spouse of scouse

Sounds like we're similarly afflicted at the moment, MP. Scouse has been doing a mad clean out of every room of the house, because he doesn't want to leave everything until 'the last minute'. All I seem to hear from him lately is 'do you know anyone who would want this?' and 'keep your eye out for skip bins on your travels, so I can get rid of <insert anything from a fully working hi-fi system to a never used spa foot bath>.

Quite apart from the fact that the skip bins he sneaks stuff into in the middle of the night aren't his, we're probably not moving for 2 years!

commonwealth

i hate having to wake up to 5-Celsius mornings in winter

Beoz

St Anton and Ischgl are the 2 I do. Flying into Innsbruck you are spoilt for choice. Come out of the airport, go left or right, up or down. Flight is an hour and a bit from London. About 6 hours door to door. The Swiss expense bit is history. I think you will find France more expensive especially for food and most importantly, booze.

OzTennis

We 'do' Austria in summer (the off season!) and have kept returning to a place called Ellmau in the Tirol but have also stayed at St Wolfgang in Salburgerland. Ellmau is a very popular ski resort (Ski Welt area) and is close to Kitzbuhel. If anyone queries what's this got to do with Australian lifestyle I've misread it as Austrian.

Here's some Ellmau photos:

Beoz

Too right. Can't fault Austria in summer. Stayed for a week in Sankt Johann im Pongau a few years back. Swimming lakes, bike rides, walking in the mountains, drives to glaciers, and my favourite ...... cow tipping.

BadgeIsBack

Now Ischgl looks great! I still don't think you have the travel you can do in the 3 resorts. I also gather that the French resorts might have changed a lot since I did them. No idea about expense now - but back in the 90s/000s I felt that you got less for your money.

I've heard of the aprez-ski in Austria but when I have gone the aprez-ski is the company I go with.

As for 6 hours door to door - this sort of comes back to Buzzie's post - that although the flight is not much - door to door it comes in at the driving distances from Melbourne. Still, you will be more fatigued in Australia if you have done most of the driving. I think I would rather fly.

I remember one year when I was living in Europe, I got the train down to the Three Vallies and we slept overnight. A nice thing to do.

Nice. I love the Alpine scenery. My brother actually scoffs a bit at the mountains in the UK. He's spoilt in the Alps.

spouse of scouse

Oh, I love that! But only on days I'm not working and can hang around for a few hours in my pjs and ugg boots, before braving the shower.

I am not a summer person.

Beoz

Ischgl is the best. It used to be unknown to Brits, but its now getting airplay. The apres ski in Ischgl is the greatest. Getting a bit old now, and hit the wall about 9pm, which is a good thing so I can get up and go skiing early. Ski wise it's awesome. You can ski down into Switzerland, pick up a bit of duty free and come back. The infrastructure is superb. They have a mega closing party every year. This year Robbie Williams played.

I used to nip down to Switzerland on a Friday night and come back Sunday. Lots of airline options fly from any London airport to Zurich, get in hire car, drive for 45 minutes, you could be in Engelberg or Andermatt. Last lifts Sunday, a couple of beers, and be back in Zurich for the 9pm back to London. You make up an hour due to the time difference. Easy Peasy.

Pollyana

Beautiful Love the Tirol

Bernieboy

I will be in the Swiss alps this weekend

scrubbedexpat098

we spent our honeymoon here 23 years ago, hope it's not changed too much it was bloody loverly

OzTennis

Saalbach-Hinterglemm is on our short list of other places to visit in Austria.

The alpine walks, the food, the (tennis) clay courts, the chocolate box views etc are out of this world. As the T-shirts say Austria, the one without the kangaroos. We've been a few times to Switzerland, France and Bavaria but don't like it quite as much.

Beoz

Great minds think a like. I spent a week of my honeymoon in the Austrian alps.

OzTennis

Just you?

scrubbedexpat098

haha, we'll be popping back there for a weekend when we go back to the UK next year, shhhhh don't tell her indoors it's a surprise