The resort of Saalbach and the neighbouring village of Hinterglemm just two kilometres away boast almost 70 restaurants, 35 bars and 9 discos between them. Together with Leogang the entire ‘Ski Circus’ area has 40 mountain restaurants too, many of which not only provide great mountain food at lunchtime but help to bolster the après ski scene with extended opening hours in the evening, as is often the case in Austrian ski towns. The skiing is enough to attract people to the area in its own right but it is also fair to say that Saalbach is now a big hitter when it comes to partying in the snow. The town has recently been awarded a maximum 5 stars for the quality and diversity of its après ski and many reporters rank it as one of the very best in the world. To make it even easier to sample the nightlife of Saalbach and Hinterglemm the ‘Nightliner’ bus runs until the early hours of the morning between the two resorts.
The party starts early in the season as many visitors now make the annual pilgrimage to the ‘Rave on Snow’ event that always takes place in the second week in December. From then on it doesn’t let up until early April and whichever time of the season you visit you are likely to find a buzzing resort with an energetic vibe, frequented by a young and yet also fairly upmarket clientele. Late afternoon après ski is best on the mountain in one of the numerous huts that blast out alpen-pop hits, or at any of the bars that are found near the foot of the slopes. Traditional tea dancing in ski boots is common here and difficult to resist, sometimes well into the evening! As the evening wears on the action transfers to the hotel bars and restaurants. These tend to dominate the nightlife of Saalbach due to the resorts tendency to attract visitors on hotel half-board packages. Food wise, you will be spoilt for choice with the resort boasting everything from takeaway joints to Mexican, Chinese, Italian and fine dining restaurants. The choice on the mountain is equally impressive and due to the well-planned infrastructure of the Ski Circus there is no problem with getting home on time to your resort from whichever corner of this magnificent area that you choose to dine in at lunchtime.
