The best activities for non-skiers in Kitzbühel

So your family wants to go skiing or snowboarding every year, but it’s not your thing? Don’t fear, because you can still tag along! When I visited Kitzbühel I met quite a few people who went here every year, but hadn’t set foot on the slopes for even one minute. As it turns out there’s a lot of great things to do in Kitzbühel for non-skiers. I tried out a few and want to share the best ones with you!

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Carriage ride

If you mainly want to relax during your holiday, or if you’re a couple looking for a romantic date, I can highly recommend a carriage ride. We went on a ride of an hour and rode around the Schwarzsee lake, with a cozy little blanket on our laps. In the deep snow the carriage even becomes a sleigh!

City walk

Of course going for a walk through the city is always a good idea, and it definitely is when you’re in Kitzbühel. The colorful buildings make it into a bright and happy city center. And while you’re at it you can also explore all the shops that Kitzbühel has to offer, because there’s plenty!

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Archery

This was an unexpected surprise. It wasn’t on our schedule originally, but when I heard I could try it out I jumped at the chance! We went to a sports complex in Kirchberg that had a shooting range inside. They reconstructed a forest where you could shoot fake animals and other targets. I’d never done it before, but it was so much fun! During summer you can also have a go outside, by the way. And at €14 for 1.5hr of fun I didn’t think it was expensive at all. I really would like to have another go!

Ride a Segway

I drove my first Segway in Kirchberg! It was only for a little bit though. I’m a bit of a control freak so I found it a tad scary, but I can see why other people like it. It’s definitely an unusual way of discovering the area! I really felt like I ended up in an action movie.

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Sledding

Adrenaline junkies can get their fix at the Gaisberg in Kirchberg, where they will find a toboggan track. This is the best sledding track in the area, and it’s open day and night! If you have a seasonal or year pass for the ski lifts in Kitzbühel, you can use the track for free during night time. If you have a six day pass, you can use the track for free for one night.

Winter hiking

If you’re read my article about my adventures in and around Kitzbühel, you might have noticed that the hike through the Jochberg forests was my favorite activity. The Kitzbühel tourist office offers free daily hikes with a guide, the only thing you need to do is gather at a certain time and place. On this website you’ll find all the information. The nature around here is so stunning… it’s like wandering around a post card.

 

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Ride a snowcat

Have you every wanted to ride a snowcat? Well, you can! We did this on our last day when we visited the area of Bichlalm. You can get on a chairlift up the mountain, and then take a snowcat which will take you even further. We could hardly see because it was snowing quite heavily, but this made all the humps and bumps even more spectacular. Once you get to the top you can hike down to the valley or the restaurant, or obviously make your way down on your skis or snowboard, which is what we did. It was an amazing experience!

Visit nearby villages

I already mentioned the surrounding villages before, but do yourself a favour and don’t just stick to Kitzbühel. The villages of Kirchberg and Jochberg are really worth a visit, for instance to go on a walk or just to have a nice meal in one of the restaurants. You can even ski from one village to another, but you can obviously go by car too – or even by mountainbike during summer!

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Snowshoeing

You’ve probably seen it before: people walking through deep snow with something underneath their shoes which mostly looks like plastic tennis rackets. These constructions have iron hooks attached to the sole, which gives you a great grip wherever you’re walking. Therefore you can use them to walk through extremely thick snow, even off piste. The views you get are spectacular! We walked all the way through the forests to the top of a mountain. It was quite the challenge, but really cool. This is another activity you can do for free through the tourist office.

Après ski

I didn’t have a lot of time for après skiing, but come on: you can’t skip it, right?! Whether you’re actually skiing or not doesn’t matter much ;-). Our teachers couldn’t stop talking about The Londoner, apparently that was the place to be. We only went for a drink at the Hahnenkamm lift. But if you walk through town at the end of the day, you’ll hear music coming from all different cafes, so there’s plenty to choose from if you want to grab a drink and get a rest from all that non-skiing you did ;-)!

Long story short: there’s more than enough to do in and around Kitzbühel, even when you don’t like skiing or snowboarding at all. Have fun!

Do you have some tips for great activities for non-skiers?

I was in Kitzbühel at the courtesy of Kitzbühel Tourismus. However, all my opinions are my own.

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2 comments

  1. Maaike

    Meteen werd mijn aandacht getrokken door de titel van het artikel. Ik ski of snowboard zelf niet, maar vindt de bergen wel prachtig als ze vol liggen met sneeuw. Dit zijn dan nu juist de soort tips die ik zoek!

    Reply

  2. Mayochup

    I am a bit of a skiier but I can’t do it for long nowadays because of my knee injury (surgery is required!) so I tend to seek other things to do.

    Some resorts are very well equipped for other activities such as St. Anton, Zermatt and Chamonix whereas others aren’t. Thinking of Les Arcs, Avoriaz…

    Reply

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