Hot spas amid snowy peaks in the Austrian Tyrol

By Avril O'Connor

 

When it comes to spas Austria is in a class of its own - which is why they are so popular with their neighbours - the Germans, Swiss and Italians - and their favourite evening tipple is sparkling prosecco...so it ticks all my boxes! Outdoor pool at the Interalpen

Indoor pool at the Interalpen

Five star luxury at the Interalpen Hotel

 

The Interalpen is the vision of German building magnet, Dr Hans Liebherr, and inspired by US-style, luxury and service. You will want for nothing at this hotel from the moment you arrive.

Constructed so that it appears to merge into the mountainside so as to minimise its environmental impact, you do not get a peek of this five star hotel, as you ascend along the hairpin bends through breath-taking mountain landscape.

The hotel,  which has 282 apartments, suits and rooms is tucked inbetween the Karwendel and Wetterstein mountains at an altitude of 1,300 metres. The drive-in checkin desk Las Vegas style is a bit of a surprise but there is more to come. The bedrooms are big, the spa is big and so are the menus in all six of its restaurants.

Although this is skiing country, the guests for the most part don't come here for winter sports. The main attraction is the award-winning spa - the largest in Austria.  It has a 50-metre long indoor pool, outdoor pools, a Tyrolean sauna village (where any kind of swimsuit is banned for hygiene reasons!), private sauna and steam rooms, a fitness room and relaxation rooms. My favourite was the tropical relaxation room in a glasshouse surrounded by snow-covered peaks.

As well as a huge palette of spa treatments, there is also a fully-equipped cardiology practice run by Dr Fritz Reinhardt from nearby Innsbruck who will give guests a full body MOT including ultrasound heart examination and colour duplex sonography.

We started our spa day in our bathrobe in the spa's own restaurant which is open from 8am until 6.30 in the evening.

For those who prefer golf there is the 18-hole Seefeld Wildmoos Golf Club nearby and in winter the hotel opened its own indoor golf range in 2009 - and dress code is strictly enforced ie no bathrobes!

This hotel cannot be faulted.  Excellent food and service, great rooms, a spa which is big but still personal and plenty to do even if you visit alone.

 

 

Schwarz Alpine Resort

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This spa hotel is for anyone who wants to stay somewhere great but completely different - but at the same time typically Austrian. A place where you really feel in Austria and where the locals also come, particularly in the evenings to enjoy the social life around the bar.

It was not so much built with vision but with passion. It started out as a farm, then become a Gasthof all owned by the same family through the generations. Until the current owner decided to turn the orchards one by one into one of the largest spas in Austria and the only one with its own cosmetic surgery clinic.

The owner, Mr Pirktl certainly stamps his own personality on his business - usually every Friday night when he joins employees for their weekly cabaret. When we saw him he was running around the stage with a broom.

The food portions here are huge - breakfast goes on forever or it could if you stayed a month to work your way through everything - every kind of fruit - even fresh pineapple strawberries and melon in the depths of winter; breads of every kind, cheeses, meats, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, black sausage, white sausage - and a chef who will make omlettes, poached eggs and more.

When we arrived it was shortly before Christmas - the hotel was decked inside and out in traditional Christmas decorations. It was snowing and the nearby lake was frozen. We were greeted by a smiling waitress, in traditional dress, who handed us a glass of prosecco.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pool area is new and beautiful, indoors and outdoors. It has a great sauna, nice spa treatments and plenty of relaxation areas - nothing better than lying in front of a fire with a book and watching the snow falling outside.

All in all a perfect place to spend a few days relaxing, have some spa treatments, swim, go for walks and enjoy the surrounding mountains. Its also a good place for people on their own -the bar is a friendly place and the locals turn up on Friday night to see Mr Pirktl and his employees perform their weekly cabaret.  And even though we didn't understand a word it was hilarious.

The PostHotel Resort and Spa at Achenkirch

This is a luxury hotel created by a couple who have clearly been on lots of trips to the Far East and other places, collecting momentos from different cultures and religions  - there are Buddhas and other figureheads...and lots of white linen.

 

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The drive to the resort is breath-taking.  The road runs by Lake Achen, the largest lake in the Tyrol .

 

The hotel's Atrium Spa is light and airy and has has 18 booths for massages, cosmetic and full body treatments.  There are two rooms with floating beds for body wraps and wonderful pools. There is an oriental hamam with rasul bath and a relaxation room with divans/deck chairs, and an open fireplace.

 

Fitness room has all the latest technology equipment and you can add Pilates and Nordic walking to your programme.
 

In the summer, the massage pavilion goes outdoors and is situated on the bank of a nearby rippling mountain brook.
 

There are two salt water pools with waterful and integrated whirlpool - regenerative relieves the discomfort of rheumatism, cardiovascular problems and the hardening of muscles etc. And there are spring water drinking fountains throughout the entire hotel and all the taps in the hotel are supplied with the same water
 

The special thing about this hotel are the Lipizanner horses, which are bred there, and which you can visit and ride.  It also has a little farm, for children, with rabbits, kid goats, pot-bellied pigs, American miniature horses and mini ponies.

Fact Box

Interalpen-Hotel Tyrol Dr Hans Liebherr-Alpenstrasse 1, A6410 Teifs-Bucken, Austria T: +43 (0) 50809 - 30 F: +43 (0) 50809 - 37190 E: reservations@interalpen.com www.interalpen.com

Schwarz Alpine Resort www.privatklinik.schwarz.at office@privatklinik.schwarz.at T: + 43 (0) 52 64 52 13 Posthotel Achenkirch www.posthotel.at posthotel@posthotel.at T: + 43 (0) 5246 6522 Interalpen- Hotel Tyrol www.interalpen.com reservations@interalpen.com T: + 43 (0) 50809-30

Posthotel Resort and Spa, A-6215 Achenkirch, Tyrol T: + 43 (0) 5246 - 6271 F: + 43 (0) 5246 - 6522-468 E: Posthotel@posthotel.at www.posthotel.at

British Airways to Innsbruck.