Austrian Tyrol: A Stubai Alps Stroll

At the age of 80 and 79 (plus medical conditions) we thought it unlikely that we would be able to continue walking in the mountains. These two holidays proved us wrong. The bus routes and transport passes for cable cars and boats meant that we could travel easily to and from destinations, enjoy magnificent scenery and walk at easily manageable levels of difficulty. Highlights for us were the Wild Water Way in the Stubai and the walk from Rofanseilbahn cable car to Dalfazalm. But every day was enjoyable and facilitated by unseasonally good weather.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our single centre walks An Alpine Stroll and Lake Achensee & its Mountains 

Weather very variable - pack for all eventualities. Excellent hotel and beautiful scenery.

The holiday is in glorious alpine scenery straight from the picture books! The hotel is very well appointed in a quiet village and the provision of the Stubai Card makes it easy to get around and enjoy all four cable cars. The walking is varied and slightly more strenuous than expected for the over 70s! The walking notes used terms like gently descending for a very steep descent and continues gently rising for a tough ascent. As Milders is only on one of the three valley bus routes there is only one bus an hour through the village, often crowded. It would help to let guests know they can use the other buses and get off at stops close by and have a ten minute walk back to the hotel. Also in summer there is a special bus service to and from the Schlick2000 cable car, which is very useful. Milders itself is a holiday village with limited facilities compared with Neustift or Fulpmes, eg there was nowhere outside the hotel in Milders to have lunch (no cafe or restaurant) but Neustift was livelier. The breakfasts especially at Mildererhof were exceptional and the food always came with plenty of choice. The swimming pool was one of the most attractive we have been in! In mid September it is the time to bring the cows down from the high pasture for the winter and this is a time for festivals (Almabtrieb) and we attended one in Telfes which was a great spectacle. One downside was that the cable car to the top of the Stubai Glacier was out of action for maintenance and it was not possible to see the glacier or visit the Top of Tyrol. This seems to be regular maintenance each year before the winter season. 

The whole holiday worked very well and we enjoyed it immensely.  The Stubai Tal was so beautiful and the Milderer Hof hotel was brilliant.

Excellent hotel and friendly staff. Somewhat chaotic on the first arrival day due to a Gala Dinner , but this was sorted out for other occassions when the meal was timely and speedy. Get to know the bus timetable as it is not as on the interweb and complicated with 590, 590a, 590b and 595 going to different places and missing the village.

Absolutely stunning scenery, made better still by almost perfect sunny weather all week. Loved being single centre this time and lots of choice on things to do - the hotel also provided some excellent trips and guided walks although we didn't join these. 
The Stubai card were excellent and made getting about very easy, though the buses were sometimes infrequent and very crowded. The highlight for us was the Schlick2000 trip - just breathtaking! Loved all the walks and especially the hutte stops and everywhere had plentiful outdoor seating to relax and enjoy the sunshine. Everywhere in Austria was immaculately clean.

We really enjoyed the hotel pool and relaxation areas and food was plentiful and mostly very, very good.

Overall a superb holiday. 

It is difficult to select a single highlight from what was a wonderful holiday. The selected hotel was of a very high standard; well situated, extremely comfortable with pleasant and accommodating staff. And of course, the planned walks through stunning scenery surpassed what we expected. We met a British couple who said that they had been travelling with Inntravel for 40 years......we know why.

This was our second time on this holiday, and we wondered if there would be enough to do this time round. In practice, knowing our way around the area made it a very relaxing experience. We repeated some walks, and tried new ones. The hotel, despite being full, was excellent throughout our stay, and the food was, if anything, even better. The Stubai card and the on-time buses (although sometimes full) made travelling around really easy. We also enjoyed walking around Innsbruck again. 

Thank you Inntravel for rearranging our holiday at short notice. We are both very impressed with your service. Our hotels were superb, the staff were all so friendly and helpful and the food was delicious. The chocolate cake with apricot jam was our favourite. We loved all the walks which were varied and incredibly scenic. The walking notes were accurate and easy to follow. A perfect holiday...thank you so much.

We loved the Wild Water Trail and Grawa Waterfall. Also the Maria Waldrast walk and watching the paragliders taking off from the top of the Elferbahn. Useful tip - stress even more than you already do that walkers need to check the bus timetable to see whether they need the 590 or 590b. It is easy to make a mistake and aim for a bus that doesn't go via Milders.

Apart from the train journeys which we found stressful, it was an excellent holiday. The level of walking on the high Alpine trails was easily reached with the cable cars.The Stubai Super Card was a boon. It is difficult to choose a favourite walk as all were excellent and interesting in different ways, but I might pick the Nature Trail from the top station of Schlick 2000. It was unfortunate that the Disc Trail was still closed. We should have taken a taxi from Schlickeralm, but we walked down the road to the middle station which was not so pleasant, especially when tired.

Don't miss the  top  of the Schlick cable car for the scenery. Consider the possible need to upgrade your room to avoid disappointment.

One of the highlights was the tram ride from Fulpmes to Innsbruck and return, all organised by the hotel. The Stubai card was excellent and we used it every day to ride on the buses, cable cars as well as the tram. All the meals were superb although we were not at the hotel for lunch. All the recommended walks were excellent despite some parts of paths being washed out. The front desk was able to provide additional information and updates on path conditions and cable cars.

The provision of the Stubei Card meant that all local travel (bus, cable car, tram) was so easy. The walks showed the spectacular scenery at its best, without being too difficult. The weather was fantastic and we were able to make the most of it. Choosing to upgrade our room meant we had plenty of space and a great balcony. 

A very enjoyable holiday in spite of mixed weather. It is worth checking the forecast and planning your week accordingly - the Stubaier Gletscher weather website is good for the high-level forecast. We grabbed the opportunity of a good forecast to visit the Top of Tyrol on the first day of the holiday, and enjoyed great views as well as hot sunshine beside the glacier. (Later in the week there was snow at high level and the road to the cable car and the end of the valley, and the Wild Water Walk, were closed due to flood damage.) The Maria Waldrast Monastery walk is magnificent. We had limited views due to low cloud on the outward walk to the Monastery, but the cloud lifted at lunchtime and after a pleasant lunch at the restuarant there we walked back on the same path through fantastic scenery and clear views. My husband took the toboggan down and advised it's an experience and not for the faint-hearted! The buses are reliable but the timetable is a little complicated as not all routes call at the Milders Ort stop near the hotel. We printed out the timetable from the website in advance so we could plan our bus journeys. Beware that some drivers leave early - it's a good idea to be at the bus stop 10 minutes before it's due to be on the safe side! For a wet day in Innsbruck, the State Apartments at the Kaiserliche Hofburg (the Imperial Palace) are beautiful and fascinating. The hotel - sevice, staff and facilities - all excellent. 

Our stay at Milderer Hof in the Stubai valley was perfect. We made full use of the Super Stubai Card provided through the hotel and we visited the full length of the valley from Innsbruck to the Top of Tyrol. The scenery was breathtaking, and although there was some rain through the week, it only made the valley more dramatic, with waterfalls and rivers in full flow and clouds continuously changing the views up and down the valley. The Milderer Hof was fantastic, we enjoyed excellent food every day and the service was great. We particularly enjoyed that there was a great bar and terrace where we could relax with a drink after our walks. The accommodation was essentially full board for us and we never felt the need to eat elsewhere, except for when we were out for a hike and we stopped en-route at one of the Alms. The facilities available were also fantastic, with a good sized pool plus other spa facilities. I thoroughly recommend this holiday, we had a brilliant and very memorable holiday.

A beautiful area to visit with wonderful scenery and excellent walking guides. The buses and cable cars were so easy to use and meant you could get even closer to the mountains. Accommodation was very good with friendly staff and lots of choice on the menu. Would thoroughly recommend and now looking for our next holiday with Inntravel. 

An Alpine Stroll. A beautiful location, fantastic walks, incredible scenery. Not usually one to partake in hotel leisure facilities, but pool and spa provided a wonderful relaxation after a days walking, most enjoyable. Access to Cable Cars etc using bus route along the valley was simple and very good. The Stubai card giving free access to public transport and cable cars was a fantastic bonus. Word of warning, although Inntravel does only mention part one of the Wild Water Walk, we followed the signposts at the end, after a wonderful walk, to take on part two. I recommend you don't do it, part two of this walk is definitely challenging and not for the faint-hearted and not suitable if you don't like heights.

This holiday in the Stubai Valley in the Austrian Tyrol was perfect for us. Having reached a certain age a one centre holiday is a much better option and the Milderer Hof was the ideal hotel.

A really enjoyable holiday. Holidays where you just feel compelled to stand for a while and take in the views are so special, and this was one of them. Mountains stretching into the distance on a carpet of green, with a blue-sky background. The walks were well described although one felt occasionally that the path had changed slightly; but Inntravel cannot be blamed for that. Being able to use the buses and cable cars with no charge was an added bonus.

We really enjoyed the add-on Munich days. So much to see that perhaps 2 full days rather than one would have been less tiring. The hotel Torbrau was so well placed and comfortable. Anyone who chooses this holiday with the Munich add-on should also spend some time using the internet to find out information about railway stations and platforms etc. There's a mine of information in blogs etc that will help you.

Brilliant holiday. Good variety of walks and loved the flexibility. Hotel exceptional - but a lot of (very good) food. Pool and terrace fab. Stubai Supercard a real advantage - could hop on and off buses and cable cars whenever we wanted. Good transport system in valley made getting to walks easy.

Excellent hotel, with great food (including the afternoon tea and cakes!) and very friendly staff. Our walking highlight was the walk to the monastery with its all-encompassing mountain views, and our trip to the Top of Tyrol (3210m) which we then extended by walking the downward section of the Wilde Wasser Weg from the glacier bottom cable car station back to the Grawe Alm waterfall. If you want something considerably more challenging, the hotel offers guided group walks, billed as "moderate": we went to the Starkenburger Hutte (2237m) ably guided by Annalise and sustained by her schnapps!   

We are quite fussy about the quality of meals but the offering was excellent. Enjoyed all the walks. Having the pass to use gondolas and buses was appreciated.

All aspects of our stay at the hotel Milderer Hof were of a very high standard.

The location in the Stubai Valley gives access to excellent and varied walks using the cable cars and buses using the Stubai Super card. Highlights for us were the Wilde Wasser Weg, the downhill nature trail from the Schlick2000 cable car (despite heavy mist) and the Top of Tyrol trip to the glacier. Even the little local walk to Neustift was a delight.

We absolutely loved this holiday. The hotel was excellent with very friendly staff and very good quality food. We chose to upgrade our room but this was probably unnecessary. We really appreciated the Stubai card which made travelling on buses and the cable cars very easy. We did most of the walks and all offered something different. Our least favourite was probably the Monastery walk. Our favourites were the Waterfall walk and the Nature Trail. The wild flowers were out in force which was a bonus.

The highlight for us was taking the gondola up to the highest point and walking down the natureweg.

The whole holiday was a delightful introduction to the Austrian Alps. It would be good if it were possible to include information about events occuring during your stay. For example whilst there the World mountain and Trail running championship was going on and the following week was the valleys 200th anniversary.

An outstanding and comfortable hotel, with magnificent setting and staff.  Food was of the highest quality in terms of both content and presentation. A wonderful range of walks available, greatly enhanced by the provision of free bus and cable car use.

We had a wonderful holiday with perfect weather for walking. The Stubai card was a great asset. We really enjoyed using the buses and cable cars to access the walks. My 73 year old husband even did the toboggan run! Inntravel came up trumps yet again with a perfect variety of walks and activities.  Staff at the hotel always greeted us with smiles and had a very good knowledge of the walks and conditions. We valued their advice each day.

We were fortunate enough to be in Milders for the annual Almabtrieb...the festival celebrating the cows returning from the upper meadows to the farms in the village. The cows were lead past our hotel wearing bells and floral headdresses and escorted by some vintage tractors. The farm welcomed everyone with food, drinks and live music. Quite a party. It was lovely to hear alpine horns and some yodelling too.

Thank you Inntravel for another great holiday.

The walking from the top of Serlesbahn was fantastic, definitely our favourite place. Would advise people to check the notice board in the hotel as that is where we found out about a harvest festival parade in Neustift which was great fun, vintage tractors and marching bands (although understanding a little bit of German does help). 

The hotel was perfect - if only all hotels were like that.

We have really enjoyed all of the holidays we have booked with Inntravel, but this trip took things to another level. The quality of accommodation, the stunning location and the unlimited use of the Stubai Super Card for buses and cable cars was the perfect combination for us. We really  enjoyed the nature trail walk, the Wilde Wasser Weg and, needless to say, all of the huttes. Even the changeable weather made very little impact on our enjoyment. Being within easy reach of Innsbruck, a major rail hub, also made it particularly suitable for travelling there by train. 

Unfortunately we were not able to access the Top of Tyrol as the cable car was only going to the mid station. We are not sure if this is temporary, or that access is limited seasonally.

As one of us had had a hip operation in January, the relatively gentle walks were ideal.  Being able to use buses and cable cars with the Stubai card was very helpful.  The bus service does not always match the published timetable, but this caused no significant problems. The hotel Milderhof had a larger scale map than that offered which was very useful. Both hotels were excellent.  All in all, it was our ideal holiday and we hope to travel with you again - but without Nightjet.

I am an older, solo, lady traveller but felt comfortable and welcome throughout. I particularly enjoyed the Monastery walk and the Wild Water Way. Also be sure to go into the very plain and austere looking Church in Neustift and prepare to be amazed by the interior.

Our favourite walk was the Wilde Wasser Weg followed by a lunch at the Grawa Alm. It really is worth checking that the cable cars are open, because when we went to visit the Stubai Glacier on a lovely cloudless sunny day, it was only open up to the middle station and the rest was closed for maintenance.  Consequently when we came down, we repeated the Wilde Wasser Weg but in reverse!

The Stubai Valley is an excellent walking location. We covered all the Inntravel recommended walks. Our particular favourite was the Pinnistal Valley Walk. We extended it by walking from Neder back to the hotel. Make time to stop at the Pinnisalm, so friendly and wonderful Apfelstrudel. The little Spar shop in Milders will make up sandwiches...basically choose your bread roll and indicate which schinken & Kase (ham & cheese) you would like on it. Combining the Stubai Glacier and Wild Water Way (Stage 1) walk is highly recommended. Take an early bus to the Glacier, beat all the crowds, enjoy the experience then catch the bus back to the Grawa Alm (opens at 11am) coffee & strudel delicious and hike the walk in reverse, ending at the Nurnberger Hutte bus stop. We rarely took the bus into and back from Neustift, preferring the short river walk. Avoided sometimes busy buses and was always a pleasant walk especially back from Neustift with the Glacierin the distance.  

Great holiday, with fanastic food, that was more leisurely than our usual walking holiday, but nevertheless enjoyable because of that. We particularly liked the afternoon cakes, despite claiming to our family we wouldn't participate. It would have been rude not to! 

We loved the Wild Water Trail and actually did it twice! Food at the hotel was excellent and you could not fault the staff. 

This was a fantastic holiday suitable for young and old. We went with our teenage daughter and we all agreed it was one of our favourite holidays of all time. The location of the hotel is perfect; right in the middle of the Stubai valley and the Stubai Super Card that is provided as part of the package allows you to hop on an off the local transport from one end of the valley to the other. The hotel itself has excellent facilities, beautiful views and exceptional staff who make every effort to ensure that all their guests have a comfortable and memorable stay. We really enjoyed using the pool, jacuzzi and terrace to relax in at the end of every adventurous day! Our favourite walk was the Waterfall Trail which has breathtaking scenery and the drama of the river at every corner, together with some beautiful 'hutte' to stop and enjoy a spot of lunch at. Despite the Summer season we always managed to get onto the bus of our choice and the easy access to all the walks mean that you can have a relaxing start to your day or return early to enjoy the coffee and cake provided by the hotel every afternoon.

Fantastic hotel with great attentive staff, superb location and spectacular scenery. Great walking routes, easily accessible by bus and cable car and detailed walking notes. Would highly recommend this holiday.

The highlights were:

the week of amazing weather

the swimming lake next door

the wild flowers and eagles

the free buses and lifts

the Elfer climb

the Starkenberger hut views

After three years of limited travel due to coronavirus it was a joy to be able to walk freely in the mountains in Austria & to benefit from the detailed signage & well maintained paths & shared pleasure of other walkers. 

This is one of the best holidays we have ever had. There are many plusses - the proximity of the accommodation to the airport, the quality of the Mildererhof hotel and warmth of the welcome, the access to many varied walks. The Wilde Wasser Walk can now be started on a well prepared track just below the Stubaier Glacier stop. It winds gently down alongside the river to the big waterfall.

The Pinnisalm valley walk is stunning but the walk is graded a red route and has some steep drops. It is well worth waiting for the taxi at 4pm as the track down is gruelling. It's great to have the Stubai card to cover cable cars and buses and of course to toboggan run. Overall, we loved this holiday and strongly recommend to future holidaymakers.

An excellent location with easy access to walks and the added bonus to go high using the cable car pass.

We loved the Grawa Alm cafe for its marvellous apple strudel and enormous kaiserschmarm! The waterfalls on this walk were absolutely spectacular. The quality, quantity and presentation of the hotel food were exceptional.

This was a holiday which met all my expectations as an older and single traveller, and one which I would happily do again. Just a couple of suggestions:

-  Walk 3, Maria Waldrast Monastery. The church is currently closed for renovations. The restaurant is closed on Mondays. Suggest short and easy walk a little further beyond the monastery to Matreier Ochsenalm which has a friendly hutte/cafe in a pretty, high meadow location with cows and horses grazing. It's totally worth the walk on any day.

-  Innsbruck. I've visited Innsbruck before, and once was enough. Hall-in-Tirol is a worthy alternative, with 4 return trains each hour from Innsbruck main station, 12 minute journey, €4 each way. There's a brilliant Tourist Information office short distance from the station. The town is compact, intact, and unspoilt - it kept me busy with my camera all day. Highly recommended.

-  Walk 1: minor point, think Ingentis café-bar is no longer in existence?

-  Walk 5: Pinnisalm Valley. This is a lovely walk. But the descent to Neider beyond the Issenengeralm Hütte is NOT a good idea! I did it, encountered several walkers in distress. Lost a toe nail. I suggest that the walking notes might be more cautionary on this point.

Our personal highlight was the Wild Water Walk which was very enjoyable. In the valley the temperature was 35 degrees so this walk gave some shade and the seating in front of the waterfall was a lovely bonus, so relaxing. After a day out walking a dip in the the hotel pool was sublime.

Our favourite walks were the walk to the waterfall at Grawa which has a magnificent end being able to get so close to the waterfall and also the Nature walk from the top of the Schlick mountain which has beautiful views and scenery. Also at Schlick the panorama way  and viewing platform of the valley and mountains must not be lmissed. However all the walks had points of interest and stunning views.

Lovely hotel in a good location. The Stubai valley is stunning. The hotel food was excellent with plenty of variety, including excellent vegetarian choices. 

The wild water trail is stunning and all the scenery spectacular. The swimming pool is lovely but the lake belongs to a neighbouring hotel and you have to pay to use it.

Delightful opportunity to see the Alps and the wild flowers of this region in full bloom (mid-June). Well described, easy walks conveniently accessed by bus and cable car using the pass provided. Comfortable hotel as a base with friendly, helpful staff.

All the walks were very beautiful with varied scenery. The wild flowers blooming everwhere were an additional delight. The many alpine huts along the way served a great range of food and drinks and were set in scenic spots close to the paths. It was a real bonus to have a regular bus service which was reliable.