Ischgl-Samnaun
High-altitude mileage by day, stadium-sized concerts by night.
Difficulty mix
On the mountain
- Night skiing — 8 floodlit runs
- 3 snowparks / fun zones
- 2 mogul runs
- 2 km cross-country trails
Bonvo Score breakdown
Computed from mapped terrain data — no editorial opinion, no pay-to-rank. How the score works
Skiing Ischgl, told properly
Ischgl turned a remote Paznaun farming village into the Alps' most professional pleasure machine. The skiing is genuinely excellent — that's the part outsiders forget: the Silvretta Arena rides a high ridgeline between 2,000 and 2,872 m, so its vast network of long reds and blues holds cold, reliable snow from late November into early May, with lift infrastructure as slick as anywhere in the world.
The area's quirk is its border: runs drop off the ridge into Samnaun, a duty-free Swiss village, and the old smuggling routes between the two are now celebrated with marked 'Smuggler's Circuits' you can ski in a day. Come afternoon, Ischgl's other reputation takes over — this is après-ski's world capital, and the town has hosted its famous Top of the Mountain concerts since the mid-90s, with acts from Elton John and Tina Turner to Rihanna playing to crowds in ski boots.
The formula — serious skiing, seriously organized hedonism — has made Ischgl the benchmark big Austrian resort.
Signature runs
Palinkopf to Samnaun
Off the area's 2,872 m high point and down into duty-free Switzerland — long, wild-feeling, and ending at a chocolate shop.
Piste 14 (Idalp–Ischgl)
The long homeward run to town — a highway at 4 pm, a delight at 9 am.
Höllenkar blacks
The steep, shaded 'hell's cirque' faces that give experts their morning workout before the crowds wake.
Local tips
- Ski the Smuggler's Circuit (gold route) for the best full-area tour — and buy duty-free chocolate in Samnaun as proof.
- The famous après bars peak 4–7 pm; ski the emptied mountain until last lift instead, then join in.
- Season-opening and closing Top of the Mountain concerts are free with a lift pass — check the line-up before booking dates.
- Snow insurance: Ischgl's altitude means late-season trips here are safer bets than almost anywhere in Austria.
Good to know
- Ischgl's Top of the Mountain concerts have featured Elton John, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan and Rihanna.
- The ski area crosses into Switzerland at Samnaun, one of Europe's last duty-free enclaves.
- Skiing between 2,000 and 2,872 m keeps Ischgl's season running reliably from late November to early May.
Slope-by-slope analysis
Every run measured from elevation-aware map geometry: true length, vertical drop, average gradient and a 0–10 slope score that rewards long, sustained descents.
| Run | Difficulty | Length | Vertical | Avg grade | Slope score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | Intermediate | 4.3 km | 914 m | 21.1% | 7.9 |
| 80 | Intermediate | 3.8 km | 715 m | 18.7% | 7.0 |
| 3 | Intermediate | 3.4 km | 576 m | 17.1% | 6.0 |
| 60 Alp Trida-Samnaun Laret | Easy | 3.2 km | 555 m | 17.2% | 5.8 |
| 1 | Intermediate | 3.2 km | 573 m | 18.1% | 5.9 |
| 42 | Intermediate | 3.1 km | 514 m | 16.5% | 5.5 |
| 7 | Intermediate | 2.9 km | 561 m | 19.1% | 5.7 |
| 63 | Easy | 2.7 km | 466 m | 17.2% | 5.1 |
| 38 | Intermediate | 2.5 km | 707 m | 28.3% | 6.5 |
| 62 | Easy | 2.4 km | 407 m | 16.9% | 4.6 |
| 39 | Freeride | 2.2 km | 756 m | 33.9% | 6.9 |
| 12 | Intermediate | 2.0 km | 528 m | 26.7% | 5.3 |
| 15 | Intermediate | 1.9 km | 192 m | 10.2% | 2.9 |
| 37 | Intermediate | 1.9 km | 284 m | 15.2% | 3.6 |
| 1a | Intermediate | 1.8 km | 372 m | 20.3% | 4.2 |
| 11 | Easy | 1.8 km | 415 m | 23% | 4.5 |
| 76 | Intermediate | 1.8 km | 346 m | 19.7% | 4.0 |
| 70 | Intermediate | 1.7 km | 381 m | 21.9% | 4.3 |
| Run 5 | Intermediate | 1.7 km | 383 m | 22.3% | 4.3 |
| 65 | Intermediate | 1.7 km | 342 m | 20% | 4.0 |
| 24 | Intermediate | 1.7 km | 326 m | 19.1% | 3.9 |
| 35 | Advanced | 1.7 km | 596 m | 35.5% | 5.9 |
| 62a | Intermediate | 1.7 km | 344 m | 20.8% | 4.0 |
| 23 | Easy | 1.7 km | 286 m | 17.3% | 3.5 |
| Run 1a | Intermediate | 1.6 km | 377 m | 23.1% | 4.3 |
| 81 | Advanced | 1.6 km | 360 m | 22.1% | 4.1 |
| 66 | Intermediate | 1.6 km | 315 m | 19.6% | 3.8 |
| 20 | Advanced | 1.6 km | 416 m | 26.7% | 4.6 |
| 14a | Advanced | 1.5 km | 585 m | 38.8% | 6.0 |
| 64 | Easy | 1.5 km | 237 m | 16.1% | 3.1 |
| 32 | Intermediate | 1.5 km | 210 m | 14.4% | 2.9 |
| 7a | Advanced | 1.4 km | 434 m | 30.1% | 4.8 |
| 30 | Intermediate | 1.4 km | 287 m | 21% | 3.6 |
| 21 | Advanced | 1.3 km | 314 m | 23.4% | 3.8 |
| 12a | Freeride | 1.3 km | 390 m | 29.2% | 4.5 |
| 4 | Advanced | 1.3 km | 439 m | 33.3% | 4.9 |
| 14b | Advanced | 1.3 km | 376 m | 28.9% | 4.4 |
| 40a | Intermediate | 1.3 km | 240 m | 18.5% | 3.2 |
| Run 1a | Intermediate | 1.3 km | 162 m | 12.5% | 2.5 |
| 10 | Intermediate | 1.3 km | 351 m | 27.6% | 4.2 |
+ 454 more mapped runs and connectors — all of them in the free 3D map in the Bonvo Ski app.
Lift network
43 mapped lifts, moving up to 10,340 skiers per hour.
| Lift | Type | Capacity/h | Ride time | Length | Vertical |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silvrettabahn | Gondola | 3,440 | 11 min | 3.8 km | 961 m |
| Palinkopfbahn(bubble)(heated) | Chairlift | 2,800 | 6 min | 1.5 km | 441 m |
| Pardatschgratbahn(heated) | Gondola | 2,800 | — | 3.3 km | 1254 m |
| Piz Val Grondabahn(heated) | Cable car | 1,300 | — | 2.4 km | 508 m |
| Zeblasbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.4 km | 372 m |
| Greitspitzbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.4 km | 403 m |
| Viderjochbahn 2(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 4 min | 1.3 km | 289 m |
| Idjochbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 8 min | 1.7 km | 458 m |
| Flimjochbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 4 min | 1.8 km | 448 m |
| Sassgalunbahn | Chairlift | — | 4 min | 353 m | 140 m |
| Paznauner Thayabahn | Chairlift | — | 4 min | 1.2 km | 296 m |
| Bodenalpbahn | Chairlift | — | — | 651 m | 312 m |
| Twinliner | Cable car | — | 6 min | 2.2 km | 711 m |
| Alp Trida Sattelbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 3 min | 1.0 km | 221 m |
| Flimsattelbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 9 min | 2.7 km | 483 m |
| Viderjochbahn 1(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.5 km | 334 m |
| Visnitzbahn(bubble)(heated) | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.2 km | 364 m |
| Mullerbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 3 min | 775 m | 210 m |
| Grivaleabahn | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.5 km | 336 m |
| Gratbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 3 min | 945 m | 305 m |
| Velillbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 5 min | 1.5 km | 274 m |
| Luftseilbahn Samnaun | Cable car | — | 6 min | 2.2 km | 712 m |
| Höllspitzbahn | Chairlift | — | 6 min | 1.7 km | 641 m |
| Blais Grondalift | T-bar | — | 4 min | 747 m | 150 m |
| Nachtweidebahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 6 min | 1.6 km | 365 m |
| Gampenbahn(bubble)(heated) | Chairlift | — | 8 min | 2.3 km | 922 m |
| Schwarzwasserlift | Platter lift | — | 5 min | 725 m | 26 m |
| Höllkarbahn(bubble) | Chairlift | — | 6 min | 1.6 km | 322 m |
| Greitspitzlift | T-bar | — | 4 min | 546 m | 110 m |
| Milolift | Platter lift | — | — | 285 m | 25 m |
Ischgl-Samnaun — quick answers
How many ski runs does Ischgl-Samnaun have?
Ischgl-Samnaun has 494 mapped downhill runs totalling about 264.1 km of pistes, with the longest single run measuring 4.3 km.
What is the vertical drop at Ischgl-Samnaun?
The mapped skiable terrain spans 1502 m of vertical, from 1358 m at the base to 2859 m at the top.
How many lifts does Ischgl-Samnaun have?
Ischgl-Samnaun operates 43 mapped lifts moving up to 10,340 skiers per hour.
Ski Ischgl-Samnaun with the map in your pocket
Every run and lift on this page, rendered in interactive 3D — and it keeps working in airplane mode at the top of the mountain. Free on the App Store.
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