There are not too many places that we rate so highly for skiing on piste AND get a winning nomination for the world’s best/most intriguing/strangest/confronting ski resort toilet experience, but Schladming is one of them! On piste, who doesn’t like doing super-fast 1,100m vertical, 5km long groomed runs on rolling, twisting pistes? Schladming is replete with them on all 4 of its mountains with Planai the best of them by a small margin. Away from the slopes, and at the top of Planai, the Sky Toilet is something that needs to be fully experienced in order to understand how you will cope ‘under pressure’. Needless to say that the full one-way glass does make you wonder. A poo with a view that is confronting too!

This popular, sprawling interconnected ski area over 4 separate mountains needs several to explore fully. With one of the more expensive lift passes in Austria (but still great value by world standards) Schladming 4 Berge has the incredible lift infrastructure that we have come to expect, making that exploration all the more comfortable (if you don’t mind continually taking your skis off for gondolas!). Like several other popular Austrian ski resorts, the humble quad chairlift is an endangered species, with high-capacity gondolas (8 to 10-person) & chairs (6 to 8-seater) keeping lift lines non-existent, even though there are clearly alot of skiers on the hill. The new integrated car park/gondola station/shops at Planai base in Schladming is a beauty, as are the modern gondolas & chairlifts (and combi chondola lifts) throughout the resort.

For families and the young at heart (us!), the resort has loads of Funslopes dotted across the sectors. We made it our mission to try everyone we came across and they didn’t disappoint, putting a smile on our face at every looping turn, jump, hand slapper & tunnel.

Whilst not an off-piste freeride destination, the terrain on all-aspects of the summit at Hauser Gabling provides some excellent opportunities for exactly that. With deep snow cover to the valley, we reckon the off-piste and tree skiing possibilities would be amazing, but sadly those deep, low elevation snow days are becoming less and less. We did find some surprise, sneaky spots on Planai for powder turns and the side country peaks look tempting, but one would need to time your run well to get the goods.

After a few mid-mountain beverages at any of the fabulous mountain huts dotting the resort, a fabulous way to finish the day is a full leg-burning run from top to bottom. Piste 1 or 2 (with its never-ending bend near the bottom) at Planai are as good as any groomers in the world.

In Planai itself, whilst not the prettiest Austrian town in the world, nestled around the gondola base are numerous après ski bar & hotel options a short stumble from the slopes where one can rock the night away (post covid anyway).

Accommodation wise, if looking for some action, central Schladming is the place to stay. Good alternatives are the more traditional Haus-im-Ennstal at the bottom of Hauser Kaibling or, a personal favourite, the quiet Rohrmoos, in a rural setting above the valley on Hochwurzen. If day tripping, staying as far away as Altenmarkt, Radstadt or Flachau is easy & possibly with better availability and affordability.

As for getting there, Schladming is a low elevation base resort with no major mountain pass to cross to get to it from Salzburg, Vienna, or Munich. And whilst there isn’t exactly a motorway running all the way to it, it’s not that far off. Car parking is awesome all over the resort area with each car park conveniently near a lift base and for free. Trains will get you there from anywhere in Europe but note the stations in Schladming & Haus are more than a walk from the village. Buses or local taxi are required to complete the journey.

So if you are a lover of long fast groomers, modern ski lifts, lively mountain huts, interesting toileting experiences and some fine Austrian après ski, put Schladming on your hit list.

See our video here

On arrival we were struck by the serious infrastructure at the Schladming Planai Stadium. I guess it’s to be expected when the ski hub of this area is called a stadium but for me, I had never encountered anything like this in my skiing world.

Parking in a multi level car park, for free, then walking straight out to the gondola is head spinning for a ski yokel like me. This place takes everything next level when it comes to facilities.

Our bright and clear sunny day on good snow was fun on piste with fast big vertical runs that don’t disappoint. The views are spectacular as you come to expect in these Alps. We had some fun running through a couple of Funslopes. Trust me when I say they aren’t just for the kids…..give them a go. And give the sun lounging chairs a try for some real relaxing when you take a break from the runs.

The Planai area got a little busy for a Friday but with four peaks to explore, we found plenty of uncrowded runs that were were mostly just for us. It was a cruisy day and largely unchallenging for an advanced skier but it was certainly a fun day out and sometimes that’s enough. As far as off piste goes, it wasn’t the conditions for it but it was difficult to get a sense of where you would end up if you tried it. There really wasn’t anywhere you could say, yes, I’ll give that line a go next time.

The undisputed winner of the day for me though was the sky toilet at the top of the Marchenwiesebahn chair. With reflective glass on two full length windows, you can number one or two whilst watching the ski world go by with the billion $$$ views. So I did and it was glorious. And nobody saw a thing. Oh the humor of it. What a novelty.
See our video here

This place is big and Powderhounds will love it on a powder day but go the day before to check out the best terrain. Or read the write up about it on this website!
See our video here