Kitzsteinhorn: The Glacier Park is Ready for Action

The first snow is here! Kitzsteinhorn at Zell am See-Kaprun, Austria, enters the 2020/21 winter season with an action-packed freestyle and freeride offer. The ski resort opened on 4 October, and now Glacier Park invites riders to shred the first set-up of the winter! From 17 October 2020, snowboarders and skiers will find a unique snow park offer at the Kitzsteinhorn, which is expected to be open until May. The opening of Easy Park, Central Park and South Central Park as well as Maisi Park on the Maiskogel will gradually follow from December on. But that’s not all: with its varied freeride and ski touring routes, Salzburg’s only glacier ski area has plenty to offer for powder fans, ski tourers and splitboarders as well. The perfect connection is also guaranteed: The K-ONNECTION links Kaprun’s town center and the Family Mountain Maiskogel directly with the Kitzsteinhorn from December. Highest comfort with ski-in-ski-out to the glacier and back!

Glacier Park: The skate park made of snow!

From 17 October 2020, the Glacier Park on the glacier plateau will offer a creative set-up for freestyle snowboarders and freeskiers until January 2021. On the multifaceted obstacles of the Easy Kicker Line, Medium Kicker Line and the Jib Lines, riders can practice new tricks and improve their skills. Park designer and head-shaper Martin Liebmann and his experienced team guarantee the world-class quality of the “Skate Park made of Snow” and the other snow parks at the Kitzsteinhorn.

More snow parks from December
But the Glacier Park is by far not everything that “Kitz” has to offer – more well-maintained snow parks will follow from December on. They rank among the best in the world and satisfy riders with a diversified offer. In the Easy Park, snowboarders and freeskiers can rip the first obstacles from December on. And when the Central Park opens in January and the South Central Park is added in February, you can ride up to 20 obstacles in one run in a row! On Maiskogel, additionally the Maisi Park awaits riders with a special fun area and easy-to-ride fun elements, even for the youngest kids.

The Kitzsteinhorn Superpipe is taking a break this winter. It will return next year when the international top riders prepare for the 2022 Winter Olympics at the Superpipe Training Weeks 2021.

An off-piste paradise: Kitzsteinhorn for freeriders, splitboarders and ski tourers
Powder fields, cliff jumps and natural pipes: Thanks to its snow-reliability due to the high altitude, the Kitzsteinhorn is a real highlight for freeriders. They love the five marked ski routes that offer de-luxe backcountry fun: “Ice Age”, “Westside Story”, “Left Wing”, “Jump Run” and “Pipeline” please freeriders with varied terrain. Before they get started, they can get the latest information on the freeride routes, the weather, snow and avalanche conditions as well as equipment tips at the Freeride Info Base near the Alpine Center where they can also check their avalanche transceiver. Following the motto “Safety first!”, they will also find a topographical map with interesting information about the steepness of the slope, dangerous spots, and the most beautiful line at the Freeride Info Points. Workshops for beginners and advanced skiers are offered in cooperation with two ski schools on “Freeride Monday.”

Ski tourers and splitboarders will find two marked ascent routes on the Kitzsteinhorn, both alongside the piste from Langwiedboden (1,976 m): finishing at the Alpine Center at 2,450 m, the “Snow Queen” route overcomes 474 vertical meters. The longer “Eisbrecher” route even leads over 899 vertical meters to the top station of the Maurerlift at 2.875 m. Guided ski tours are offered every Thursday: A mountain guide takes the participants up the 2,642-m high, pristine Tristkogel. The meeting point is at the valley station of the glacier lifts at 8:30 a.m. before you take the cable car up to Langwiedboden together. From there, the ascent through high alpine terrain takes about 3.5 hours. At the summit, you will be rewarded with a magnificent 360-degree panorama. But the icing on the cake is the descent over wide powder slopes. The guiding by the state-certified mountain guides is Euro 125.00 (excl. ski ticket). Register before 4:00 p.m. the day before at www.bergfuehrer-zellkaprun.at, Phone +43 664 4308795.

Highlights: X OVER RIDE and World Rookie Tour Snowboard Finals!
The highlight program on the Kitzsteinhorn begins with the Snow-How Days on 7 and 8 November 2020 and with the Ski Touring Festival from 20 to 22 November 2020, where you can participate in guided ski tours and workshops or test the latest ski touring equipment. On 5 December 2020, the Kitzsteinhorn Extreme, the toughest ski touring race, will be held: the participants will master around 2,700 meters of altitude and 13 kilometers of distance. On 27 March 2021, the professionals of the freeride scene will compete in the X OVER RIDE 2021 and collect points for the qualification to the Freeride World Tour. The highlight for the freestylers will be the World Rookie Tour Snowboard Finals from 11 to 16 April 2021, with slopestyle and big air contests.

Getting through the winter safely together!
Big changes have developed over the last months – COVID-19 has influenced our way of life worldwide. The safety and personal health of every person are, more than ever, at the forefront of our minds. That’s why the Ski ALPIN CARD network with the ski regions of Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn, Schmitten in Zell am See and Kitzsteinhorn in Kaprun has not only established the necessary actions based on the regulations of the Austrian Federal Government but also an additional series of measures to protect all guests and employees. Valuable experience for the safe operation of the cable cars was already gained in summer 2020. Safety and hygiene measures regarding COVID-19 can be found at any time under: https://www.kitzsteinhorn.at/en/service/latest/news-homepage/hygiene-safety