Zillertal Arena with kids – four villages and 150 kilometres of pistes

Zillertal Arena is the largest ski area in the Zillertal, and it isn't one village but four. The lifts run from Zell am Ziller in the valley via Gerlos, up over the Gerlos Pass to Königsleiten and Hochkrimml on the Salzburg side. Together that's 150 kilometres of pistes and 52 lifts, between 580 and 2,500 metres.

For a family, the most important decision is which village you stay in. The villages are at completely different altitudes and suit different kids. This guide helps you choose, goes through the kids' clubs and the ski school, and explains how to get here by train. You will find more resorts in the country in skiing holidays in Austria.

Four villages – choose by your kids

Village	Height	Best for	Keep in mind
Zell am Ziller	580 m	Families arriving by train and kids who can already ski	Gondola up every morning, lowest and least snow-sure
Gerlos	1,300 m	The youngest – kids' club, practice slope and ski school in the village	The kids' club is closed on Saturdays
Königsleiten	1,600 m	Families who want to step straight out onto the slopes	On the Salzburg side, high and exposed to the weather
Krimml-Hochkrimml	1,100 m (Krimml)	A quiet base and a winter outing to the waterfalls	Furthest from the train in Zell

Gerlos is the safest choice with kids under five. The village is high up and has both the kids' club up by the Isskogelbahn and the ski school's practice slope in the middle of the village. Königsleiten is even higher, and according to the ski area, every place to stay there has the piste close to the door. That makes a big difference for a family who'd rather not carry skis and kids.

Zell am Ziller is the gateway to the area and the only village with a train. Here, the Rosenalmbahn goes up to Rosenalm at 1,744 metres, and from there you can ski all the way over towards Gerlos. Zell suits you best if the kids can already ski or if you want to combine skiing with the rest of the Zillertal.

Don't confuse Zell am Ziller with Zell am See. That's a different resort, by a lake in Salzburg, with its own ski area.

The pistes and the season

Of the 150 kilometres, about a third is blue, almost six in ten red and only twelve kilometres black. So it's an area for families who are happy skiing red runs together, while the youngest stick to the practice slopes.

According to the plan, the lifts open on 4 December 2026 and close on 11 April 2027. Two lifts in the Zell section have a shorter season: the Karspitzbahn from the valley and the Gerlossteinbahn in Hainzenberg only run 18 December–29 March. The lifts open between 8:00 and 9:00 depending on the village and close around 16:00.

Kids' club and ski school

• Arena Kids’ Club in Gerlos: for kids from age one, up at the top station of the Isskogelbahn. Open Sunday–Friday 9.00–15.30, closed on Saturdays. An adult without skis rides up and down free with the child at drop-off and pick-up. Bring nappies, a cuddly toy and spare clothes, and book in advance.
• Kids' club in Königsleiten: at a hotel in the village, for kids from age one in high season and from six months at other times.
• Ski school from age two: Michi’s Schischule in Gerlos has Minicarver for two-year-olds, short lessons with plastic skis and no ski boots, and Bambi for three-year-olds, with two hours a day.
• Groups from age four: divided by age and level, with lessons from 10:00–12:00 and 13:00–15:00. Courses run Sunday–Friday, and also on Saturdays during the Christmas and spring holidays.
• The combination: ski school in the morning and kids' club with lunch in the afternoon, for kids from age two.

There are also ski schools in Zell, Königsleiten and Hochkrimml. At Michi’s, the week ends with a race where every child gets a medal and a certificate. Before your first ski week, you can read tips and advice for the ski trip with kids.

The Funty piste from Rosenalm down to the Wiesenalm mid-station is wide and gentle, with Funty the elephant mascot, sounds and high-five stations along the way. It's a good first step out of the kids' area.

Lift passes and the Superskipass

• Born in 2021 or later:: free skiing, provided an adult buys a paid pass.
• Child pass for those born 2012–2020 and the youth pass for those born 2008–2011.
• Photo ID is required for all discounted passes, and the ticket office makes no exceptions.

What sets Zillertal Arena apart from its neighbours is that multi-day passes of two days or more are automatically the Zillertaler Superskipass. It's valid throughout the valley, down to Mayrhofen and up on the Hintertux Glacier, and also in Wildkogel-Bramberg on the Salzburg side. A day pass is only valid in Zillertal Arena. What the passes cost right now is shown in the booking.

Getting to Zillertal Arena

• Train: change at Jenbach to the Zillertalbahn, which runs about every half hour and stops at Zell am Ziller. The whole route from Sweden is in train to the Alps.
• Bus: route 4094 runs Mayrhofen–Zell–Hainzenberg–Gerlos–Königsleiten and is free with a lift pass or ski equipment. A free ski bus runs between Königsleiten, Krimml, Wald and Neukirchen.
• By air: Innsbruck is about 65 kilometres from Zell, Salzburg 160 and Munich 190.
• By car: a vignette is required on the motorway. From the east, you come in via Mittersill and the Gerlosstraße. The pros and cons of driving yourselves instead of taking the train or flying are in the journey to the ski resort.

A day without skiing

• Arena Coaster by the Rosenalmbahn valley station in Zell, a toboggan run on rails that also runs in winter.
• Krimmler Wasserfälle, Austria's highest waterfalls, which are lit up on Wednesday evenings. On the same evening there's a torchlit walk there, which has to be booked.
• Kristallbad in Wald with a long tube slide and its own kids' pool.
• Snowtubing in Gerlosstein.

If you want to compare with another big family area in Tyrol, read about SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser. ski holiday in the Alps with children gives a broader overview of Alpine villages that work for families with kids, and for the packing you can tick off the packing list.