Samnaun

Q: Should I stay in Samnaun or in Ischgl?

Same lift pass, same pistes. Ischgl has far more hotels, restaurants and bars, the big concerts and one of the loudest après-ski scenes in the Alps, and it costs accordingly. Samnaun is small, calm and Swiss, with duty-free shopping and a lift up to the same bowl. If you want to ski hard and sleep well, Samnaun; if the evenings matter as much as the days, Ischgl. Remember that the two villages are far apart by road — the link is over the mountain, not around it.

Engadin, GraubündenSee it on the map

Foto: Cable1 · Public domain

Region

Engadin, Graubünden

Country

Switzerland

Local time

Europe/Zurich

Currency

EUR

Samnaun is a Swiss valley that for most of its history could only be reached through Austria, and the customs authorities gave up on it: since 1892 it has been a duty-free zone, which is why a village of a few hundred people has so many shops selling perfume, watches and spirits. It sits at 1,840 m at the far eastern tip of Graubünden, and the border runs along the ridge above it.

On the other side of that ridge is Ischgl, and the two share the Silvretta Arena: around 240 km of pistes, almost all above 2,000 m, wide and sunny and exceptionally snow-sure. Samnaun's way in is the Twinliner, a double-decker cable car that was the first of its kind when it opened in 1995, rising to the broad bowl of Alp Trida. The pass covers both countries and there is no border control on the mountain.

The skiing is the same as Ischgl's; the atmosphere is not. Ischgl is famous for its après-ski and its stadium concerts. Samnaun is the quiet end, where people come for the pistes and the prices and go to bed at a reasonable hour.

Last reviewed 13 September 2026

Best suited to

Intermediates
Advanced skiers
Families

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Where lessons start

The beginner terrain is up at Alp Trida, a sunny, high bowl with wide, gentle pistes and no through-traffic to speak of — a good place to learn, though it does mean taking the cable car up on day one, since the village itself has only a small practice slope. Samnaun suits intermediates who like long, wide runs above all; the Silvretta Arena is a cruising area of the first order. Advanced skiers get a fair amount of off-piste around the ridges, and families get a calmer base than anything on the Austrian side.

Getting there

The awkward part is that Samnaun is easier to reach from Austria than from Switzerland. Innsbruck is about two hours by road via Landeck, and Zurich around three, either through the Austrian Tyrol or up the Engadin. By public transport, take the train to Scuol at the end of the Engadin line and then the PostBus, roughly an hour up the valley. There is no railway station and no airport nearby; a car, or the bus, is the only way in.

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Qualifications required in Switzerland

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Samnaun: common questions

Should I stay in Samnaun or in Ischgl?

Same lift pass, same pistes. Ischgl has far more hotels, restaurants and bars, the big concerts and one of the loudest après-ski scenes in the Alps, and it costs accordingly. Samnaun is small, calm and Swiss, with duty-free shopping and a lift up to the same bowl. If you want to ski hard and sleep well, Samnaun; if the evenings matter as much as the days, Ischgl. Remember that the two villages are far apart by road — the link is over the mountain, not around it.