Up on the piste with green energy for 20 years

83 modern lifts, 270 km of piste and over 80 mountain huts: the SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser - Brixental is one of the largest ski areas in the world – and also one of the greenest. For 20 years it has been operating with 100% renewable hydro-electric power.

The lifts at six different locations between Brixental and Wilder Kaiser have been working together since 1977. After continuous investment totaling more than half a billion euros, we have created one of the largest and greenest ski areas in the world. Our motto is “WOW! so big and so close”. SkiWelt combines 83 modern lifts, 270 km of pistes and 80 mountain huts and all just an hour’s drive from Munich.

World's first solar powered lift
Right from the very beginning, SkiWelt has invested in groundbreaking projects. 1970 saw the installation of Europe’s longest funicular railway at SkiWelt Ellmau, and then in 1988 came Europe’s first 8-seater chairlift at SkiWelt Söll. Since 2002, 100% of the electricity for all our facilities has come from hydroelectric power. Solar energy has also been increasingly used in recent years, notably from 2008 on the "Sonnenlift" at SkiWelt Brixen, one of the first completely solar-powered facilities in the world.

WOW! So economical
Throughout SkiWelt, there are no fewer than 16 natural reservoirs, all perfectly integrated into the local fauna and flora, and this water is “recycled” for snow-making. They are supplied mainly by snowmelt, rain and spring water. Interestingly, mechanically produced snow in Tyrol is pure drinking water in a different form. When the snow melts in spring, the water is returned to the natural world in a natural way, thereby irrigating the various wild plants. No fewer than 65 snow groomers prepare the pistes every night in SkiWelt; these were equipped with a GPS system five years ago. Such devices allow snow depths to be measured and then, if necessary, fresh snow can be distributed precisely to where it is actually needed. This means that every year since 2017 SkiWelt has saved around 25% of its water requirements, electricity and costs. skiwelt.at/oekologie

Solar power and waste heat
Go skiing with the power of the winter sun: photovoltaic units are to be found increasingly on buildings and lifts, e.g. Jochlift and Zinsbergbahn - SkiWelt Brixen, Brandstadl - SkiWelt Scheffau. The first systems were installed here back in 2008. Since spring 2022, after the rebuilt valley and mountain stations, the Ellmau lift operations have also been powered with solar energy. With 350 kilowatts peak, in the future, the systems will be able to save up to 50 percent in external electricity and energy costs for the buildings. Renewable energy is also used to heat SkiWelt’s office buildings. In addition to pellets and biomass, we are increasingly using waste heat from lift systems, snow guns and transformers, often with the assistance of heat pumps, e.g. Hexenwasserbahn – SkiWelt Söll, SkiWeltBahn – SkiWelt Brixen im Thale and Alpenrosenbahn – SkiWelt Westendorf. Since 2008, the Choralpe mountain restaurant has been kept warm with waste heat from the SkiWeltbahn and Choralmbahn.

Awards for the environment
In 2017, SkiWelt received the World Snow Award from the British national newspaper, the Daily Telegraph. We are also delighted that the ski area has for years been chosen by skiresort.at as the test winner in the “most environmentally friendly ski operation” category. For us, that counts as an incentive to further reduce our carbon footprint. For more about the projects, waste separation systems and e-charging stations go to skiwelt.at/oekologie.

WOW! So sustainable: by train and bus to SkiWelt
At a very early stage, SkiWelt was one of the pioneers in the field of train and bus travel. More than 75 years ago, the site of the Hopfgarten cable car was deliberately situated right next to the train station. So SkiWelt Hopfgarten now has a train station, also called “Skilift”, and it is only around 100 m away from the Hopfgarten lift valley station. More than 20 years ago, SkiWelt arranged for a ski train service from Munich and also Denmark to Brixental. Today it is even more in tune with the times, so it is not surprising that right from the start, SkiWelt became a pilot partner for the ÖBB Nightjet and the ÖBB Winter-Kombiticket. In winter 2022/23, guests can also travel overnight from Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Amsterdam to SkiWelt locations and then, fully rested, head straight out on to the SkiWelt pistes first thing in the morning. To all the valley stations? Yes, because 4 Seasons Travel will pick up guests at Kufstein or Wörgl train station and deliver them to their booked accommodation at all SkiWelt locations. In addition, you can travel to SkiWelt with the Wintersport-Kombiticket from all Austrian train stations – our collaboration with ÖBB Rail Tours makes it all possible. New for winter 2022/23: a night connection from Sweden and Denmark and the continuation of the night train service from London. There will also be a daily shuttle bus service from Munich to SkiWelt. Other projects are in preparation and details will be published when available.

SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser- Brixental
+43 5333 400
www.skiwelt.at | office@skiwelt.at