Parties kick off winter sport season in the Alps

By Verena Wolff Oct 18, 2011, 3:06 GMT

St Moritz, Switzerland - Many of the larger Austrian ski resorts plan to kick off the 2011/2012 winter sport season with firework displays and concerts, in contrast to much of Switzerland and Germany where the season starts in a more low-key manner.

No parties or gigs are planned on Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze. Instead, security training with ski instructors, material testing and demonstrations are on the agenda on November 26 and 27, as the country's skiers get back into the swing of things.

Across the border in Austria, the five Tyrolean glaciers are offering a variety of events to mark the new season. The Kaunertal has become extremely popular with snowboarders and freestyle skiers, who for years have gathered at its snow park.

A glacier festival on the last weekend of October marks the new season on Tyrol's highest glacier, the 3,440-metre Pitztal, where skiers can test their skills on a giant-slalom and slalom course before winding down with a barbecue and music on the sun terrace.

Organizers on the Stubai glacier have been hosting an Oktoberfest at 2,900m, with a competition opening the snow park scheduled for the weekend of October 22-23. There is also a 'Glacier Festival', with more than 4,000 winter sport articles and materials on show.

Two of Austria's largest ski areas have organized massive concerts, with the Leningrad Cowboys from Finland providing the entertainment in Obertauern while Swedish duo Roxette headline the 'Top of the Mountain Opening Concert' at the open-air stage in Ischgl on November 26, a day after the ski lifts go into operation.

The lifts open in Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis on the afternoon of December 4 with a huge party, followed by a three-day snow festival.

On Saturday, attractions such as the 'Fisser Flieger,' a flying machine which looks a bit like a hang-glider, will be available at a reduced rate or free of charge. There is also the possibility to ride a snowbike or skifox and the day culminates with a laser and firework display called the 'Snow Festival Night Show.'

The Swiss resorts, by contrast, have planned much more modest opening affairs. The St Moritz City Race on November 26 and 27 involves celebrities, tourists and locals racing in a parallel slalom through the town.

The world's top Santa Clauses meet on the same weekend in Samnaun in the search of the best Santa Claus team in the world, while two large festivals and countless Christmas markets have been scheduled in the Dolomites, for example in Brixen, Groeden and Kastelruth.

The Seiser Alm celebrates its winter opening on December 11, while the Civetta ski region has organized a large ski festival for the following weekend.