The birthplace of alpine ski instruction and still the most serious skiing town in Austria. Steep, sustained and demanding, with a legendary off piste reputation and terrain that punishes people who overestimate themselves.

Take a guide if you plan to leave the pistes. Intermediates have plenty of ground, but this is not a gentle mountain and beginners are better served elsewhere in the Arlberg.

St Anton is a long main street of hotels and bars where the après ski starts at three and does not let up. If you want to sleep, book away from the strip, or take a quieter bed in St Christoph or Stuben.

Arriving by train is easy, because the station sits in the middle of town on the main line between Zurich and Innsbruck.