Having in my previous blog given an overview of the way the skiing in and around St Anton differs from what other ski resorts have to offer, this time I will give a brief appraisal of the town itself and compare the experience of staying there to elsewhere in the Alps. St Anton’s reputation as one of the best ski resorts in the world comes not just from the vast challenging ski-area but also for the wide range of après ski and other activities to do in and around the town.

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St Anton is considered by many to be one of the top ten ski resorts in the world, with a vast ski area and a range of different après options. As the end of the season fast approaches, I feel that I have spent enough time in St Anton to give a decent appraisal of whether it fully deserves this reputation, and to compare it with some of the other resorts that I have visited. This comparison is best split into two distinct parts; a comparison of the ski area in and around St Anton, and an overview of the town itself and the different things to do in the area.

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With the end of the season fast approaching in St Anton, and skiing conditions not at their all time best, many people will be left wondering what else there is still left to do in St Anton. In previous weeks I have blogged both on the après ski and activities other than après to do in town. Whilst all these options still exist, this week I am going to focus on a number of events taking places in St Anton over the coming weeks, which will provide entertainment for both the casual skier and the skiing enthusiast.

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As the snow has started to disappear more and more a weird feeling has started to grip St Anton. It is as if the town has started to head for hibernation again, as the slopes have started to become visibly quieter and many places in town have started to begin the elongated process of closing down. Next week sees the last week of guests for many of the major tour companies, although whether there will be much snow for them to enjoy is a question that still remains hugely up in the air.

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A few weeks ago I blogged on the unseasonally warm weather that was gripping the resort. I talked rather hopefully of the forecast snow for the middle of March, which was set to come and cover up many of the barren patches that had started to appear to the side of the piste. This promised snow came last week on Monday and Tuesday (although there was not as much snow as previously hoped), and resulted in one of the best powder days of the season. However the promise that came with this snow has quickly disappeared. The last week in resort has been by far the warmest of the season. Glorious sunshine and temperatures in the mid to high teens led to me putting on shorts and flip-flops for the first time today, and sunbathing rather than skiing is quickly becoming an activity of choice.

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Whilst St Anton is well known for both its skiing and its plentiful après-ski, there is a wide range of other stuff that can be done in town, either when the weather is too bad to ski or in the evening.

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The Arlberg area lift pass covers a number of different ski areas over a wide region. St Anton is perhaps the most famous town covered on the lift pass, and the one with the largest self contained ski area. This does not mean, however, that the other areas on the lift pass are not well worth a visit.

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The last couple of weeks have seen temperatures in resort rise well above freezing, and many days of glorious sunshine. Indeed on several occasion I have been able to wander about in town in just a t-shirt. Consequently, as March begins, many uncharacteristic barren patches have started to appear both in town and to the side of the piste. Places in town, previously covered in snow, are now rather less picturesque barren patches of pavement and rock.

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The past week in resort has been by far the busiest of the season. For holiday makers half term is by far the most expensive time of the season to book a ski holiday. Over the week almost every bed in town was booked out as families flooded into resort in great numbers looking to avoid an ironically snowy British winter.

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Two weeks ago in St Anton a 62 year old ski instructor, Peter Reigel, died in an avalanche, whilst guiding an off-piste lesson. He and his group had tracked up well away from the beaten path in search of fresh powder, a couple of days after a huge snow dump. Although he had been off-piste many times, and was carrying with him the right equipment, this was not enough to save him. Many of the group he went out with, although not inexperienced off-skiers, were, apparently, not fully aware of how to use much of the avalanche rescue gear.

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Having spent the large majority of this season in St Anton, a resort with a reputation for both challenging skiing and lively après ski, when visiting Kaprun for a week I was fairly apprehensive as to how it would match up on both these fronts. Having blogged last week on the skiing in the Europa sport region, which did not disappoint, this week it is time to compare the après options in both towns.

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When given the chance to visit another resort and a different ski area for a week, I immediately jumped at the chance. In recent weeks slight cabin fever has started to set in, having been in St Anton for over two months and the opportunity to experience a new town and ski some different runs seemed like the perfect cure.

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I woke up this morning to overcast, dark skies above St Anton and snow pouring down. In short, it really wasn’t the greatest skiing weather, and today started to seem like it might be a wasted day spent inside. It was only when the man in the ski/board rental shop offered to lend me a board for a day that I sensed that the day might not be such a waste after all. Initially, I was fairly apprehensive, though the opportunity to spend all day outside, albeit, on the nursery slopes seemed better than the alternative, staying inside.

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St Anton, as well as being famous for its wide ranging ski area is well known for its lively après-ski soon. Having now been out here for over six weeks, I finally feel qualified to give an overview, albeit brief of the numerous après ski options that give St Anton this reputation.

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New Year's Eve back home is perhaps the biggest night of the year. In St Anton it is no different. Most of the bars in town charge admission prices to get in. This can range from €90 for the Ibiza imitation style Picadillys (to keep away seasonairres) to €20 for quite a few bars including the English run Scottys and Cuba. As a result of this, we all decided to spend the night wandering the streets of the St Anton (with a few beers in our pockets). This was absolutely fantastic fun. The streets were packed with friendly people, especially when the clock struck midnight, as many of the bars force people outside to watch the numerous firework displays that go on all over the town.

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It is a strange feeling waking up on Christmas day in a foreign place far away from all your family and friends. Everybody back home always hopes and dreams of the clichéd white Christmas. Spending Christmas 2009 in a ski resort, I expected nothing less, and this idea proved some consolation.

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Saturday and Sunday in St Anton saw two massive slope side parties to celebrate the opening of the main Nasserein lift as well as the opening of many of the runs lower down the resort. This has meant that for the first time this season the resort is now nearing capacity. The bars and restaurants are now noticeably more packed and there are more people milling around in the town during the day.

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After almost two weeks out in the Alps, today was the first chance that I got to go skiing. Despite last night’s opening night parties, I got up at just before 9 to collect my skis and headed up the mountain for my first run of the season.

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Thinking of the Alps at the end of November automatically evokes images of skiers, boarders and snowy landscapes. So when I arrived on a cold Friday evening in England for a twenty-hour coach journey out to the resort of Argentière, in the shadow of Mont Blanc, it was this mental picture that I was using to get myself through the journey.

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