38 things to do on an Austrian winter holiday - and 79 Austrian things to be thankful for!

Skiing above the Kitzsteinhorn Glacier near Kaprun

Kitzsteinhorn glacier above Kaprun where it possible to ski in the Summer months.

Thinking about winter holidays? or skiing holidays in Austria? I started a list off to count up the options, of things to do, places to go,  got to twenty suggestions and the ideas still came flooding out. But it is reasonable to say that there is plenty to do and see on a winter / ski holiday in Austria.

If you are looking for a list of events and happenings in the Kaprun and Zell am See ( On the internet sometimes spelt ZellamSee ) ski  area click on the link here.

Salzburg a superb city to visit whatever the time of the year.

Salzburg in winter, a fantastic city to visit, explore and to shop in.

36 things to do on a winter holiday in Austria

1. Go in search of Apre Ski. (what you do after a day on the slopes, eat, drink & party).
   
2. Visit an Art gallery in Salzburg, Vienna, Linz, or Innsbruck, cities of culture.
3. Visit a local museum Bad Gastien, Kaprun, Zell am See or Saalfalden  are pretty interesting ones.
   
4. Visit a Wellness, Spa or Beauty centers, relax, unwind, ease away aches and pains. Tauern Spa Kaprun and  the  spas  in the  Gastein  valley  are  fantastic  places  to  chill.
5. Skittles or indoor Bowling  great with a beer!
   
6. Children's playgrounds, children still like them in the snow!
   
7. Visit the cinema, improve your German! some have international day showings.
8. Cleared footpath walks to follow, stopping at a mountain restaurant for a hot chocolate or something stronger!.
   
9. Cross Country Skiing across the valley bottom.
   
10. Curling on ice or even on a frozen lake?
11. Horse riding in the snow, or maybe a sleigh ride.
    
12. Ice-skating inside or outside
    
13. Ice-sailing something different
    
14. Ice-surfing?
15. Indoor tennis at Zell am see.
16. Outdoor fitness course, take a run
17. Nordic Walking - walking with poles, give that body a workout.
    
18. Top up the sun tan, bright and sunny in the snow.
19. Spa, sauna, steam room, Spa-World-Kaprun  well  worth  a  visit,   or  try  the  Gastein valley  with  2  fantastic  thermal  spas,  at  Bad Hofgastein  the  alpentherme.com or at Badgastein  Felsentherme.
20. ? Make  this one up for your self? or go and see an ice hockey match in Zell am See
21. Snow shoeing,  walking  across  snowy  slopes  through  trees  and  across  snow  covered  meadows.
22.  Have a ride on a horse drawn sleigh
23. Skiing an independent view point 
24. Sit  have  a coffee  or  a   Glühwein  and  soak  soak  up the  atmosphere and  history  of  the  place. 
25. Snow-boarding.
    
26. Snow-tubing.
27. Snow Kiting
28. Parascending
    
29. Visit a Sports centre with a gym.
30. Squash or tennis.
31. Swimming pool inside or out?
    
32. Sledging or tobogganing there is a great one in Kaprun
33. Winter markets, shopping at Zell am See or Salzburg market in the snow.
34. Sit down have a hot chocolate, take in the views and relax, you are on holiday.
35. Have a meal to remember having burnt off the calories.
    
36. Hot air ballooning over snowy mountains! Balloon festival at the end of January (now  moved  into  January) in Kaprun and Zell am See
37. Take a cable car to the top of a mountain and take in the view. Schmitten views, history and activities
    
38. You are on holiday you decide? 

Winter Ski map of the Kaprun and Zell am See area.

Looking for somewhere to stay in the Kaprun area then please consider looking  at  

austria-holiday-apartments.https://booking.zellamsee-kaprun.co.at/rentals/apartment-kaprun-apartment-tauernblick-ii-with-garden-in-kaprun-197681.html?FRMAdultos=8

Convenient and Spacious accommodation for your holiday stay in Kaprun

Attached  was added at a later date and is copied with permission from an interesting blog found / written by an American teaching assistant by the name of Rebecca, who was based in the  Austrian City of  Graz, on her work experience trip in Austria.

"Under the heading I'm thankful" it adds to quite a list of 79  things about Austria.

1.     for a city that's safe at night
2.     for a city that's safe during the day
3.     for a fantastic church home
4.     for a rich national history
5.     for accessible and affordable operas
6.     for affordable housing
7.     for an abundance of castles
8.     for an orderly and cheap laundry system in my apartment building
9.     for Austrian school and office supplies -- so much cooler!
10.     for balls (i.e. dancing balls, like Cinderella went to a ball)
11.     for bike paths
12.     for cheap but good wine and beer
13.     for cheap sparkling mineral water
14.     for cheap, convenient and reliable train travel within Austria
15.     for cheap/easy/convenient opportunities to travel within Europe
16.     for church bells that ring at 7 am, 12 pm, 3 pm, and 7 pm
17.     for consistently good coffee
18.     for cute, quaint villages
19.     for dialect and its accompanying amusements, puzzles and challenges
20.     for everyone who helped me and/or made phone calls to figure out all the bureaucratic visa stuff
21.     for everything pumpkin out of Styria: pumpkin seed oil, pumpkin cream soup, pumpkin bread, etc.
22.     for exclusively Austrian Sturm, Glühwein, Christmas markets, and Buschenschanks
23.     for ex-pats
24.     for friends
25.     for good bread and cheese
26.     for good health insurance and no referrals
27.     for good places to run and bike
28.     for having 38 public holidays
29.     for having the Mur river running though town
30.     for hospitality
31.     for how Austrians will really pull through for you
32.     for incredible scenery
33.     for kebabs
34.     for Labello
35.     for lackadaisical passport control officials
36.     for living in a bike-friendly city
37.     for meeting so many cool people from all over the world
38.     for my connections
39.     for my fellow foreigners
40.     for old European streets, houses, and architecture in general; especially how this everyday cityscape stayed fresh and new for me
41.     for reliable public transportation
42.     for skiing and Austrian-style sledding
43.     for so much free/leisure time
44.     for sturdy toilet paper and tissues
45.     for the abundance and coexistence of kitsch, history, and design
46.     for the Austrians who adopted me and introduced me to Austrian life and culture
47.     for the comfortable pace and quality of life
48.     for the coziness of Graz
49.     for the insanely cheap price of a chunk of fresh mozzarella
50.     for the lack of cockroaches, poison ivy, and poisonous spiders and snakes
51.     for the ubiquitous ice cream stands in the summer
52.     for traditional clothing and accordion music
53.     for tram and bus drivers who will stop the vehicle and wait for you if they see you running to catch a ride
54.     for wearing slippers at home or as a guest in someone's home
55.     for wonderful room mates and a flexible landlady
56.     that Austria takes care of its people
57.     that dogs are so well-behaved here and are allowed to go everywhere
58.     that even in Austria I can be BFF with my bank teller(s)
59.     that Graz was the Cultural Capital of Europe in 2003 and therefore has lots of spiffy new buildings and such
60.     that having a car is so unnecessary
61.     that having a real Christmas tree with real candles is the only tree most of them have ever known
62.     that I can leave my bike simply standing and loosely locked anywhere in the city and it will still be there when I come back
63.     that I can understand German on the phone
64.     that I can walk in to the doctor's office without an appointment and actually be seen
65.     that I could live in the same apartment for over 2 years - longer than any other apartment I've ever had
66.     that I had so many visitors in the past couple years!
67.     that I lived for 2 years without a deadbolt and it never bothered me
68.     that I'm no longer pre-judged on the basis of my president
69.     that it is so easy to split the bill in a restaurant
70.     that my room doesn't face a street
71.     that nearly everything you ever use is recycled
72.     that people have stopped introducing me as, "This is Rebecca. She's American."
73.     that receiving phone calls is free on your mobile phone
74.     that Styria has it all -- mountains, hills, vineyards, thermal baths…
75.     that tax is included in all your purchases and tipping is practically nonexistent
76.     that the country is very stable and doesn't have any severe political or international problems
77.     that there are so many old people who are out and about
78.     that there are very few Americans in comparison with other Austrian cities
79.     that there are very few tourists in comparison with the other Austrian cities"

Quite a list, we would welcome other suggestions about what is good about Austria.