Chalets in St Anton am Arlberg

Village and ski area

St Anton am Arlberg and the Ski Arlberg area

St Anton sits at about 1,304 m on the Tyrolean side of the Arlberg, and its lifts belong to Ski Arlberg. The area links St Anton, St Christoph and Stuben with Zürs, Lech, Oberlech, Warth and Schröcken on one network of around 300 km of marked pistes and 85 lifts. The highest point is the Valluga at 2,811 m, about 1,500 m above the village.

The whole circuit has been skiable since winter 2016/17, when the Flexenbahn gondola closed the last gap between Stuben and Zürs. From a St Anton chalet you can therefore reach Lech and Zürs on skis, although it is a long way across the area, so most groups plan it as a full day out rather than an afternoon detour. Ski Arlberg also counts more than 200 km of off-piste descents and ski routes.

The village calls itself the cradle of alpine skiing. Hannes Schneider's ski school here was one of the first organised ski schools, and his teaching method became known as the Arlberg technique. Today St Anton has a long main street, a pedestrian zone in the centre in winter and a railway station in the village, and those three things matter more for a chalet stay than any single run.

See:Chalet ChristianeSki chalets in Austria

Districts

Where to stay in St Anton: centre, Nasserein or further out

In St Anton the district changes the start of every ski day. The village runs along the valley floor, and a chalet in the centre, one in Nasserein and one further out in St Jakob all count as St Anton on a map. Read the access line on each stay page before anything else: it states the distance to the piste and the lift as the source gives it.

The centre is the most convenient base for the main lifts and the railway station, and it is where evening activity concentrates around the pedestrian zone. Galzig, the hub for most of the skiing, starts from here. Groups who want to walk to the lifts and to dinner without a bus usually look here first, and should ask about evening noise if early nights matter to anyone.

Nasserein is the quieter eastern district, with its own gondola up to Gampen and the main nursery slopes. Guides consistently suggest it for families and beginners, and it is a short walk or bus ride from the centre. The owner of Chalet Marmotta Neve places its three residences here, directly on the piste, which makes it one of the two stays here with the snow at the door.

St Jakob, further east again, is quieter still but depends on the bus to reach the lifts. Local bus lines link the districts and the neighbouring villages through the winter, so a chalet away from the centre is workable, but count the minutes each way and check the last return in the evening. Our method for comparing stays explains how we record each access distance.

See:How we compare

Catered with a sauna

Catered chalets in St Anton with a private sauna

Chalet Alpinum and Chalet Christiane suit a group of ten to sixteen who want meals sorted and warmth at the end of the day. Both have catering included and a private sauna, confirmed by two sources, and both have a fireplace. Alpinum adds a hot tub. The difference between them lies in size, in bathrooms and in how far each sits from the lifts.

Chalet Alpinum sleeps 10 to 15 across five bedrooms and five bathrooms on three floors. The listed distance to the nearest piste and lift is 3 km, so plan on a shuttle, a bus or a car every morning rather than a walk. Ask whether the provider runs a transfer to the lifts and at what times, since that sets the rhythm of each day for the whole group.

Chalet Christiane takes up to 16 guests in eight bedrooms with eight bathrooms, so bathrooms match bedrooms one for one. The lift is 1,200 m away as listed: a walk for some groups, a bus ride in ski boots for others. Ask the provider whether there is a ski room or boot heaters, because we could not confirm either, and both make a real difference with a full house.

Catered can mean different things from one provider to the next, from breakfast only to a full evening meal, so ask for the meal plan before you compare. Our page on catered chalets in Austria explains what a plan can include, and for a wider choice of saunas and hot tubs, see the chalets with a sauna or hot tub we list in other resorts.

See:Chalet AlpinumCatered chalets in Austria

Getting there

How to get to St Anton: airports, trains and transfers

Innsbruck is the closest major airport, about 100 km from St Anton, and the transfer by road takes a little over an hour in clear conditions. Zürich is about 200 km away and Munich about 260 km. Ski Arlberg also lists smaller airports at St. Gallen-Altenrhein, Friedrichshafen and Memmingen; check which of them your departure airport serves in the winter season.

St Anton has a long-distance railway station in the village itself, a short walk from the centre and the cable cars. Railjet and EuroCity trains stop here on the Arlberg line between Innsbruck and Bludenz. From Innsbruck the train takes a little over an hour, and direct trains run from Zürich main station in between two and three hours, so a car-free trip is realistic.

If you drive, Austrian law requires winter tyres on cars whenever there is snow, slush or ice on the road during the winter months. Car parks sit at the Nassereinbahn and at the old Rendlbahn valley station. Our guide to getting to your chalet in Austria covers airports, entry rules and driving basics in more detail.

See:Getting to your chalet in Austria

Families

St Anton for families with children

For a family chalet in St Anton, think about the nursery slopes first. Nasserein has the main learning areas, with moving carpets and child-friendly terrain, and the ski school teaches children in small groups and privately. A chalet within walking distance of Nasserein, or on a direct bus line to it, shortens the morning with small children and their equipment considerably.

Gampen, reached by the Nassereinbahn, has more practice lifts and easier runs, plus the Hopplweg adventure slope. From Gampen a 4.5 km natural toboggan run leads back down to Nasserein, and it makes a good afternoon for a family day off skis. The run is reached by the Nassereinbahn, so the whole outing starts and ends in Nasserein without a bus.

Among the stays here, the larger catered chalets suit multi-generation trips, because meals are handled and there are enough bedrooms to give each family its own space. The on-piste Marmotta residences give families self-contained living space and a very short walk to the snow. To compare family-sized houses elsewhere, browse all the stays we list across the Austrian Alps.

See:All stays

Choosing a chalet

How to choose a ski chalet in St Anton

Start with the head count and the bathrooms, not the photos. A group of twelve in a chalet with six bathrooms has an easy morning; a group of twenty-four with seven bathrooms needs a plan. Then decide on catering: if nobody wants to cook, the catered houses on this page do the work, and if you want freedom, look for a self-contained residence.

Second, the route to the lift. Write down for each candidate how the group gets to the first lift with skis and boots, and how it gets back at four o'clock. A chalet 3 km out with a reliable shuttle can beat one closer in up a steep lane; the access line on each stay page is the starting point, and the provider's answer is the decider.

Third, check what is confirmed and what is only listed. On this site a facility marked as confirmed appears in two independent sources; one listed by the owner is a claim to verify. Ask for anything that matters, such as a ski room, boot heaters, the cook's nights off or parking, in writing before you pay a deposit.

If St Anton does not fit, compare it with other high Tyrolean resorts such as our chalets in Sölden, or with hotels and apartment hotels in the Austrian Alps if a small hotel suits your group better. Our overview of chalets by destination lists every village we cover, each with the same checks on access, catering and group size.

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