A wooden swimming jetty juts into a lake of deepest emerald green. In the distance white-sailed dinghies skitter across the water, propelled by a gentle breeze coming down from the mountains. This is Achensee, the largest lake in the Austrian Tirol. And if you endured last summer’s heatwave on a sticky and crowded British beach or watched the skies turn red above the Med as the mercury nudged the high 40s, the chances are you found yourself fantasising about a scene just like this.
I’d love to say we jumped off that jetty into the lake, but it’s not just the colour that’s glacial, so we retreat to the more temperate waters of the rooftop infinity pool at Atoll Achensee. This gleaming lakeside leisure complex has the look and feel of an exclusive spa retreat, all sweeping white curves and mountain vistas, but you can spend half a day here, flitting between the indoor and outdoor pools, whirl pools, sauna and sun terraces for just a few euros more than it would cost you to swim in a municipal pool back home. It’s not the only thing that turns out to be great value. Summer is low season in the Tirol and many of the hotels here – including the smart-but-cosy Sonnenhof in Pertisau where we’re staying – offer enticing half-board packages.
The next morning we drive up to the Gramai Alm, a beautiful guesthouse that is a jumping-off point for exploring the limestone peaks of the Karwendel mountains, on foot or by mountain bike. We opt for an easy circular walk that takes us to a waterfall and gives tantalising glimpses of the lake far below. On the Alm’s sunny terrace we order käsespätzle – a Tirolean noodle dish doused in melted cheese and fried onions – and then drift to a nearby hammock for a siesta, to the gentle accompaniment of cowbells jangling in the pasture. It’s hard to leave this idyllic spot, but after bidding a reluctant farewell to the resident goats, we head back down the mountain for the 45-minute drive to our next stop.
High in the Kitzbühel Alps, Wildschönau is a peaceful valley of rolling green pastures dotted with farmhouses whose wooden balconies are a riot of red and pink geraniums. Within minutes of dropping our bags at the friendly family-run Hotel Wastlhof in Niederau, we are being whisked in a cable car to the top of the Markbachjoch mountain for a short but spectacular walk to a tiny chapel with a big view. All hotel guests staying in the valley are given a Wildschönau card, which gives free or discounted entry to local attractions and access to the network of cable cars, lifts and buses, making it incredibly easy, even for mountain novices and families, to catch some eye-popping scenery.
The next morning we board the delightfully named Bummelzug road-train from Oberau, which rattles along at a leisurely pace through forests and meadows to the Kundler Klamm. This steep limestone gorge offers one of the most satisfying (and accessible) walks in the region, following the course of the Wildschönau river as it carves its way through the canyon. The train drops us back in Oberau just in time for a late lunch of brezenzuppe (pretzel and cheese soup) at the Thalmuehle, a flower-bedecked inn full of Tirolean charm.
Wildschönau is dairy-farming country and one of the highlights of our week is a visit to the dairy at Schönanger Alm. Master cheesemaker Johann Schönauer gives us a tour and tasting of the tilsiter and emmentals that he is preparing to enter for the Mountain Cheese Olympics – they take their cheese seriously here. We’re the last visitors of the day, so we also get treated to a shot of Krautinger, a bracing schnapps produced exclusively in the local villages from white turnips.
On our final day we take the cable car up the Schatzberg mountain to visit a Tirolean music festival, where it becomes apparent that we’re the only ones who didn’t get the memo to come dressed as the von Trapp family. In an idyllic Alpine meadow, a brass band is playing Austrian folk tunes while couples in lederhosen and dirndls move through elaborate set dances. Waitresses carry round huge trays of beer for the onlookers who sway and sing along to the music on wooden picnic benches. The atmosphere is one of infectious jollity. The woman next to me insists I join the queue for schmalznudel, deliciously light doughnuts served with cranberries. “If you try schmalznudel once,” she tells me, “you will come back to Wildschönau.” I obediently join the queue.
Heart of the Alps
More Tirolian resorts and Alpine attractions for summer visitors
Bavaria, Germany Explore the lakes, mountains and castles of southern Germany on a Bavarian Wander with Inntravel (inntravel.com). From £1,765pp, including seven nights’ B&B at the Biohotel Eggensberger and return rail travel from London.
Bad Gastein, Austria Recharge your batteries at the Comodo, a brand-new and luxurious design hotel in the Austrian spa resort of Bad Gastein with a wellness centre, midcentury decor and fantastic views of the High Tauern mountains. Double rooms from £142 (thecomodo.com).
Morzine, France Unlike many ski resorts, Morzine is buzzing year-round. The Valdez Suite, a two-bedroom chalet 100m from the Super Morzine bubble lift, is one of five chalets being offered this summer by VIP SKI (vip-chalets.com). Seven nights’ self-catering in July costs from £385pp, based on four sharing. Flights not included.
Ortisei Gardena Grödnerhof is a luxurious wellbeing hotel in the Italian Dolomites. Set in the town of Ortisei, it’s moments away from the cable car that runs up to the Alpe di Siusi, the largest Alpine plateau in Europe. After a day exploring the peaks, trails and wildflower meadows, relax in the hotel’s fabulous spa. Doubles from £290, B&B (gardena.it).
Joanne O’Connor travelled with the Tirol Tourist Board (visittirol.co.uk) and Achensee Tourismus (achensee.com). Stay at the Hotel Sonnenhof Achensee (hotelsonnenhof.at) from £280 for two people half-board, or at the Hotel Wastlhof in Niederau (hotelwastlhof.at) from £204 per room, B&B
