

Zürs Zürs (1717 meters above sea level) is one of the most renowned winter sports resorts in the Alps. Located in the westernmost Austrian state of Vorarlberg, almost directly on the border to North Tyrol, near the Flexenpass, Zürs is part of the Ar ...

and Zug. The ski area consists of two parts, namely: * Arlberg Ost/East (

St. Anton Sankt Anton am Arlberg, commonly referred to as St Anton, is a village and ski resort in the Austrian state of Tyrol. It lies in the Tyrolean Alps, with aerial tramways and chairlifts up to , yielding a vertical drop of . It is also a popular su ...

, St. Christoph and Stuben) * Arlberg West (

, Oberlech, Warth, Schröcken and

) The highest elevation of the ski area is the top of the

Valluga Valluga is a high mountain in the Lechtal Alps. The border between the Austrian states Tyrol and Vorarlberg runs over the summit. It is about 3 km north of the village St. Christoph am Arlberg and the Arlberg Pass. Vallugabahn The summ ...

mountain at 2,811 m above sea level in

History

In 1884,

Emperor Franz Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until hi ...

opened the Arlbergbahn and made it possible for skiers to get to the

. The Arlberg Ski Club was founded in 1901, and in 1936 Austria's first tow lift was put into operation in Zürs. Since the 2013/14 season, Lech has been connected to Schröcken by the 10-person-gondola Auenfeldjet which makes Ski Arlberg the largest connected ski area in Austria and one of the five largest in the world. In the 2016/17 season, the 10-person-gondola Flexenbahn between the Arlberg East and West areas was opened.

Lift system

The ski area has a rich lift system consisting of a variety of

aerial Aerial may refer to: Music * ''Aerial'' (album), by Kate Bush * ''Aerials'' (song), from the album ''Toxicity'' by System of a Down Bands *Aerial (Canadian band) *Aerial (Scottish band) *Aerial (Swedish band) Performance art *Aerial silk, ...

and

surface lift A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher ...

s including 15 cable cars ( cable cars,

gondolas The gondola (, ; vec, góndoła ) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull ...

and

funitel A funitel is a type of cableway, generally used to transport skiers, although at least one is used to transport finished cars between different areas of a factory. It differs from a standard gondola lift through the use of two arms attached to ...

s), 45

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. Th ...

s (14 2-person lifts, one 3-person lift, 13 4-person lifts, 16 6-person and one 8-person lift) as well as 28

drag lifts A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher- ...

. A remarkable lift is the ''Weibermahd'' which is a combination lift, meaning that 8-person chairlifts and 10-person gondolas alternate on the same rope. It is the first combination lift installed in Vorarlberg and was manufactured by the Austrian-Swiss company Doppelmayr.

St. Anton – St. Christoph – Stuben

* Albonabahn I (2-person chairlift) * Albonabahn II (gondola) * Albonagratbahn (2-person chairlift) * Angerlift (drag lift) * Arlenmähderbahn (6-person chairlift) * Fangbahn (4-person chairlift) * Galzigbahn (funitel) * Gampbergbahn (6-person chairlift) * Gampenbahn (4-person chairlift) * Kapallbahn (6-person chairlift) * Kindlisfeldlift (drag lift) * Maassbahn (2-person chairlift) * Maienseelift I (drag lift) * Maienseelift II (drag lift) * Mattunbahn (4-person chairlift) * Muldenlift (drag lift) * Nasserein-Kinderpark (practicing drag lift) * Nassereinbahn (gondola) * Nassereinlift (drag lift) * Osthangbahn (4-person chairlift) * Rauzlift (drag lift) * Rendlbahn (gondola) * Riffelbahn I (2-person chairlift) * Riffelbahn II (2-person chairlift) * Salzbödenlift (drag lift) * Schindlergratbahn (3-person chairlift) * Schöngrabenlift (drag lift) * St. Christophbahn (4-person chairlift) * Tanzbödenbahn (6-person chairlift) * St. Christoph (practicing drag lift) * Valfagehrbahn (6-person chairlift) * Vallugabahn I (cable car) * Vallugabahn II (cable car) * Vallugalift (drag lift) * Walchlift (drag lift) * Zammermoosbahn (4-person chairlift) * Gampen I (practicing drag lift) * Gampen II (practicing drag lift)

Lech – Oberlech – Zürs

* Auenfeldjet (gondola) * Babylift Berghof (drag lift) * Babylift Zürs (drag lift) * Balmengrat (drag lift) * Bergbahn Oberlech (cable car) * Flexenbahn (gondola) * Hasensprung (6-person chairlift) * Hexenboden (6-person chairlift) * Hinterwies (drag lift) * Kriegerhorn (6-person chairlift) * Madlochbahn (2-person chairlift) * Muggengrat (6-person chairlift) * Petersbodenbahn (6-person chairlift) * Rotschrofen (2-person chairlift) * Rüfikopfbahn I (cable car) * Rüfikopf II (cable car) * Schafalp (drag lift) * Schlegelkopf (2-person chairlift) * Schlegelkopf (4-person chairlift) * Schlosskopf (2-person chairlift) * Schüttboden (drag lift) * Seekopf (4-person chairlift) * Ski school lift (drag lift) * Steinmähder (8-person chairlift) * Superbaby (drag lift) * Trittalp (6-person chairlift) * Trittkopfbahn I (gondola) * Trittkopfbahn II (gondola) * Weibermahd (combination lift) * Zugerberg (2-person chairlift) * Zürsersee (4-person chairlift) * Practicing slope (6-person chairlift) * Practicing lift Flühen (drag lift) * Practicing lift Oberlech (drag lift) * Practicing lift Schwarzwand (drag lift)

Warth – Schröcken

* Dorfbahn Warth (gondola) * Hochalpbahn (4-person chairlift) * Jägeralp-Express (6-person chairlift) * Karhornbahn (2-person chairlift) * Kitzeliftle (drag lift) * Kuchlbahn (2-person chairlift) * Körbliftle (drag lift) * Salober-Jet (6-person chairlift) * Skischaukel Falken-Körbersee (2-person chairlift) * Skischaukel Falken-Spielboden (2-person chairlift) * Sonnen-Jet (6-person chairlift) * Sonnencruiser (4-person chairlift) * Steffisalp-Express (4-person chairlift) * Wannenkopfbahn (4-person chairlift) * Wartherhorn-Express (6-person chairlift)

The White Ring

The White Ring (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

: ''Der Weiße Ring'') is one of the longest ski circuits in the world (22 km). It comprises five downhill runs, five ropeways, an intensive ascent and a backcountry ski run and 5,500 metres of altitude difference. For the 50th anniversary of the ski circuit, the first White Ring ski race was held in the 2005–06 season. The course record is 44:10:75 minutes and held since 2010 by Markus Weiskopf.

FIS Alpine Ski World Cup The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France ...

The Ski Arlberg ski resort has been the venue for numerous World Cup ski races in the past, including the following: * January 1988:

super-G Super giant slalom, or super-G, is a racing discipline of alpine skiing. Along with the faster downhill, it is regarded as a "speed" event, in contrast to the technical events giant slalom and slalom. It debuted as an official World Cup event ...

(women), winner:

Zoe Haas Zoe Haas (born 24 January 1962 in Calgary, Alberta) is a Swiss former alpine skier specialising in downhill, giant slalom, and Super-G. Haas competed in the Super-G in the 1988 Calgary Olympics, placing 7th, and in the 1992 Albertville Olym ...

(SUI) * November 1991: 2 slalom races (women), winners: Vreni Schneider (SUI) and Bianca Fernández Ochoa (SPA) * January 1993: slalom (men), winner:

Thomas Fogdö Hans Thomas Fogdö (born 14 March 1970) is a Swedish former alpine skier. A slalom specialist, he won the World Cup for that discipline in 1993. On 7 February 1995 he became disabled after breaking his spine in a training accident at Åre, Swe ...

(SWE) * January 1993: combination (men), winner:

Marc Girardelli Marc Girardelli (born 18 July 1963) is an Austrian and Luxembourgish former alpine ski racer, a five-time World Cup overall champion who excelled in all five alpine disciplines. Biography Born in Lustenau, Austria, Girardelli started skiing at t ...

(LUX) * December 1993: super-G (men), winner: Hannes Trinkl (AUT) * December 1994: 2 slalom races (men), winner (both):

Alberto Tomba Alberto Tomba (born 19 December 1966 in San Lazzaro di Savena) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Italy. He was the dominant technical skier ( slalom and giant slalom) in the late 1980s and 1990s. At 182 cm and 90 kg, his powerful ...

(IT) After 26 years, alpine ski races will be held again in the Lech-Zürs area in November 2020. The races will take place on November 14 and 15 in the Flexenarena Zürs under the name "Flexenrace". They will consist of parallel ski races for men and women, as well as a mixed team event. Additionally, there will be a combination ski race with a slalom and a super-G in

on the 9th and 10 January 2021.

References

External links

Official website

List of Ski Arlberg ski slopes and current weather conditions
{{coord missing, Austria Ski areas in Austria Sport in Vorarlberg Sports venues in Austria Skiing in Austria Ski areas and resorts in Austria