Nassfeld

Nassfeld is the largest ski area in Carinthia, spread across a pass on the Italian border in the Carnic Alps, and it has an unusual combination going for it: it faces south and gets a lot of sun, but because it sits on the southern edge of the Alps it also catches the wet Mediterranean storms that come up from the Adriatic and dump snow that the northern Alps never see. In a good year it is one of the snowiest resorts in Austria.

The area counts around 110 km of piste between about 600 and 2,000 m, and its centrepiece is the Millennium-Express, a gondola six kilometres long that rises from the valley village of Tröpolach through three sections to the ski area — one of the longest cable cars in the Alps. The skiing at the top is a broad, sunny expanse of mostly red and blue pistes around the pass, with a cluster of hotels up there at Sonnenalpe Nassfeld for people who want to stay on the snow.

The clientele is largely Austrian and Italian — the border is on the pass and Italians drive up for the day — and the atmosphere is relaxed and family-oriented, with the Carinthian lakes and Venice both within reach if the weather turns.