Obertauern is a winter sports resort in the Austrian state of Salzburg. Obertauern is one of the most popular winter sports locations in Austria with a wide range of slopes for skiers, snowboarders and cross-country skiers.
With around 950,000 overnight stays per year, 95% of which in winter, and around 9,000 guest beds, Obertauern is an important tourist area.
Skiing is the most common sporting activity in Obertauern, and snowboarding is also popular. The ski area comprises around 100 km of groomed slopes and 26 lifts. As is customary elsewhere, the slopes are marked with colors that indicate the level of difficulty. Blue (61%) for easy slope conditions, red (35%) for medium and black (4%) for difficult sections of the slope, whereby the slope along the Gamsleiten 2 chairlift is the second steepest slope in Austria.
An ascent for non-skiers is possible with any chairlift or gondola lift. You can only descend with the Zehnerkarbahn, the Plattenkarbahn and the Grünwaldkopfbahn.
Since the lifts are built around the village, there is the possibility of a so-called Tauern circuit (Tauernrunde), which you can drive clockwise against the (green signs) as well as with the (red signs). Ski bridges were built to cross Katschbergstrasse (B99). The Tauern circuit can be started at any lift and ends at the starting position.
For cross-country skiers there are more than 26 km of prepared cross-country ski trails, a large part of which is located on the Gnadenalm, where there is also a toboggan run in winter.
Summer tourism is of secondary importance in Obertauern. The place is the starting point for hikes along the Central Alpine Trail; the Oberhütte in the direction of Styria and the Südwiener Hütte in the direction of Flachau can each be reached in a 2-hour walk. In addition, a motorcycle meeting takes place in Obertauern every year in August and September. Nevertheless, a number of hotels and shops have closed in the summer season.
Obertauern has a sports center for various sports. Here, among other things, two indoor tennis courts with a sprung floor, three squash boxes, a badminton court, three fully automatic bowling alleys, a strength and fitness center with cardio area, multi-purpose halls and three billiard tables are offered. In addition, a vitality center and sports medicine support are available on 600 m². In the past, Olympic champion Hermann Maier and downhill world champion Michael Walchhofer also trained in the high-altitude training center in Obertauern between the ski world cup races.