Golm, AT 02/07/15

Day 7: Golm
For my final day in Montafon, I went to a family-oriented ski area right next door to Schruns: Golm, with a 3,400-vert drop located in the tiny village of Tschagguns. As mentioned before, Schruns and Tschagguns (pronounced "CHA GOONSE") are both integral stops on the "Footsteps of Ernest Hemingway" regional tour:



After a week straight of skiing, I decided to take it easy, arrive in the late morning, and do some easy cruising in the sun, for which Golm is a good place:



I was told by locals that there is also some challenging terrain that belied its family-friendly credo. From the top, you can see some amazing back/sidecountry -- look at those tracks down the middle of that line:



Go to the other side of the peak and there's more:



Along with a nice ridgeline stroll. See the three tube-like things on the peak? Those are the automated avy blasters similar to the ones that caused all the marital discord in the movie Force Majeure:

 

After about two hours, I headed up to the summit restaurant, where people were already considering the tough questions of life:



I sat down with my umpteenth Fohrenburger of the trip, the preferred local beer, and looked out over Schruns:



In town, I took a walk around the village, past a nearby bakery ("seductively fresh"):



And back to my HQ for the previous three days, the pleasant and very convenient Hotel Zimba:



Said goodbye to always helpful co-owner Heike Ladurner:



And that wrapped up my visit to the Vorarlberg -- all things considered (terrain, conditions, cuisine, villages, meetings with locals, intangibles), easily a Top 5 destination trip for me.

I wish your trip wasn't over

I've enjoyed these "fantasy" (for me cause i hate to travel) TR's

 --- nice job, and thanks again for sharing

campgottagopee wrote

I've enjoyed these "fantasy" (for me cause i hate to travel) TR's

Thanks, mate.

Several times, I kept it real with the WF cap (the last photo) -- a few people looked at it and asked what/where Whiteface was. I told them that it was about the same size as Golm and they said, "ah, a cute little local's hill?"

After spending a week in the Alps and reading your reports. A ski trip to the Alps will change the way you think about skiing. I have skied all over the US and Canada. There is nothing remotely similar on this side of the pond. Those mountains get into your soul.

Jamesdeluxe wrote

campgottagopee wrote

I've enjoyed these "fantasy" (for me cause i hate to travel) TR's

Thanks, mate.

A few times, I kept it real with the WF cap (the last photo) -- a few people looked at it and asked what/where Whiteface was. I told them that it was about the same size as Golm and they said, "ah, a cute little local's hill?"

Too funny

James.......from a cost perspective, how reasonable/unreasonable did you find the trip?  Was finding/planning the hotels difficult?

Love the trip reports, and they get you from dreaming to thinking it can be a reality!

JT..
I found the cost of hotels and skiing comparable to the US. It's all about the airfare..I spent 1k to fly to Geneva over the Xmas break...

I used expedia for all of my trip planning..it was very easy.

As Jason said, once you're on the ground there, it's more or less comparable to the States, especially with the dollar having made significant gains on the Euro over the last few months.

Timing
The obvious advice both from a price and crowd perspective is: AVOID Xmas/New Year's and the Euro school holidays (depending on the country and region: from the first or second week of February to the second or third week of March).

Plane Fare
This is the only unavoidable additional expense compared to a trip out west. You may get lucky with a fare, but generally, expect to pay about $1,000 roundtrip. To take that issue off the table, I always cash in FF awards (60K miles to Europe) gained mostly from an airline affinity credit card (United Mastercard, Delta AMEX, etc.). Living on the East Coast is advantageous in that you can easily get a nonstop from JFK or EWR to a gateway airport (Geneva, Zurich) and ski the entire afternoon on your arrival day, which is hardly a foregone conclusion on western trips with the exception of Salt Lake City.

On-The-Ground Transport
I usually don't rent a car in the Alps because it's more typical to stay in the same place for a week and use a train or bus to transfer from the airport. For this road trip, where I went to a different ski area every day -- which, needless to say, has its pros and cons -- I rented a car in Zurich for eight days at $240 (exactly what you'd pay in the States) and used $50 of gas.

Lodging/Meals
Just like anywhere else, you can spend as much or little as your budget dictates. B&B inns are usually very reasonable. That said, the real value/savings comes from doing the half-board plan at hotels, where breakfast and dinner is included. Left to your own devices, it's amazing how much you *can* blow by going out on the town for dinner night after night. That's why the half-board format is key and more often than not you'll be impressed by the quality AND quantity -- Austrian entrees are often big enough for two or three people, no joke. Moreover, it's really pleasant and unstressful to head downstairs for meals at your pre-assigned table. You get to know the wait staff, chat with the owners, etc. This is a big difference from the States and it's very civilized. The only thing that isn't included in half-board is beer/alcohol.

Lift Tickets
Cheaper (often significantly so) than in the States, especially when you consider the insane amount of terrain per dollar. At many half-board hotels, a six-day lift ticket for the region is included or added at a discount.

Thanks guys!  Just used most of my FF miles for 4 tix to Hawaii this summer, so that's not an options......but it sounds like a realistic trip, for what really looks like unreal turns.

Check out the size of the mountain in the background of that hotel pic!

JTG4eva! wrote

Just used most of my FF miles for 4 tix to Hawaii this summer

LOL, I made that mistake 12 years ago.

Against my better judgement, we used FF miles to go to Maui for our honeymoon. I vociferously advocated for an Alps ski visit; she guilt-tripped me out of it, claiming that we never went anywhere warm (true). Maui was ok -- I dug the 10,000-vert volcano -- but the waterfalls in Upstate NY are more impressive.

I never forgave myself for caving and we haven't gone on a warm-weather destination trip since.