While road tripping through Austria, we came across many little mountain towns with ski lifts. Bad Gastein is one of those small mountain towns in the Austrian Alps with spas and beautiful mountain views. It’s also a ski town with access to the Stubnerkogel mountain.
We had just gone skiing in Zell Am See, so we decided to take a break from the slopes and not go skiing here. But we found out that there are some other things to do on the mountain besides skiing.
About Stubnerkogel
The Stubnerkogel mountain is located in Gastein Valley which is about 45 minutes southeast from Zell Am See. It’s located in the town of Bad Gastein which is a town up in the mountains with lots of steep paths between streets. But you can also ski down the other side and end up in Bad Hofgastein, which is the next town over (10 minutes by car).
Stubnerkogel is part of the Schlossalm–Angertal–Stubnerkogel Ski Resort and is a family-friendly ski area with lots of easy and moderate ski runs. If you plan on skiing here, a day pass is about €70 for an Adult ticket.
How to Get There
If you’re staying in Bad Gastein, you can head up the mountain in town to the gondola that’s right off the road. This will take you up to the Stubnerkogelbahn mountain station where you can find the viewpoints and suspension bridge.
If you have a car, there’s a parking lot that’s just on the other side of the gondola. Otherwise, it’s not far to walk to if you’re staying in town. We stayed near the waterfall in Bad Gastein and it was about a 15 minute walk to the station. Albeit, it was almost entirely uphill.
Tickets:
You’ll want to buy a Pedestrian Ticket and buy the ascent/descent ticket for either before 1pm or after 1pm. You can buy tickets when you get to the gondola or you can book them online which saves you a couple bucks.
I think in person, tickets were about €36 for an adult ticket and we got them for €30/person online. If you go after 1pm, the ticket prices drop a bit and are around €24 per person in the winter.
If you buy tickets online, you’ll receive a QR code to your email and you can scan that directly at the lift to let you on.
The Suspension Bridge
The Stubnerkogel suspension bridge was one of the main reasons I wanted to come here because the bridge has a fantastic view of the mountain and takes you over the Austrian Alps. The suspension bridge is located just outside of the mountain station, so you don’t have to walk far.
You can enter on either side of the bridge. We ended up walking out of the gondola station where the ski path is, so we walked along the ski path to the far end of the bridge first.
If you’re afraid of heights, it’s not very high up. Even though it’s in the mountains, there’s a slope not too far down below. The bridge is also stabilized on both sides so there’s pretty minimal swaying when you’re on it.
From the far side, there’s a photo box that can take a timed photo of you in the middle of the bridge. But you’ll want to try and time it for when there aren’t too many people on the bridge trying to pass by.
The Summit Cross
Right after the suspension bridge is the Summit Cross on top of a small hill. There may be a steep walking path up the side in the summer, but in winter the hill was covered in snow. The only way to go up is to wade through the snow and we opted not too since we were in jeans and hiking boots.
Glocknerblick Viewing Platform
After the suspension bridge, you can walk through the restaurant to the other side of the building where the Glocknerblick viewing platform is. Here you can get a 360º view of the area and surrounding mountains, including Austria’s highest peak, the Großglockner.
There’s a short walking path to get to the viewing platform, however, it was completely iced over when we went. Make sure you hold on to the rope or go off the path into the snow so you don’t bust your butt.
A nice touch to the viewing platform is that there are little plaques that outline the mountains you’re looking at and their heights.
The Felsenweg Trail
Evidently there are a few other viewing platforms you can go to from this lift as well. In the winter when everything is snowed over and white, it’s a little hard to know where you’re going. And we completely missed this trail.
But apparently you can reach it by passing BELOW the Glocknerblick viewing platform above. (We were on that platform and somehow didn’t notice a path nearby.) And I still think you might need to go along the ski trail at some point. But anyway, this trail takes you along a steep, rock wall to a short suspension bridge and another viewing platform.
Talblick Viewing Platform
The Talblick viewing platform is evidently right out of the gondola. Again, this is another one we didn’t see. I don’t know if we just didn’t exit in the right place or didn’t explore long enough but when we exited the gondola, we were on a ski path. The website says you can exit the gondola and you’ll be on the platform…so I’m not sure what we were doing.
This platform sticks out over the mountain and has wooden ‘stairs’ leading down to the overhang. The two that we did see were great so I’d definitely recommend seeking these out if you’re already there.
What to Wear
If you’re going up on a pedestrian ticket instead of a ski ticket, you’ll want to make sure you dress just as warm! We didn’t put on full ski gear, but made sure we had layers and the essentials:
- Thick pants + leggings
- Snow boots or hiking shoes (the trails can be very slick!)
- Winter coat/ski coat
- Gloves
- Hat or ear warmer
- Scarf
- Sunglasses
It’s not often that I’ve gone up a mountain in the winter without skiing (I don’t think I ever had before this actually). But the views of the Alps were worth the ticket and I love that they have a few different options (even if we missed several). The suspension bridge over the Alps is a great experience and a fun thing to do while staying in the area!
When you’re ready to head back, the perfect place to relax is one of the spas in town! We stayed at the Straubinger Grand Hotel that had a beautiful 3-story spa with an infinity pool. Or you can head to the Felsentherme in town to warm up too!
PIN IT FOR LATER
Leave a Reply