Destination Report: Europe
Garmsich-Partenkirchen: Alpine High
Bayerische Zugspitzbahn Bergbahn AG/Oliver Farys
above the south side of town—the Kreuzeck, Osterfelder and Hausberg. The Hausberg cable car is closest to town and most accommodations, but when things get busy, there can be a wait at the bottom. It might be preferable to travel a little farther and start with the Kreuzeck or Alpspitz cable cars, where the wait is shorter. Although one glacier visit is a must, most skiers prefer the Classic slopes with their big network of cable cars, gondolas, chairs and drag-lifts.
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By Randy Mink
The mighty Zugspitze, soaring 9,781 feet into the heavens and home to Germany’s only glacier, crowns this Alpine vacationland on the Austrian border. Accessible by cogwheel train and cable car, the snowfields of the Zugspitze comprise one of Garmisch’s two ski areas, with plenty of snow guaranteed from November to May. The ski slopes, offering 15 miles of groomed runs (from easy to difficult) high above the tree line, begin at 8,563 feet. The Zugspitze also has a terrain park for freestyle skiers and a dedicated sledding hill. The other main ski region, away from the Zugspitze, is called the Garmisch-Classic area. It consists of three mountains
20 ❖ SKI & RIDE CLUB GUIDE
Bavaria Tourism
With the country’s highest mountain towering above, GarmischPartenkirchen reigns as Germany’s premier winter sports resort. The twin towns, known for their fanciful facades adorned with the biblical and bucolic frescoes, are quintessential Bavaria.
Garmisch and Partenkirchen, once two separate communities, were fused together to accommodate the 1936 Winter Olympics, the first time the Games Neuschwanstein included downhill skiing events. The high-walled Olympic Stadium, with two jumps and a slalom course, looks much as it did 76 years ago and today hosts the World Cup Ski Jump every New Year’s Day. Also in town is the original Olympic Ice Stadium. SPRING 2012 PLANNING ❖ www.skicmsc.com