St Anton: piste guide

St Anton fully deserves its cult status among the world's advanced skiers and snowboarders thanks to its consistent snow record, the extensive and varied Arlberg ski area (305km of pistes, 200km of off-piste itineraries and over 55km² of off-piste terrain) and modern network of 88 lifts.

It is, undoubtedly, a resort which favours strong skiers and riders – pistes classified as blues here would generally be reds in other resorts, and people treat the off-piste itineraries shown on the piste map like ordinary runs. The resort breaks down these marked but ungroomed off-piste runs into "normal" and “extreme” routes, the former being less challenging than the latter. However, even the “normal” routes, such as those down from Schindlerspitze and Kapall, should be approached with caution by all, including advanced skiers. "Extreme routes", like the 52 down the Kandahar-Galzip piste are best tackled with a ski guide. In fact, with so much terrain to explore, and so many people competing for fresh tracks on it, hiring a guide is the best way of maximising St Anton’s potential.

The majority of St Anton’s terrain is found on the northern side of the valley, the same side as the town, with the small yet entertaining Rendl sector on the southern side. Rising directly above St Anton and Nasserein, the Gampen and Kapall mountains offer fairly gentle beginner slopes at their base, getting more challenging the higher you get.

The pioneering Galzig gondola is the world's first lift to boast a ferris wheel system, enabling skiers and snowboarders to embark on ground level – it whisks visitors west across the Moos valley to the Galzig mountain, where the ski area really starts to open up. The resort of St Christoph nestles in the valley south of Galzig, while the imposing Valluga and Schindler peaks rise up to the east.

The large Valluga I cable car takes people towards the top of Valluga, while brave off pisters can continue up on the little Valluga II cable car to the very top, a precipitous 2,811m. Keep pressing northwest along the top of Galzig, and the town of Stuben lies in the next valley south, from where you can access the relatively quiet slopes on Albonagrat, while Zürs and Lech resorts lie further north.

Beginners will want to stay around gentle Nasserein to start with, while Rendl, which is relatively quiet, is ideal for intermediates looking to find their feet. The fast reds down from Albonagrat to St Christoph are great for perfecting carving, a top to bottom from Valluga to St Anton will test the strongest of legs, you can time yourself on the Kapall World Cup piste and punish your knees on the Mattun and Schindler Kar mogul fields.

The Stanton fun park on Rendl is accessible from two lifts and is overlooked by the Rendl Beach Bar, ensuring plenty of adoring whoops for successful tricks (and plenty of winces for the unsuccessful ones). The sizeable park incorporates three sections, enabling freestylers of all levels to enjoy it. The Proline has large kickers, pipes and a number of challenging rails and boxes. The Medium Kickerline is located in the centre of the park, with jumps that range from 7m to 11m, and the Jibline comprises a wide range of rails and boxes suitable for more tentative freestylers. The park is shaped daily and, according to snow conditions, you'll also find natural pipes, corners, spines and kickers dotted around it.