Garmisch-Partenkirchen/Zugspitzgebiet Resorts

Garmisch-Partenkirchen/Zugspitsgebiet - These two old towns go back to Roman times and were joined in 1935 by Hitler's order in getting ready for the 1936 Winter Olympics. Garmisch is a bit more modern and progressive appearing, while Partenkirchen's cobblestoned streets offer a feel of yesterday. There are a combined 28,000 residents. Skiers... Full Overview

Garmisch-Partenkirchen/Zugspitsgebiet -

These two old towns go back to Roman times and were joined in 1935 by Hitler's order in getting ready for the 1936 Winter Olympics. Garmisch is a bit more modern and progressive appearing, while Partenkirchen's cobblestoned streets offer a feel of yesterday. There are a combined 28,000 residents.

Skiers and boarders can take the long, dark ride on a cogwheel train that burrows through the Zugspitze. That's a unique way to do it. Or, perhaps more pleasantly, by a cable car, depositing you at a top station restaurant offering a gorgeous panorama. You can see far to the west in Germany, and to the south into Austria. The bowl below offers 22 km of groomed slopes, eight draglifts, one chair, and three cable cars.

The Zugspitze, with Germany's only glacier skiing, is but one of five ski areas in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Other mountains include Eckbauer, Hausberg, Kreuzeck, and Alpspitz/Osterfelder. Eckbauer has a main run that passes the ski jumps and ends at the Olympic stadium. (Germany hosted both summer and winter games in 1936.)

A Happy Ski Card lets skiers and boarders use all the lifts in the Garmisch-Paretenkirchen area, plus well over 113 lifts in neighboring Austria. The famed Kandahar World Cup downhill course starts at the Kreuzjoch, a spot between the Hausberg and Alpsitz mountains. It is more than 3 km long. The curves are many and can be perilous at high downhill speeds.

There are plenty of restaurants, including some that offer folk evenings, and for those who must, a McDonald's. There's also a casino. Americans should feel at home here as thousands of soldiers learned to ski on these slopes following World War II. Many believe those returning soldiers helped fire up the post war ski boom in the U.S. Munich is the gateway airport and there is hourly train service from Munich station. The drive is 120 km on Highway A95 from Munich.

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