family travel guide
The full name of the Seefeld ski area is Olympiaregion Seefeld: it has twice hosted the Winter Olympics. There are no difficult slopes and not many places to go off-piste.
But it is an ideal resort for family holidays and for learning to ski. There are gentle, sunny slopes, easy slopes for beginners and learning platforms for children.
Of course, there are modern lifts, good hotels and everything a skier could need after a day on the slopes. Read about all the benefits of a holiday with children in Seefeld in our review.
Seefeld is a ski resort in western Austria, in the state of Tyrol, near the border with Germany. It belongs to the district of Innsbruck (administrative centre — Innsbruck). The distance from Seefeld to Innsbruck is 26 km, to Salzburg — 210 km, to Munich (Germany) — 125 km.
The Seefeld Olympic Region comprises several towns: Seefeld in Tirol, Leutasch, Scharnitz, Mösern/Buchen and Reith.
Seefeld is well known to winter sports enthusiasts, having hosted the Olympic Winter Games in 1964 and 1976, and the World Ski Championships in 1985. Seefeld has also been selected to host the 2019 Championships.
All winter resorts in Austria have one thing in common. The Seefeld ski resort is no exception: its special feature is the large number of slopes for beginners.
The fact that most of the slopes are suitable for beginners and intermediate skiers, and that there is an excellent area of gentle slopes for children almost in the centre of Seefeld, means that many parents who are planning to put their children on skis choose this resort.
Experienced skiers may find the slopes a little boring, and the total length of the slopes is far inferior to the monsters of SkiWelt or Kitzbühel Alpen, but for first steps and quiet family skiing, Seefeld is a great option.
As well as skiing, Seefeld has plenty of other activities for children. Tobogganing and skating in winter, hiking and excursions in summer. Hotels can also help organise leisure time, with playrooms and playgrounds.
And here are a few more facts in favour of a holiday in Seefeld.
1. The drive from the airport to the resort takes half an hour — a journey that will not tire even the children.
2. The resorts that make up the region are situated on a sunny plateau at an altitude of 960-1200 metres above sea level. At these altitudes, acclimatisation is very easy.
3. Many of the hotels in Seefeld have all the facilities you need to relax with your child.
4. The frost in this region is milder than in high-altitude resorts, so you can come here with an infant even in winter.
Finally, you come to Seefeld with children because it is an upmarket resort, but not a posh one — which means you can enjoy quality service for a reasonable price.
The skiing season in Seefeld is typical of the Austrian Alps: the snow covers the mountains in December and melts by mid-April.
The weather is usually favourable for skiing, but the slopes may not be in the best condition at the start of the season in Seefeld and in April. Good snow conditions can be found from the end of December to the end of March.
When is the best time to go to Seefeld? Seefeld, like most resorts, is very busy over the Christmas and New Year period and in February and March.
January and the second half of March are much quieter on the pistes, making them ideal for a holiday with children.
In summer and early autumn, Seefeld is not overcrowded with tourists, so you can enjoy the peace and quiet. From May to August it often rains, so if you have a small child it is better to come to Seefeld in the autumn, when there is nothing to stop you from taking long walks.
The climate in Seefeld can hardly be described as mild. Winters here are long, snowy and frosty, and summers are cool and rainy. In other words, the winter offers five months of skiing, and the cool summer is ideal for holidays with children, who do not like the heat.
The winter weather in the resort is established in December. The air temperature drops to zero during the day and -2-10°C at night. It often snows and there are few clouds in the sky.
In January and February the weather is the same, except that at night the frost can drop to -15-25°C. This is a great time for a holiday in Seefeld if you want to ski in the freshly fallen snow.
March is still very much like winter, although by the end of the month the daytime temperature is +3-8°C. The sun shines and sometimes it snows — you couldn't ask for a better holiday in Seefeld with children.
Although there is a risk of night frost in April, temperatures range from +5 to +15°C. May brings rain, which irrigates the resort until September.
In summer, temperatures in Seefeld rise to +18-24°C. Night temperatures range from +4-12°C.
In September, summer-like warm days alternate with very cold ones, but the rains finally come to an end. Temperatures drop to +5-11°C in October and to +1-5°C in November. Night frosts are possible in late autumn.
Public transport in Seefeld is the ski bus in winter, shuttle buses in summer and electric trains all year round. It is convenient for both skiing and excursions.
The ski bus timetable is published on the resort's official website. There you will also find the timetable for the village bus. However, if the ski bus is free with a ski pass, the bus ride costs from €3 (children's tickets cost half the price).
If you travel frequently, you can buy the Olympiaregion Seefeld Card. Useful buses for tourists are № 430 to Leutach, 432 to Scharnitz and Wright, 8354 to Mezern.
Intercity transport in Seefeld — trains and trains again . It takes half an hour to get from Seefeld to Innsbruck by train. There are train stations in Reit and Scharnitz, but only commuter trains run there.
To get around Seefeld you can take a taxi or hire a car. There are public car parks in the villages and many hotels provide parking for their guests.
A holiday in Seefeld is not just about skiing. All kinds of winter activities are available here - tobogganing, skating, skiing, snowshoeing and curling.
The first thing you can do in Seefeld with a child is tobogganing. Children are very familiar with this activity, but how many are lucky enough to be able to roll down a 2 km long track? There are five toboggan runs in and around Seefeld and it takes more than a day to do them all.
There are open ice rinks in Seefeld, Scharnitz and Leutach. Or perhaps a child would be interested in playing Icestock, as curling is known in Tyrol.
The more adventurous tourists can take their child for a walk in the snow-covered forest. The routes in Seefeld are relatively difficult, the minimum distance to be covered is 2.5 km. However, there are hiking trails in the resort that are suitable for children with pushchairs.
To warm up after a day on the slopes, we recommend a family holiday at the Olympia Bad Seefeld indoor complex. Adults can relax in the saunas and whirlpools, while children will love the paddling pool and slide. There is a similar complex in Leutasch.
The slopes in Seefeld form five ski areas. All of them are universal, which means they are suitable for both advanced skiers and those who are new to skiing in Seefeld.
The main areas with a good selection of blue and red slopes where you can spend time with children are — Gschwandtkopf (Gschwandtkopf, 1200-1500 m) and Rosshütte (Rosshütte, 1200 - 2064 m). At Rosshütte there is a children's ski park called Sporti's Kinderland.
The Birkenlift-Geigenbühel and Neuleutasch sectors, with several cable cars, are close to the centre of Seefeld and are suitable for beginners and children.
The Brandlift area has pistes of varying degrees of difficulty, but is well known to non-skiers: There is a snow tubing slope, where adults and children go down in inflatable tubes.
If you're visiting with children who don't know how to ski, enrol them in one of Seefeld's ski schools.
Each school has special areas for children's lessons: for example, instructors at Seefeld Ski School work with children in the bright and colourful Gizzi area. Lessons for 3-5 year olds last 2 hours and for 5+ year olds — 4 hours.
To organise a holiday in Seefeld with a child who is too young to ski, help the kindergartens and clubs at the ski schools.
| General season | December — April |
| Elevation difference | 960 m-2100 m |
| Ski slopes |
49 km — total |
| Ski lifts |
31 total, including |
| Ski routes | 279 km |
| Snow guns | 90% coverage |
| Toboggan runs | 5 |
| The longest ski run | 5000 m (Seefelder Joch (2100) |
| Interactive scheme of ski slopes and lifts | https://www.seefeld.com/en/holiday-tyrol-ski/panoramic-ski-area |
The Happy Ski Card covers the entire ski area of Seefeld, including the Bergbahnen Rosshuette, Happy Gschwandtkopf Lifts, Geingenbuehel Lift and Birkenlifte. The price of the ski pass does not change during the season.
The approximate price of a day pass is €54,5 for adults, €52 for young people (16-18 years), €39 for children aged 6-15 and €19.5 for children under 6.
A 3-7 day ski pass for adults costs around €152-283, for teenagers — €140-261, for children aged 6 -15 — €91-170 and for children under 6 — €45-85.
Ski passes are available for either day or evening skiing (09:00 - 13:00 or 13:00 - 16:15). They start at €22.5 for adults, €22.5 for teenagers and €19.5 for children aged 6-15.
Ski hire in Seefeld can be found at the bottom of the lifts, in ski schools and sports shops. Rental equipment is usually available in different classes, from basic to VIP level.
Almost everywhere you can book online with a 10-15% discount.
A day's ski hire for adults costs around 20-40 euros, a set of skis and boots — 27-50 euros. Skis and boots for children 15-17 years cost 25 euros per day, 7-14 years — 18-21 euros, under 7 years —14-15 euros.
The cost of renting a set of snowboarding equipment and boots is approximately 30 euros for adults and 23 euros for children. You can also hire a helmet for 5 euros and a sledge for 6 euros.
Summer holidays in Seefeld offer pure mountain air, beautiful scenery and great opportunities for outdoor activities. During the warmer months, the Wildsee and Möserersee lakes are popular with children and adults alike.
For the younger guests of the resort, a special cultural and entertainment programme is developed every year, including horse riding, visits to the local farm, theme parties, hiking, canoeing and many other activities.
And on the first Sunday in August, Seefeld is transformed into a fairytale world, with a flower parade for all residents and guests.
All tourists can visit the small amusement park in Leutach, where merry-go-rounds, slides and water games await.
Holidays with children in Seefeld are easy to combine with excursions: the resort is half an hour's drive from Innsbruck, and the nearest attractions in Germany are less than an hour away.
Even in winter, when most of the time is spent skiing, there are plenty of interesting places for children to visit.
Enjoy an exciting sightseeing tour in Innsbruck. In one day, you can take your child to the majestic Ambras Castle, the Alpine Zoo and the magical Swarovski Museum just outside the city.
What else can you see in and around Seefeld? We recommend a trip from Innsbruck to Kufstein, which also has a magnificent castle.
Several attractions can be visited along the way:
We recommend adding Oberammergau in Germany to the list of places to visit with children. Painted village houses often appear in promotional photographs and wooden souvenirs with intricate carvings are eagerly bought by tourists.
It takes a little longer to get to the castles of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. Both are beautiful and fairytale-like — it's not for nothing that Neuschwanstein became the prototype for Sleeping Beauty's castle in the Disney studio logo.
Where to stay in Seefeld with children — in the centre or in one of the villages? The decision depends on your holiday goals and your expectations of comfort. If you do a lot of skiing and have children on skis, we recommend looking for accommodation in Seefeld, which is conveniently located for all the ski areas.
In addition, Seefeld has the most developed tourist infrastructure, several good children's ski schools, a greater choice of entertainment for all ages.
There is also a large sports centre, the Olympia Bad Center. The choice of hotels and apartments in Seefeld is greater than in the neighbouring villages.
The villages of Reith and Mösern-Buchen, which overlook the Gschwandtkopf ski area, are also ideal for independent holidays in Seefeld with children. The other ski areas can be reached by ski bus. Both villages have children's ski schools.
In the village of Scharnitz there is a cable car and in Leutach (8 km from Seefeld) there are gentle slopes for beginners. For families staying in the village of Leutasch, we recommend a visit to the Alpenbad Leutasch sports centre to relax after skiing.
Villages near Seefeld can also be chosen for a non-active summer holiday. If you want to go on an excursion, you have to go to Seefeld first. There are only a few buses a day between the villages.
And with so many attractions in the vicinity of Seefeld, it is advisable to either stay in the centre of the resort or rent a car.
Many of the hotels in Seefeld are family-oriented. Services for young tourists include playrooms, cots, high chairs and other baby equipment, children's menus and pram hire.
The only thing to bear in mind is that hotel meals are usually organised as 'breakfast only' or 'half board', so children's menus are only available for breakfast or dinner.
However, many families find that apartments are the best place to stay with children rather than hotels. They often have more space than hotel rooms and are equipped with a kitchen.
There is usually a playground next to the apartment. If you want to cook, there are supermarkets where you can buy everything you need. If not, you can go to one of the many restaurants serving local and international cuisine.
The nearest airports to Seefeld are Innsbruck (20 km) and Munich (162 km).
How to get to Seefeld from the airport:
Seefeld has its own railway station. Travel time from Innsbruck is about 30 minutes, from Munich 2-2.5 hours. You can also reach Seefeld by train from Reith, Scharnitz.
The train timetable can be found on the website of the Austrian Railways ÖBB: https://www.oebb.at/.
Seefeld has a bus connection mainly with the neighboring villages. Information on timetables and ticket prices can be found on the VVT website: http://www.vvt.at
How to get to Seefeld:
1. Munich (A8/A93 autobahn) - Kufstein - Innsbruck (A12, exit at Zirl, then about 12 km into the Zirler Berg region) - Seefeld.
2.Munich (A95) - Garmisch - Scharnitz - Telfs - Seefeld.
3.Kempten - Füssen - Reutte - Fernpaß - Imst - Seefeld.
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