Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau – two family valleys on one lift pass

Ski Juwel Alpbachtal Wildschönau is the answer for families who want to go to Tyrol but not to a big ski town. Two green side valleys off the Inn Valley, small villages with wooden balconies and church spires, and a ski area that is just the right size for a week with children. There is no après-ski to keep you awake and no giant lift queues, but plenty of blue runs and children's areas in almost every village.

This guide helps you choose a village and understand how the area fits together – because it isn't quite as simple as the piste map makes it look. Feel free to compare with other resorts in Austria's ski trips.

Four mountains, two valleys

Ski Juwel has 114 kilometres of pistes and just over 40 lifts spread across four mountains:

• Wiedersberger Horn (2,128 metres) above Alpbach and Inneralpbach – the highest and most varied mountain.
• Schatzberg (1,903 metres) above Auffach in the Wildschönau.
• Markbachjoch above Niederau – a quiet family mountain with easy slopes.
• Reither Kogel above Reith im Alpbachtal – small and close by.

The Wiedersberger Horn and the Schatzberg are linked by a gondola between the valleys, and that is where most of the skiing is. The Markbachjoch, Oberau and the Reither Kogel are separate and are reached by ski bus. That is no problem with small children, who only ski one mountain at a time anyway, but it is good to know if you have older children who want to cover a lot of ground.

The pistes are split into around 31 kilometres of blue, 54 kilometres of red and 13 kilometres of black, plus 16 kilometres of ski routes. There is more red than in many family areas, so let the children get confident on the blue slopes and practice areas before you tackle the red runs.

Which village suits your family?

Family	Best base	Why
Small children, lift close by	Inneralpbach	The Pöglbahn and the Acherfeldlift practice lift by the valley station
Charming village, short bus ride	Alpbach	The classic wooden village, ski bus to the Wiedersbergerhornbahn
Beginners and as quiet as it gets	Niederau	The Markbachjoch with easy slopes and a practice area
Children who ski on their own	Auffach	The Schatzbergbahn in the village, straight into the linked area
Small budget base	Reith or Oberau	Small villages with their own practice slopes, ski bus to the big mountains

Alpbach is the village many people come for: old wooden houses in the traditional style and a church in the middle of the village. The Wiedersbergerhornbahn gondola is a little way outside the village, so plan on taking the ski bus morning and afternoon. Inneralpbach, further into the valley, is quieter and has the Pöglbahn in the village.

In the Wildschönau, Auffach is the most practical for families who want to ski a lot, while Niederau suits those who are learning better. Oberau lies between them and has its own small lifts and evening sledging on the Roggenboden. At the top of the valley is Thierbach, the highest village in the Kitzbühel Alps and a quiet alternative.

Children's areas and ski school

There are ten ski schools in the two valleys and childcare in the ski area. There are practice areas in Niederau, Oberau, Auffach, Reith and Inneralpbach, so you rarely have to go far to find an easy slope.

• Juppi-Do Kinderland in Reith is a playful children's area with a magic carpet and themed runs for those who are just starting out.
• Schatzberg Zwergenland in Auffach has a children's ski school, a magic carpet, a button lift and a snow playground.
• Acherfeldlift by the Pöglbahn in Inneralpbach is a short practice lift with a slope of around a hundred metres, perfect for the first few days.
• Familypark on the Wiedersberger Horn has a fun slope and a KidsRun course, and on the speed-check section the children can see how fast they are going.

There is more about planning ski school and rest days in our guide to ski trips with children.

Children's lift passes in Ski Juwel

• Born in 2021 or later: ski free when accompanied by an adult.
• Children's pass: born 2011–2020. The child pass costs less than the adult pass.
• Youth pass: born 2008–2010.

The Easter offer is the big family trick. From mid-March 2027, children up to age 15 ski free when a parent buys a lift pass for at least three days. It fits nicely with the Easter holidays, as long as the snow holds.

The Jungfamilienkarte is a lift pass of three days or more that two parents take turns using – handy when the youngest child isn't skiing yet. Current prices and conditions are shown when you book with Ski Juwel.

Getting there from Sweden

• By air: Innsbruck is closest, about an hour away. Munich takes around an hour and a half and Salzburg around two hours, but both often have more departures from Sweden.
• By train: travel to Brixlegg for the Alpbachtal or Wörgl for the Wildschönau and take the regional bus for the last stretch. The Alpbachtal Card and Wildschönau Card, which you get from your accommodation, give you free ski bus travel. The night train down to Tyrol and the changes along the way are covered in train to the Alps – how it works.
• By car: take the A12 motorway through the Inn Valley and exit at Kramsach/Kundl for the Alpbachtal or Wörgl-Ost for the Wildschönau. Don't forget the vignette. Car, train and plane are compared in car, train or plane to the ski resort.

Good to know

• The season 2026/27 is planned from early December to early April.
• Low in the valley, high at the top: the lowest parts are at around 600 metres, but the Wiedersberger Horn reaches over 2,000 metres. Early and late in the season, the snow is often best high up, so start your day there.
• The neighbours: The Zillertal and Mayrhofen are just under an hour away if you want a bigger, higher area for a day. On the other side of the Inn Valley is SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser, with eight villages and more blue runs.

Ski Juwel is not the right choice for families who want to ski new slopes every day for two weeks. But for a week with children aged two to ten, with ski school in the morning and sledging in the afternoon, it is hard to find anywhere quieter. Read also the first ski trip with children, the beginners' guide and the ski trip packing list.