Pistes and lifts
What you can ski here
AlpineSnowboardFreerideSki touring
Run counts and piste kilometres are indicative. Green runs only exist in France, Spain, Andorra, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Japan, the United States, Morocco, Algeria, Lesotho, South Africa, Egypt, Canada, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and Chile; Italy, Austria, Switzerland and Germany start at blue. Indicative average snow depth near the top of the resort, in cm.
Get to know the resort
On paper Mittenwald has just 12 km of piste over four blues, four reds and four blacks, which undersells what is really a backcountry destination. The Karwendelbahn cable car climbs from the valley floor at 920 m to the upper station at 2,244 m, opening the Dammkarabfahrt: a wide, glaciated cirque turning into a seven-kilometre top-to-bottom descent back into town. It is the run that built the resort's reputation, used as a powder line by freeriders from across the Alps when conditions land. The town itself is one of the most photogenic in Bavaria, with Stradivari-school violin makers still cutting maple in workshops along the old market street and LΓΌftlmalerei facades on the inn fronts. Hotels run from family-owned Gasthof properties to wellness houses with Karwendel views, all available on Booking, Expedia and Hotels.com. Mittenwald rewards skiers who can read a face, carry a transceiver and accept that a hero day is a function of the snowpack rather than a marked piste plan.
Good to know
- The terrain is well balanced: 0 green, 4 blue, 4 red and 4 black runs, which suits a mixed group skiing together at different levels.
- From 920 m at the base to 2244 m up top, the resort leans on grooming and snowmaking in lean spells (score 72/100).
- It is a compact resort, 12 km of piste on 6 lifts, best as a day trip or a relaxed short break rather than a week-long base.
- The lifts typically turn for about 16 weeks a season, planning around late January to late February tends to land the most reliable cover.