Obergurgl — Austria

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Obergurgl was made famous by the emergency landing of a hot air balloon in 1931 by Professor Picard, a Swiss explorer. Since then tourism has boomed but development has been tightly controlled by the locals to keep the village pretty and traditional. As one of the highest resorts in Austria at 1930m Obergurgl (O-ber-gur-gil) offers a long season from November to May with an excellent snow record, and the new gondola to Hochgurgl has opened up over 100km of runs. Of these, the vast majority are suited to intermediate skiers.
 
The popularity of the resort with families means that it is well equipped for learning to ski and also explains the dominance of the quiet half-board hotel scene over rowdy après ski. Advanced skiers and boarders and party animals will probably find Obergurgl inadequate and should therefore consider nearby Solden instead. That said, if you are learning to ski or looking for a safe family environment you can’t beat Obergurgl.