Carinthia, Austria's southernmost federal state, has long established itself in the circles of ski lovers with a combination of its perfectly prepared slopes, thermal springs and fine Carinthian wines. The largest ski resorts, Bad Kleinkirchheim and Nassfeld, occupy an honorable place in Austrian winter tourism on a par with the popular resorts of Salzburgerland and Tyrol.
It takes no more than 2 hours to get to Bad Kleinkirchheim by the A10 Tauern Autobahn from Salzburg Airport - literally at your fingertips. The first tourists probably spent much more time on this - they came to Bad Kleinkirchheim in the water in the 11th century. The resort was already a famous holiday destination, although the Roman Empire knew about it even earlier. In 1492, thermal springs were opened and the first chapel was built nearby.
Later, around 1670, water began to flow through wooden conduits to specially equipped baths called the Baths of St. Katrina. The chapel was rebuilt and preserved to this day.
Of course, now the main magnet for tourists who come to Bad Kleinkirchheim in the winter are not only baths, but also 103 km of prepared pistes and 25 modern lifts. The highest point of the entire region is Mount Kaiserburg (2055 m), from here the trails lead to the center of the town and finish almost in the outdoor pool of the Römerbad thermal complex. By the way, the slogan of Bad Kleinkirchheim sounds like this: "Skis or baths? You always have a choice." Although what choice can there be if the local skiing region impresses with its runs of 3-4 thousand meters with a vertical drop of more than 800 meters, and most of the routes - 77 km - are “red”, i.e. medium difficulty?
However, there are also beginner trails here - their length is 18 km, they are mainly located in the Pridref mountain region (1963 m), but there are also “black” slopes - in the upper part of Kaiserburg, as well as the Franz Klammer track, named after Olympic champion in 1976.
In addition to breathtaking slopes from the surrounding slopes and bathing in the thermal baths, Bad Kleinkirchheim can offer all known winter activities: cross-country skiing, hiking trails, sledding along the Rodelbahn, horseback riding and dog sledding, as well as after skiing in numerous mountain restaurants and bars, etc.
One of these "points of catering" is the restaurant "Rossalmhütte", located directly on one of the tracks from Kaiserburg. Here, as in many other places, a traditional dish called Frigga is served - fried potatoes with bacon, sprinkled with eggs and cheese. At the end of a day of intense and productive skiing, Frigga perfectly satisfies your hunger. However, not a single Austrian dish will quench the thirst for skiing from the mountains - recipes for this have not yet been invented.
This season, a rather exotic novelty awaits guests of the resort - the Thermen Cube sauna,
located right on one of the ski slopes in the ski area of St. Oswald. Externally, the sauna looks like a glazed cube, inside there is an infra-red cabin with an air fragrance. A direct connection will be made from the cabin with a specialist from one of the two thermal complexes Bad Kleinkirchheim, who will be able to give some valuable advice or make an appointment for a massage.
In addition, for those who do not want to wait for a massage in the valley, a cabin with two massage chairs will be installed on one of the Pridref mountain trails. According to the intention of the resort administration, such a "trick" will help quickly restore strength to those who are tired of the constant "plowing" on the ski slopes. In addition to the sauna, four snow-lounge will appear in the local skiing region, installed in the best observation points of the entire region.
The owners of local Kleinkirchheim and the owners of local hotels are not far behind. For example, the Kirchheimer Hof hotel spent 1.2 million Euros on arranging new family suites in which children will receive their own sleeping corner under the name Murmelbau (Mink for groundhog). Each such suite will receive its own name - by the name of a mountain or ski slope. The decoration of the suites is made of cedar wood, which, according to recent studies, has a beneficial effect on cardiac activity during sleep.
In addition to family suites, the hotel will also have a “thematic” hotel room “Everything about Franz Klammer”, which will be equipped with original accessories in the form of photographs, real Kaiser Franz skis, as well as casts of his hands. The room will appeal to fans of the ski idol.