The ski area
Obertauern is a circle of slopes around the village: 100 km in total, with 61 km of blue, 35 km of red and 4 km of black runs served by 26 lifts. Everything lies between 1,630 and 2,313 m, which is why Obertauern opens on 20 November 2026 and keeps going until 2 May 2027, long after lower Austrian resorts have closed.
The Tauernrunde links all the lifts in one loop you can ski clockwise or anticlockwise, and because the village sits in the middle you can drop back to your hotel for lunch from almost anywhere. The terrain is open, treeless and sunny, with wide reds for cruising and a handful of steeper pitches on the Gamsleiten side.
Who is Obertauern for?
Obertauern is a safe bet for families and beginners who want to be sure of snow at Christmas or in the February holidays. Children walk from the hotel to the ski school in their boots, and parents ski back to the door for lunch. Intermediates can happily circle the Tauernrunde for a week. Advanced skiers get a few short challenges but will have seen it all by day three. Après-ski is lively from mid-afternoon in the huts and later in the village bars, without the excess of Ischgl or Saalbach.
Practical
The drive from Belgium is long, around 1,050 km and 10.5 hours, almost all on German and Austrian motorways before the climb to the pass. Salzburg is the nearest airport at about 90 km. The village is compact and almost everything is hotel-based with half board, so compare packages that include the lift pass.