Wilder Kaiser Ski Guide: SkiWelt, Winter Activities and Where to Stay

Wilder Kaiser is the rare ski area where you can spend a whole week and never ski the same run twice, then spend the evening tobogganing down a floodlit hill because the day wasn’t long enough.

Most people come for SkiWelt, and fair enough. But I went for a week in February and the skiing turned out to be about half of what I remember. This is everything a Wilder Kaiser ski trip can be, plus where to stay in each of the four villages.

Where is Wilder Kaiser?

Wilder Kaiser sits in the Austrian Alps in Tyrol, between Innsbruck, Munich and Salzburg, which makes it one of the easier Alpine regions to reach without a long transfer.

You can get there from Kufstein by shuttle. Check Tirol Taxi for current fares and timings.

Where to Stay in Wilder Kaiser

Four villages make up Wilder Kaiser: Ellmau, Going, Scheffau and Söll. Ellmau and Söll are the largest and the most popular with English-speaking visitors. Going and Scheffau are smaller and draw more German-speaking guests, which is either a drawback or the entire point, depending on what you’re after.

I stayed in Söll and would again.

One thing worth knowing before you book Ellmau: if you’ve seen the German TV series Der Bergdoktor, the village in the show is called Ellmau but it’s actually filmed in Going. Visitors turn up in Ellmau looking for places they recognize and find themselves in the wrong village entirely.

Skiing at SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental

Skiing is the main event here, and SkiWelt deserves it. As someone who grew up skiing in the Canadian Rockies, I don’t say that lightly.

SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental covers 275 km (171 miles) of linked slopes, which makes it one of the largest connected ski areas anywhere. You could technically ski it all in a day. You’d enjoy it considerably more over several.

Despite the size, it holds onto the Gemütlichkeit the Tyrolean Alps are known for, mostly thanks to the mountain huts. They’re deliberately rustic, they serve proper Austrian food, and you’re rarely more than one run from the next one.

Two signposted suggested routes run across the area, which takes the edge off the first morning when the piste map looks like a circuit diagram.

The SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser Ski Season

The 2026/27 season runs 18 December 2026 to 29 March 2027, with SkiWelt Ellmau extended until 4 April 2027.

Lift pass prices change every season, so rather than quote figures that go stale, check the current tariffs on the SkiWelt price overview.

Ladies’ Day and Men’s Day Discounts

If your dates are flexible, both are worth planning around. Ladies’ Day runs Wednesdays from 13 January 2027 and Men’s Day runs Tuesdays from 12 January 2027, each taking 10% off day and partial-day tickets. Details on the Ladies’ Day and Men’s Day pages.

Catch the Sunrise from the Top of SkiWelt

SkiWelt Brixen and SkiWelt Westendorf open early at 7:30 on selected Thursdays so you can watch the sun come up from the top of the mountain. You then either keep skiing or stop at a hut for an Austrian breakfast, which is the correct answer.

Be Bewitched by the Skiing Witches at SkiWelt Söll

Thursday to Sunday at 10:30, the witches gather at the Simonalm, better known as the witches’ hut, and brew a cauldron of witches’ brew that’s rumored to have magical powers. They’re also committed pranksters, and they ski, so you may meet them on the slopes whether you planned to or not.

Younger skiers tend to love this. So, it turns out, do adults.

Night Skiing at SkiWelt

Night skiing runs at Brixen, Westendorf and Söll, the last of which has 10 km (6 miles) of illuminated slopes. Check the SkiWelt night skiing page for days and times, which shift through the season.

Visit the ALPENIGLU Igloo Village

Stop in for a drink, take a tour, or if you genuinely like your accommodation cold, spend the night in the igloo hotel.

Wilder Kaiser in Winter Beyond the Slopes

Here’s what I’d push back on: going to Wilder Kaiser in winter and only skiing. The area has one of the better non-ski offerings in Tyrol, and a week here gives you time for both.

Snowshoeing in Wilder Kaiser

Snowshoeing is one of my favorite things to do in winter and it’s exceptionally good here. The route I’d pick is the one up to Köpfing, the Bergdoktor house from the TV series.

I did it with a group of Germans who were thrilled to see in person a landscape they’d only watched on television. I hadn’t seen the show and still enjoyed it, which tells you something.

You get a completely different read on the winter landscape than you do from a chairlift, and you work up the kind of appetite that an Alm lunch is designed for. When I went in February it was warm enough to sit outside.

Guided snowshoe hikes, including English-speaking guides, are listed on the Wilder Kaiser tourist board site.

Winter Hiking and the Hintersteinsee

The Hintersteinsee was voted the most beautiful place in Tyrol in 2018, and in winter it’s quiet to the point of being eerie.

Worth being straight about it though: there aren’t winter hiking or snowshoe trails around the snow-covered lake itself, and the road in can be difficult in deep winter. Go once some of the snow has gone and you’ll see the lake properly. The hikers’ shuttle only runs in summer.

SkiWelt maintains cleared winter hiking trails across the area, which is the German Winterwandern you’ll see signposted everywhere.

Après-Ski and the Ellmau Ski Show

On selected Monday evenings in Ellmau there’s mulled wine, music and a proper après-ski atmosphere, and at 8:30 the local skiers put on a show: synchronized skiing to music, nostalgia skiing, and fireworks to finish.

It’s especially popular with families. You can start earlier with a torchlight hike, meeting at the Ellmau tourist information office at 7:45 p.m.

Moonlight Tobogganing at Söll

In Canada we tend to file tobogganing under things children do. Not in the Austrian Alps. Söll has a 4 km (2.5 mile) toboggan run, open during the day but far better at night when it’s floodlit.

I didn’t get to do this one in Söll and I’m still annoyed about it. I do it at least once every winter somewhere.

Know Before You Go

• Give it a few days to a week. A weekend here is a missed opportunity.
• Don’t spend every day on the slopes. Mix in snowshoeing, winter hiking and tobogganing.
• Plan at least one evening activity. The night sky over the snow is worth staying out for.
• Decide your activities first, then pick between Ellmau, Going, Scheffau and Söll.
• Book accommodation early for February half-term, which fills before anything else.

FAQs About Skiing in Wilder Kaiser

How big is the Wilder Kaiser ski area?

The Wilder Kaiser ski area, SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental, covers 275 km (171 miles) of linked slopes, making it one of the largest connected ski areas in the world. It links Söll, Ellmau, Scheffau, Going, Brixen, Westendorf, Hopfgarten and Itter on a single pass.

When does the Wilder Kaiser ski season run?

The Wilder Kaiser ski season runs from 18 December 2026 to 29 March 2027, with SkiWelt Ellmau staying open until 4 April 2027. Dates shift slightly each year with snow conditions, so confirm on the SkiWelt site before booking flights.

Which Wilder Kaiser village should I stay in?

Stay in Söll or Ellmau if you want the largest choice of hotels and the most English spoken, and Scheffau or Going if you’d rather it was quiet. All four sit on the same lift network, so the skiing is identical whichever you choose. I stayed in Söll and liked having the toboggan run and the night skiing on the doorstep.

Which Wilder Kaiser hotels are pet-friendly?

Beim Hochfilzer Superior in Söll and Vitalhotel Sonnenhof in Going both accept pets, Beim Hochfilzer on request. Charges can apply at either and policies change, so check the house rules on the listing before you book. Alpengasthof Hochsöll and Familienhotel Christoph don’t accept pets.

What is the most family-friendly hotel in Wilder Kaiser?

The most family-friendly hotel in Wilder Kaiser is Familienhotel Christoph in Ellmau, which has children’s care and an indoor children’s pool with a 40 metre (130 ft) water slide. The Ellmau ski show on Monday evenings is also aimed squarely at families.

What is the best spa hotel in Wilder Kaiser?

The best spa hotel in Wilder Kaiser is Vitalhotel Sonnenhof in Going, which guests single out for its spa and saunas, and it isn’t adults-only so it works for families too. Beim Hochfilzer Superior in Söll also has a spa.

Is Wilder Kaiser good for non-skiers?

Wilder Kaiser is unusually good for non-skiers. There’s snowshoeing to the Bergdoktor house, cleared winter hiking trails across the region, the floodlit toboggan run at Söll, the ALPENIGLU igloo village and the Ellmau ski show. You could fill a week here without buying a lift pass.

Where to Stay in Wilder Kaiser: the Map

Is Wilder Kaiser Worth It?

Go. I loved my week and the only complaint I have is that it wasn’t longer. There’s enough here for a full week before you start repeating yourself, and the mix of ski days and snowshoe days is what makes it work.

It suits couples, solo travelers and families equally, and there are activities at every fitness level. I went alone and found the locals genuinely warm.