Ischgl is a small village of 1,600 people (in 2018) in the Paznaun Valley (German: Paznauntal) in Tyrol Austria. Its ski resort is connected with that of Samnaun across the border in Switzerland to form one of the largest in the Alps.

Understand

Its 238 km (148 mi) of groomed pistes (including the pistes in Samnaun, Switzerland) are served by over 45 mechanical lifts including cable cars, gondolas, detachable chair lifts and some T-bars. Three ropeways give access to the ski area from the village: the Pardatschgratbahn, the Fimbabahn & the Silvrettabahn. Only the Fimbabahn and the Silvrettabahn have middle stations.

Many of the lifts converge at Idalp, where there is a restaurant. The area above Idalp offers wide, easy pistes and a snow park. Other parts of the Ischgl area, towards Höllboden and Paznauner Thaya, offer many red runs and some more challenging blacks. The steepest run in the resort is a black run with a gradient of 70%, located in the Höllboden bowl, and accessed by the "Lange Wand" chair lift. Paznauner Thaya offers many red runs suitable for intermediate-level skiers.

Tourist information

• Ischgl Tourism website

Get in

By plane

Ischgl is an hour's drive or so from Innsbruck's airport (INN ^IATA), two from Munich's (MUC ^IATA) and three from Zurich's (ZRH ^IATA).

From Innsbruck Airport there are many taxis that offer transfers to Ischgl.

By car

Ischgl can be reached very easily from Innsbruck, the regional capital of Tyrol. Follow the "S16" motorway route until you reach a junction near "Pians" and exit the motorway in the direction of "Paznauntal - Ischgl". The drive is just over an hour and is very direct, making the most of Austria's incredibly efficient road network. However, in winter it can happen that you need chains from the motorway down to See!

By train

Ischgl has no railway station and neither do any other villages or towns in the entire Paznaun valley. However, trains from Innsbruck travel as far as Landeck, roughly 3.5 km (2 mi) from the start of the valley. Regular bus services operated by "OBB", Austria's main public transport operator, run from the station in Landeck (Landeck-Zams) via the town centre to the Paznauntal frequently, making for a relatively simple journey.

Do

Ski: 220 km of pistes, resort opens early.

Buy

• MPREIS, Silvretta Str. 37, ☏ +43 50321928715. open Tu-F 07:30-19:00, Sa-M 14:00-19:00. Supermarket. (updated Jan 2024)

Eat

• Bäckerei Konditorei Kurz, Dorfstr. 53, ☏ +43 54445211. Bakery with delicious cakes and chocolates, two locations in Ischgl (the other at Dorfstr. 70) as well as in See and Galtür. (updated Jan 2024)

Sleep

Splurge

• Hotel Yscla, ☏ +43 5444 5275, fax: +43 5444 5275-4, info@yscla.at. 
• Hotel Madlein, Ischgl 144, ☏ +43 4718 590, fax: +43 4718 590-310, info@biohotel-daberer.at. 
• Hotel Brigitte, Oberer Kirchenweg 3, ☏ +43 5444 5646, fax: +43 5444 5646-66, info@hotel-brigitte.com. 
• Hotel Solaria. Fun and homely with good food.