SCHLADMING – Full MTLG

“Schladming is not just skiing”, the representative of the new congress Centre Schladming explained to us. We quickly understood what she meant when we walked around the charming town, even though the former mining town of Schladming rose to fame because of its modern winter-sport centre, a facility that was thoroughly renovated for the FIS World Cup in 2013. Even in the skiing superpower that is Austria, Schladming offers one of the most sophisticated skiing infrastructures. Almost all the day skiers will tell you that it is impossible to cover all the slopes in one day and it is hard not to believe them. Schladming-Dachstein boasts an enviable amount of slopes and together with the four skiing regions (Salzburger Sportwelt, Gastein, Hochkönig and Großarltal) it offers 760 kilometres of runs, 270 ski lifts and 90% of them can be artificially snowed with a snow system that is one of the most modern in Europe and is controlled by satellite. In 2013 Schladming spent over 400 million euros in renovating the entire infrastructure, including the new congress centre. Elsewhere these kinds of projects have at times created underused buildings and big financial losses, but in Schladming they have thought of the project as an investment for the future. Hence Schladming has rapidly transformed from a mostly winter sport epicentre to an all-year round tourist and congress destination.

The legendary Planai
The story about Schladming wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the legendary Planai hillside, which put many skiers into the history books. In 1973, for example, the legend Franz Klammer recorded an average speed of 111.22 km/h when coming down the slope. The finishing line is known as one of the most recognisable and entertaining race endings of the world cup, as it has a scary 52% decline. The slope is also beautifully lit and the annual night FIS Nightrace represents one of the highlights of the season. Every year Schladming is flooded with over 50,000 skiing fans, which makes for an amazing atmosphere and a competitive spirit at the King of the Slaloms. To top it all off there are the Austrian skiers, who have taken home 8 victories in the last 13 years. Four of the wins came from the legendary Benjamin Raich, but the locals are especially proud of their native Marcel Hirscher and a special spirit can be felt in the air when he is standing at the starting gates.

The world cup is the moving force for meetings
In Schladming the preparations for the Skiing world championship were intense. When the FIS congress in South Africa decided to host the competition in Schladming the Styrians rolled up their sleeves and got on with the renovation work. More than 400 million euros were invested, ⅔ of it coming from public funds. Along with the renovation of traffic infrastructure they also upgraded their skiing infrastructure and built a new finish line arena. The arch from the viewing tower overlooking the finish line is really quite something, along with the Planet Planai, a new garage and the bottom ski lift station, which has all the necessary kit to carry out large events. Among other new additions to Schladming is also the complete Wi-Fi coverage of the ski slopes, with 150 hotspots that now allow skiers to communicate free of charge. All these renovations have drastically changed the congress image of Schladming, along with the opening of the new Falkensteiner hotel, a new multi-funtional congress centre and a new train station.

Congress Centre Schladming
Congress Centre Schladming was opened in 2011 mostly because of the FIS World Cup in 2013 and its modern architecture impresses both from the outside as well as the inside. The big Schladming Hall boasts 1,400 m2 of space and is excellently equipped to host events from concerts to congresses. The maximum capacity of the hall is 1,200 guests in classroom arrangement and a key feature is definitely the lighting, which enhances the character of any event. There are four smaller halls available in the second floor, with the Ennstal Hall standing out the most, as it offers natural daylight and amazing views of the surrounding peaks. The offer is rounded off by an excellent catering service in the Kulinarwerk restaurant and a small coffee shop. From a functional point of view the centre is a great example of a medium-sized congress centre, which can’t really be faulted in any way and where its designers have really considered the needs of congress organisers, including the spacious lobbies and underground parking. We highly recommend a visit for any destination planning on opening their own congress centre.

Planet Planai as a special venue
The new Planai-Seilbahn bottom ski lift station is attracting attention with its interesting image and an even more interesting congress offer. It is designed as a folded piece of paper and functions as a one-stop-shop for skiers and event organisers. The station’s infrastructure offers quite a lot of meeting space and rooms with views of the legendary ski slope for all the lovers of the sport. The event space, which spans over the finish line in an arch and offers a birds-eye view of the ski run and an excellent congress experience, has become a true symbol of Schladming. The hall on top of the building is also striking, from where ORF broadcasts it’s programme when the world cup is in full swing.

Rehabilitation after a hard day of meetings
In addition to the rich sport and congress offer, Schladming doesn’t forget to take care of the party side of things too. Alongside the world cup arena is the well known disco and ski hut of Tenne, which is a great special venue. Tenne is more than just a mountain cottage, as it combines afternoon parties in the style of “pancer tanc” and after 22.00 it transforms into a disco. The legendary venue can also be booked for private parties and smaller corporate events.

Welcome home
In central Europe Falkensteiner is synonymous with excellent tourist service and the authentic Alpine hospitality. The company was started in 1958 in South Tyrol, when the founders Maria and Josef Falkensteiner opened their first hotel. The hotel icon now boasts more than 28 hotels and 4 residences in 6 countries. The excellently designed hotel in Schladming offers with its generous 130 rooms and suites, 4 meeting rooms, lovely restaurant, smart bar and the 1.500m2 Acquapura SPA welness and water world a lot of extras, which generated a lot of praise from locals, tourists and business clients.
The 4 star superior hotel is focused on sustainability, fresh regional cuisine and a modern hearty culture of pleasure. The interior design encompasses natural and local (like loden, wood and Solker marble) materials and furnishings, which emphasize the fact that you are staying in the middle of beautiful nature into which you are being drawn through the glass surfaces.

A hotel institution for the stars
The wall of fame in the Sporthotel Royer will leave you quite stunned, as there have been many celebrities staying there, such as no less than Arnold Schwarzenegger. The family hotel is an institution that offers alpine hospitality and numerous fun programmes, like the shooting range or the tennis court. It is an excellent choice for larger groups, as there are two conference halls suitable for seminars and corporate gatherings. All sports enthusiasts will be delighted by their offer combined with that of the neighbouring Aqua Park. The hotel restaurant is also famous for its traditional alpine cuisine.

More than 85 cottages
According to the Schladming tourist organisation information there are more than 85 mountain cottages on offer to private parties and that are great special venues, but that can also accommodate groups of congress guests. The atmosphere is relaxed and authentic, which is one of the beauties of these huts. High up in the mountains above the tree line, polite talk is quickly forgotten and in the soothing atmosphere you are soon without reserve or inhibition. What connects guests is definitely their good cheer, which is enhanced by the excellent culinary offer that some of the huts offer and is also the reason why guests keep coming back.

DESTINATION CAPACITY

• The number of 4* and 5* category hotel rooms: 2,510
• The number of 4* and 5* category hotels: 54
• Banquet hall maximum capacity: 800
• The largest hall in the city (in m2): 1,400
• Destination population: 6,715
• Maximum hall capacity in theatre style: 1,200

Over the last decade tourism in Styria has undergone a swift development. Schladming is a big skiing centre, the scene of the best slalom races of the season as well as other internationally renowned sports competitions. Besides that it is now also an excellent congress venue and a place that will stay fondly in the memory of every guest. We can say without a doubt that the tourist development of Schladming is a success story and we are certain that that will also be the case in the future. Sporting events, on which they have built extensively, have contributed mostly to the success and with this event organisation the destination has gained a lot of experience that can now be transferred into the congress field. The constant investment in tourism and tourist infrastructure, which has been mostly private and because of that well thought through and pointed in the right direction, is a definite recipe for success.

A local speciality is the “Graukäse” cheese, which is a special “Steirerkas” and is eaten on bread or with “Nockerl”.

Mountain Go Kart – The Mountain Gokart is a newly developed device that makes go-karting so much fun. The wide tyres and good disc brakes offer a sense of security right from the beginning of the 7km route. It takes approximately 20 to 30 minutes for you to arrive at the bottom of the valley at the Gipfelbahn base station.

The biggest zipline in Europe – Gröbming is a 2.5km long zipline, where you are in a parallel race with your partner. The four wire ropes change altitude by 700 metres and the fastest ones will fly down the zipline at up to 115km/h.

E-bike – Climbing mountains with a smile on your face. Take it easy and have fun conquering the unique mountain world on modern e-bikes from Energie Steiermark.

M – MEETING DESTINATION

Destinations that can host up to 1,200 congress attendees.