Cross-country skiing in Gerlos – bound to fill winter enthusiasts with excitement
Clear your head, inhale the cool winter air and work off some energy - cross-country in Gerlos allows you to glide through the winter and soak up the beauty of our mountain landscape. The many cross-country trails in Zillertal take you into the deep snows of the untouched side valleys, along brooks, through forests and across open plains. Cross-country skiing in Gerlos is a real winter highlight not to be missed!
Cross-country skiing with children in Gerlos - is it possible?
Parents as well as our younger guests can have fun with cross-country skiing in Gerlos. From the age of approx. 6 years old, children have the body tone required to coordinate the long, narrow skis and maintain their balance. It is recommended that they start out with the classic style. The motto here is: take it slowly! Slide one ski forward with the other behind, use the poles to push off and then simply glide along. The short, 1 to 2 km long cross-country trails are the perfect way for little ones to try skiing for the first time. One final tip: make sure you pack a little reward! A piece of chocolate or gummy bears can work wonders!
The most beautiful cross-country routes in Gerlos
✓ Lengths: 3 km
✓ Difficulty: easy
✓ Elevation gain: 30m altitude
The cross-country trail starts out from the car park at the Hotel Oberwirt. Put your skis on and off you go! The route leads past the sports ground towards the Innertal valley. Level with the Isskogelbahn cable car, an underpass runs beneath the main road. Anyone taller than 1.80m will have to duck briefly here! The route then continues along the Gerlosbach brook, past the power station, to Funsingau. Professionals and ambitious athletes can extend the cross-country tour. To do this, turn left at the level of the Innertalerhof over the wooden bridge and onto the Schönachtal cross-country trail.
✓ Lengths: 4 km
✓ Difficulty: easy
✓ Elevation gain: 51m altitude
The cross-country trail starts out from the Hotel Oberwirt on the other side of the brook heading towards Schönachtal. After approx. 2 km, you will reach the so-called ‘Hintern’ (back). A cleared winter footpath leads from here up to the inner valley. When you veer left at the turn-off over the wooden bridge, the cross-country trail runs back to Gerlos. Just before the main road, you turn off left again to return back to the start. Night-time highlight: 1.5 km of the cross-country trails are lit from 17.00 to 22.00!
✓ Lengths: 4 km
✓ Difficulty: medium
✓ Elevation gain: 80m altitude
The best place to park is the Schönachtal car park. From here, a cleared road leads to the Schönachtal (approx. 700m). Here, the valley widens and the cross-country trail continues on past the Stinkmoosalm. Here you cross over the cross-country trail with the same name which follows slightly undulating terrain through the centre of the Stinkmoosalm meadow. When you then turn right over the dam and continue along the right-hand banks of the Schönachbach brook, you will finally come to a 2 km long dreamy trail which leads to the Lackenalm snack station.
Remote ski tours in Zillertal
Gerlos is undoubtedly the ideal starting point for ski tours in Zillertal! Whether you are a beginner or experienced at ski touring, some remote circuits or varied ascents of all difficulty ratings await here. One of our personal favourite tours is:
✓ Starting point: Car park in the Schwarzachtal at the Gasthaus Kühle Rast
✓ Walking time: approx. 3.5 h
✓ Elevation gain: 1,187m altitude
Straight after the car park in the Schwarzachtal, the ski tour leads south via medium-steep Alpine meadows, crossing a road a few times and then up to the Weissbachlalm. Turning right at the Weissbachlalm, you head along a flat forest trail through a section of woodland until you come to the largest Alpine pasture. Here the tour on the Hochleger runs along a broad ridge which leads to the Seespitze. Once you reach an altitude of approx. 2,050m, you leave the track which leads to the Torhelm and stay on the aforementioned ridge heading south-west via crests and hollows to two inconspicuous elevations. The one on the right is your destination - the Seespitze at an altitude of 2,365m! Mountains here we come! And then you’ve done it - now it’s time to put on your skis and follow the same route back down into the valley. Please ensure you find out about the snow and weather conditions from a local mountain guide before setting off on the tour!
Gerlos also has plenty of other winter highlights to offer alongside cross-country skiing
We admit that a cross-country holiday with children is a bit difficult but there are also lots of other forms of sport on offer around your accommodation in Gerlos! We recommend: a day of cross-country skiing in Gerlos, a day of sledging, the next day skiing, then maybe some cross-country again – that keeps things fun!
Thousands of Mountain Adventures
In Gerlos, your holiday with children in Zillertal will be varied!
