family travel guide
When children are happy, their parents are doubly happy. And Serfaus is a resort where happiness is in the air. You can even hear it in the laughter and squeals from the children's playgrounds where the ski school takes place.
And when the little skiers proudly take part in their first competitions and then move on to the real adult slopes, you can say with confidence that the family holiday has been a success.
Read about the other joys of a holiday with children in Serfaus, one of the most kid-friendly ski resorts in Austria.
Serfaus (Zerfaus) is a municipality in western Austria, in the state of Tyrol, in the district of Landeck (the administrative centre is the town of Landeck). The distance from Serfaus to Landeck is 26 km, to Innsbruck — 97 km, to Salzburg — 280 km, to Munich (Germany) — 185 km, to Vaduz (Liechtenstein) — 126 km.
In 1999, the community of Serfaus merged with neighbouring villages to form the Serfaus - Fiss - Ladis ski area. There are also three other ski resorts within a 20 km radius: Nauders, Reed and the Kaunertal Glacier (3160 m). All are linked by a single ski pass.
Not far from Serfaus, on the border between Austria and Switzerland, is another famous winter resort, Ischgl. In this part of the Alps, the mountains rise to 3,000 metres, so there is snow from late autumn to mid-spring.
Serfaus is known as the children's ski resort. Not because there are so few slopes — there are plenty, and they are more difficult than easy.
The secret is this: the resort's children's ski schools are some of the best in Europe, and children in Serfaus don't just learn to ski, they fall in love with it for life.
A trip to Serfaus with children is usually filled with all kinds of activities. Even if your child isn't spending all their energy in the activities and Snow Town, you can still spend time with them on the toboggan run, the ice rink or a game of curling.
And at the end of a busy day, come home to a cosy hotel with everything you need to relax with your baby. This includes cots, entertainment and meals for the youngest guests. Families with an infant will appreciate the range of baby care accessories.
Summer holidays in Serfaus are just as exciting as winter holidays. Although the weather in the resort is not very warm, the activities are not a hindrance. Serfaus has amusement parks for children in the summer, but instead of rides, there are adventure trails and water playgrounds.
And in the warmer months, a trip to Innsbruck or the Principality of Liechtenstein is great fun for the whole family.
Please note that Serfaus is at a fairly high altitude and it may take a few days for a child to acclimatise.
The winter season in Serfaus starts in the second week of December and lasts until mid to late April. Usually by this time the mountains are covered in snow, the weather is frosty and everything is good for skiing.
But not even a good snow cover signals the start of the season in Serfaus. The main event that attracts huge crowds is the Adventure Night show. The first show takes place at the end of December and the last one in mid-April (which marks the end of the season).
When is the best time to visit Serfaus? If you don't want to queue for the lifts, choose mid-January, the second half of March and early April. At the beginning of December, the resort is not yet at full capacity, Christmas and New Year, February and March are very busy and there can be problems with snow in April.
A holiday with a child can also be planned for the summer. The weather in the summer months is mild and often rainy, but sunny days are not uncommon. It is best to visit Serfaus with a young child in the summer, as the winter is often very frosty.
The climate in Serfaus may not seem very welcoming. From November to March it's frosty in the resort, and in the summer the air doesn't even warm up to +20°C. But the weather has its advantages.
The first advantage is the long and snowy winter. By the end of November, Serfaus is already covered in 10 cm of snow. Temperatures drop to zero during the day and -5-12°C at night.
In December the snow layer reaches 40 cm and the snow doesn't stop until April. Temperatures drop to -3-10°C during the day and -4-15°C at night.
In January and February the weather is similar, but the night frosts can be harsher: on rare occasions, the resort can experience temperatures as low as -22-30°C. Clear days alternate with cloudy ones, only the end of winter is usually very gloomy.
The best time to holiday in Serfaus with children is when spring arrives. Daytime temperatures range from -5°C to +5°C, although the nights are still freezing.
In April the air warms up to +2-6°C, but as soon as it gets dark the temperature drops sharply. In May, rain replaces the snowfalls that continue throughout the summer.
Temperatures rise gradually from +7-13°C to +10-20°C in July and August. Despite the heavy rainfall, the weather in Serfaus is mostly sunny but not hot — another advantage of the resort.
If you are planning a summer holiday in Serfaus, be sure to bring warm clothing as temperatures can drop to freezing at night.
Autumn in the resort is early and quite cold. There can be night frosts as early as September, with daytime temperatures barely reaching +6-12°C. In October the temperature drops to +2-9°C.
Public transport in Serfaus is unusual: instead of ski lifts, there is the Dorfbahn, a silent hovercraft. The metro is free and runs from 8 am to 7pm, and until midnight on Wednesdays when there is Adventure Night. The exact timetable is available on the resort's tourist website.
However, it is forbidden to drive in Serfaus.
If you're travelling by car, you'll be able to get to your hotel on arrival, but you'll have to walk or take the underground to get around the resort. In Fiss and Ladis the ban only applies at night.
To get around Serfaus all year round, you can take the intercity bus no. 4236, which runs several times a day. Adult tickets from Serfaus to Fiss and Ladis cost around €3. Children's tickets are half price. The same bus takes you to Landeck, from where you can catch trains to Innsbruck and Salzburg.
Serfaus is the clear leader among Austria's winter resorts when it comes to children's activities. Parents don't have to worry about what to do with their children in Serfaus: the unique snow amusement parks do the job.
In Fiss-Ladis there is Berta's Kinderland, and in Serfaus there is the Kinderschneealm with ski carousels, swings, a fairytale village, a playground and indoor entertainment area, a petting zoo, snow slides, a children's adventure course and other fun activities.
For children aged 2.5-4 years, the large Murmli amusement park has been built in the centre of the resort, with gently sloping toboggans, moving walkways and interesting facilities.
For a truly family-friendly holiday, you can spend time with your children. One of the best ways to spend time together is tobogganing. The toboggan runs in Serfaus are 3 and 4 km long and are illuminated in the evenings.
There are several activities to keep children entertained:
Nightlife in Serfaus is not as busy as in other resorts. However, it is worth taking a late night stroll with your child and waiting for the dazzling Adventure Night show in Comperdell.
A ski show performed by ski school athletes, sensational acts, a laser show and spectacular fireworks in the mountains will bring a lot of positive emotions to the whole family.
The vast Serfaus ski area is divided into several zones. From Serfaus, lifts take you to Komperdell (1980m), Mittlerer Sattelkopf (2320m) and Plansegg (2376m), which has a variety of blue and red runs.
Plansegg has two snowparks, Progression Circus and Jib Circus, while Komperdell is home to the huge Kinderschneealm children's park.
Between Fiss and Ladis is a gentle slope with blue runs and Berta's Kinderland beginners' park. Off-piste skiing is also available here.
The Möseralm (1820 m) and Schönjoch (2509 m) also offer a variety of slopes for beginners and advanced skiers. The Möseralm area is home to the Boarderclub and Sun Park.
There are difficult red and black runs at higher altitudes on the Lazid (2351 m), Scheid (2424 m), Obere Scheid (2600 m), Pezid (2770 m), Masnerkopf (2828 m) and Zwölferkopf (2596 m) pistes.
The Komperdellbahn (Serfaus) and Schönjochbahn I (Fiss) take you to the start of the toboggan runs.
If you haven't skied before coming to Austria, take a basic course at the Serfaus or Fiss-Ladis ski school. The schools have classes for adults and children of all ages, and it is possible to sign up for groups with Russian-speaking instructors.
The minimum age for a child to attend ski school is 3. You can learn to snowboard from the age of 6.
The highlight of Serfaus are the children's parks, where children can play and learn to ski at the same time. The parks have their own lifts, simulators and nursery slopes. For parents who want to spend time with their children, there is a comfortable relaxation area.
If you're coming to Serfaus with a child under the age of 3, you can rely on the help of the kindergartens in the children's parks. At Murmli and Berta's Kinderland, children can play, eat and sleep while their parents go skiing.
| General season | December - April |
|
Elevation difference |
1200 m-2820 m |
| Ski slopes |
214 km — total |
| Ski lifts |
69 total, incl. |
| Ski routes | 119 km |
| Toboggan runs | 10 km |
| Fun-park | 9 |
| Interactive scheme of ski slopes and lifts | https://www.serfaus-fiss-ladis.at/en/winter/piste-map |
Ski pass prices in Serfaus vary according to the season. The only exception is the youth pass (16-18 years), which costs the same in high and low season.
High season in Serfaus is from 22 December to 11 January and from 26 January to 15 March. The approximate cost of a one-day ski pass during this period is €61 for adults, €52 for 16-18 year olds and €36 for 6-15 year olds.
A 2-6 day ski pass costs approximately €121-326 for adults and €71-189 for children. It is possible to buy ski passes valid for up to 14 days.
Families with children under the age of 3 can purchase a special ski pass that allows both parents to ski in turns. A 3-6 day ski pass costs around €162-290 with a guest card.
A 2-6 day ski pass for adults costs around €113-295 in low season and €71-188 for children.
Ski hire in Serfaus is often found in sports shops. You can hire skis of all levels, from basic to professional, snowboards, boots, helmets and sledges.
A day's ski or snowboard hire costs around €24-25 for an adult, €11 for a child aged 7-14 and €8 for a child under 6.
Ski boot hire costs approximately €13-18 for an adult and €7-8 for a child per day. Helmet hire is €5 per day and sledge hire is €6 per day.
Although the Austrian Alps are better known as a winter holiday destination, Serfaus continues to welcome tourists in summer with a wealth of activities and attractions. Both winter amusement parks are transformed into summer ones during the warmer months, with children on the go from morning to night.
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At Murmliwasser Park, for example, children can enjoy themselves in the water fun centre and even try their hand at panning for gold in a specially equipped area in the river channel.
There are 15 play stations throughout the park, so there is something for everyone. The park also offers family-friendly walks on the fairytale Murmitrail Trail, which is full of surprises.
There are other themed walks for families with children in Serfaus. One of the most exciting is the plane crash mystery trail. We also recommend the Witches' Trail or the Explorers' Trail.
The Summer Fun Park in Fiss offers a wide range of extreme air and ground rides, the most popular of which are the Skiswing, the Fisser Flieger, the summer toboggan run and the trampoline.
For those who miss winter, there is a separate snow zone where you can play snowball and toboggan on snow tracks.
The Super.Summer.Card, which is issued with a guest card, helps you save money during your summer holiday in Serfaus. It gives you free access to many attractions and lifts.
As well as theme parks, cycling (there are more than 35 safe cycle routes in the Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis resort area), hiking, rafting, fishing and tennis are all popular with holidaymakers with children.
Most hotels organise their own entertainment programmes for guests during the summer months, including mountain and meadow hikes, herb gardening, barbecues and horse riding.
A holiday in Serfaus with children can be filled to the brim with skiing. However, if you do have some free time, there are plenty of things for children to do in the resort.
For example, the Museum Fiss (Puintweg 1, Fiss) shows archeological findings. The Farmhouse Museum in Fiss is decorated with figures in folk and ritual costumes.
The façade of the 16th-century Stockerhaus in Ladis is decorated with special plaster paintings, as can be seen in the Bavarian village of Oberammergau.
Be sure to take your child to see the village fountains, where women once washed their clothes, children launched boats made from bark and nutshells, and men gathered to discuss the latest news.
But as the list of things to see in and around Serfaus quickly runs out, it's worth taking a trip to Innsbruck. Children will love the Alpine Zoo, the armoury and chamber of curiosities at Ambras Castle, the crib collection at the Tyrolean Museum of Folk Art and the crystal room at the Swarovski Museum.
A trip to Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein, is an extraordinary experience. The tiny town has plenty to see with children: a medieval castle (now the residence of the Princely Family), the National Museum with a rich historical exhibition, the National Art Gallery with a collection of paintings by Rembrandt, Bruegel, Rubens and van Dyck, and the Postal Museum.
Why is Serfaus considered a better winter resort for children? Because almost all the hotels in the resort are family-friendly and offer a wide range of facilities for children, from baby food, playrooms and mini-clubs to cots, baths, high chairs and other useful accessories.
For a self-catering holiday in Serfaus with children, apartments can be rented — many of which cater for the needs of families with young children.
All areas of Serfaus have almost the same infrastructure. The only difference is the price of accommodation: hotels and apartments in Serfaus are quite expensive, while in Fiss and Ladis there are more budget options, including economy apartments.
Serfaus is the largest village in the resort. There is no big difference in where to stay in Serfaus with children: many hotels are close to the lifts or within 1 km of them.
Alternatively, the lifts can be reached by taking the underground through the village. Note that hotels off the main road may be close to the lift or underground station but on a slope.
For children who haven't tried skiing, look for hotels near the Murmli Children's Park (near the Kirche underground station).
Fiss and Ladis are very picturesque villages, ideal for those travelling by car. The downside is that the villages are on slopes — not ideal for walking with small children. Fiss has a children's park, while Ladis is more of a peaceful retreat.
In summer you can stay in villages near Serfaus, such as Ried, which is served by a regional bus.
The most common diet in hotels is half board, although some offer full board or all inclusive.
Family hotels usually have a children's menu, but check what's included — sometimes it's pizza, chips and nuggets. Some hotels offer special food for babies who have not yet adapted to adult food.
The nearest airports to Serfaus are Innsbruck (100 km), Friedrichshafen (Germany, 180 km), Munich (Germany, 230 km), Zurich (Switzerland, 250 km) and Salzburg (270 km).
How to get to Serfaus from the airport:
The nearest train station to Serfaus is Landeck-Zams Bahnhof, 25km from the resort. There are direct trains to Landeck from Innsbruck (takes 45 minutes), Salzburg (2.5 hours), Zurich (about 3 hours), from Munich you have to change at Kufstein.
From there you can get to the resort by bus or taxi. Train timetables can be found on the ÖBB website: https://www.oebb.at/
There is a direct bus service from Serfaus to Landeck. Bus 4236 runs several times a day through Ried, Ladis, Fiss and Serfaus. The exact timetable can be found on the official Serfaus website. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.vvt.at.
How to get to Serfaus:
Munich - Fernpass - Imst - Innsbruck - Landeck - Ried - Serfaus (Fiss, Ladis)
or from Ulm to Bregenz to Arlberg to Lundeck to Ried to Serfaus.
To use the motorways and dual carriageways in Austria, you need to buy a vignette. These vignettes are valid for 10 days, 2 months or one year and can be purchased at petrol stations and tobacco shops.
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