The Obertauern ski resort is located in the federal lands of Salzburg, at a distance of 90 kilometers from the city of the same name, and is considered one of the highest in Austria. A large amount of natural snow and difficult relief tracks attract here experienced skiers with a high level of skill every year. For beginners, there are several excellent schools with experienced instructors who can quickly put even the most lazy and untrained amateurs on skis. However, the limited number of training slopes and the fame of Obertauern as a fiefdom for professionals somewhat discourage beginners, who prefer the wide and gentle tracks of Kirchberg .

For snowboarders and freeriders, Obertauern evokes only positive associations. An excellent snow and fan park, equipped according to the strictest requirements, is a favorite training place for fans of these sports. Modern comfortable hotels are presented here for every taste and satisfy the wishes of all guests depending on the price preferences, and the developed infrastructure and a large selection of entertainment make the rest in these places as rich and interesting as possible.

Ski resort Obertauern, Austria

Unlike most Austrian ski resorts in Obertauernthe usual route markings are missing. Only the lifts and directions of circular routes will be marked with numbers here. According to its structure, the resort is divided into two halves, located to the left and right of the village itself, which lies in the middle of the entire valley. In the upper part of the Radstädter Tauern mountain slopes, almost all the tracks, a significant part of which are pristine, are covered with natural snow, and the foothills and skiing areas at the lower stations of the lifts are more oriented to the artificial surface, which is stably provided by snow cannons. The Hamsleiten route is considered one of the favorites for real “pros”. It consists of hard humps and is intended exclusively for confident skiers with a certain level of skill. In the same area, wonderful unspoiled trails descend. The slopes of Mount Seekarek are good for their variable descents with a variety of terrain. The eastern skiing area, located in a direction north of the central road, is ideal for beginners. All zones are connected to each other by modern lifts that operate according to the schedule, from early morning to late evening.

For fans of cross-country skiing, the resort has about 25 kilometers of tracks with small differences in altitude and high-quality fluffy snow. All of them pass through the highlands and always delight fans of this type of skiing disciplines. Connoisseurs of natural beauty have at their disposal almost 20 kilometers of well-maintained hiking trails for leisurely walks through picturesque mountain areas. Lovers of carving, freestyle in Obertauernare also not deprived of attention, for them, as well as for snowboarders and freeriders, special skiing areas are equipped. Schools for training beginners in this difficult winter discipline have been created at the resort for “skiers”. Therefore, those who previously only admired the art of experienced professionals from the outside can try to learn to own a board themselves with the active support of an experienced mentor. For those who want to go sledding down the steep mountain slopes, 6 kilometers of toboggan runs are equipped. There is a children’s ski school for children from three years of age.

For those who want to take a break from skiing, the Obertauern resort area has an excellent sports and wellness complex, equipped with a swimming pool, saunas, tennis courts, a bowling alley, billiards and table tennis. In numerous night clubs, bars and restaurants, you can spend interesting evenings. Every year, in the month of December, a festival called the Snow Countdown Festival is held in the village. It is timed to the opening of the season and is a large-scale open-air disco. On such days, a large number of people gather here and Obertauern turns into a kind of raging cauldron of music and light, where young people who have come here from various European countries circle in an endless dance rhythm. .

Obertauern became known to the world in 1965, when the famous music group “Beatles” came to the local mountain slopes to shoot their film “Help!”. The problem for musicians was that musical instruments held much better in their hands than ski poles, and skis were, for them, objects from another era. As a result, understudies were needed for the filming of the film, who performed the roles of representatives of the Liverpool four in those episodes when they were required to demonstrate their skiing skills. In the end, the film was shot, and the celebrities barely learned how to stand on skis. This historical moment in the life of the resort has become a cult event for all the years of the village’s existence, and some of the local residents who witnessed those events willingly tell about them today to visiting tourists.

Obertauern is not the most popular ski resort in Austria, but it is nevertheless well known to experienced skiers. Due to the high mountain location, the snow lies in the resort from December to mid-May, so the season here is a little longer than in other “mountain skis” of the country. A large number of sunny days and pleasant climatic conditions allow guests to feel comfortable throughout their vacation, and wonderful natural landscapes and clean fresh air contribute to cheerfulness and a good mood.

How The Beatles got up on mountain skis

The Beatles, like many famous people, not only worked, but also, sometimes, rested somewhere in the mountains. British journalists from TheTelegraph searched for photos of the famous four taken during a winter shoot in the Alps in 1965. As it turned out, mountain skiing captured the “Beatles” as well.

It is known that The Beatles visited the Austrian resort of Obertauern in 1965 for the filming of a scene from the movie Help!, as well as the recording of the video for the single Tiket To Ride.

In the photo from left to right: John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr.

By the way: last season, Obertauern celebrated the 50th anniversary of the group’s filming – there is even a monument to “The Beatles”.

Scenes shot in the mountains allow us to see the members of the group as they enjoy their vacation, despite the danger that awaits them (according to the movie’s script, if it had a script at all) at every turn – here they are sledding. Pictured from top to bottom: Ringo Starr, George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney.

George enjoyed sledding in all his spare time…

But soon he joined the others to try on a large scarf. From left to right: Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John Lennon.

John and Ringo with brooms: curling!

Soon they took up skiing in earnest. From left to right: Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, George Harrison.

Although very soon they preferred a picnic in the snow. From left to right: Ringo Starr, John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney.

And then John took up skiing again.

And not only John. And soon they will all be together again. From left to right: John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney.

Then they threw away their skis and all got into these “wingsuits”.

John Lennon liked to walk in the mountains, for example he went to St. Moritz (St. Moritz) in Switzerland with his first wife, Cynthia.

John, by the way, looked like an experienced skier.

At least until his next fall.

 

Well, that’s all, I guess. We like to think that this was the Beatles’ heyday, when they could combine downhill skiing with their cool music.

The Beatles in Obertauern. “Help!”.

Half a century ago, in 1965, a young woman began to kiss the road leading from Salzburg to the Obertauern ski resort .

Why? The answer was hidden in a special charter flight organized by the British airline BEA, which landed at Salzburg’s Maxglan airport on March 13 with four famous people on board – the Beatles, the most famous group of all time, for a week of skiing, or rather, to shoot scenes of their upcoming film “Help!”.

Richard Lester, an expert in comic-absurd performances, directed the film, and Beatles fans from all over Europe (not to mention the group’s opponents, who argued that their rise in popularity heralded the end of Western civilization) accompanied the fab four on their journey to downtown Salzburg. The boys had a strange press conference on arrival at the Hotel Osterreichischer Hof – now the Hotel Sacher Salzburg before heading to Obertauern for skiing.

Obertauern was a tiny ski village, and the producers thought it was perfect for the film for two reasons: first, there would be a lot of snow, and second, it was far enough away to prevent the avalanche of hysterical Beatles fans who might show up during filming. Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr stayed at the Edelweiss Hotel, in rooms 501 to 507 (more precisely, the Beatles themselves occupied rooms 502 to 505). Another interesting fact is that the Beatles first heard their famous “Yesterday” recorded at the Edelweis Hotel.

If you want to retrace the steps of the Beatles today and see exactly where the movie scenes were filmed, the best thing you can do is talk to a local who was Paul McCartney. When the Beatles arrived in Oberthaern, John Lennon was the only one who had ever stood on skis (he had a few hours of lessons in St. Moritz).

Therefore, four young country boys became the Beatles’ understudy and continued their cinematic skiing adventures. It was then that Herbert Lurzer became Paul McCartney, and the photographs of that time undoubtedly show more than just an outward resemblance between them.

After a week on the slopes, the Beatles became strong enough skiers to stand upright and climb the boogie. But they preferred to give the right of descent on skis to backups –

The Beatles used White Star skis to limp down the slopes of Obertauern. Eyewitnesses recall that they were constantly fooling around during filming –

Today, the Lutzer family operates hotels, restaurants, bars and clubs in Obertauern (including the Hotel Edelweis).

Herbert has a lot to say. The film had only a rudimentary plot, most of the scenes were improvisation and silliness, and Herbert says that none of the stunt doubles had a clue what was going on.

He remembers how helpless the musicians were in the snow and at the same time how friendly and approachable they were. Herr Lurzer remembers that the women who accompanied the group everywhere were not to his taste and other locals, remembers how many were annoyed by the Beatles’ shoulder-length hair, and how they could only find one single record of the group – in the nearest village Radstadt.

He is happy to talk about the legendary evening of March 18, when the Beatles played their first (and only) concert in Austria – in the Schistall bar of the Marietta Hotel on the birthday of one of the film’s assistant directors, Clive Reed.

They played for two hours straight until some of their instruments broke, the bar was so full that people couldn’t move anymore, and the guests on the upper floors started complaining that the concert was making too much noise and they wanted to go to sleep. Despite all this, it was a very memorable evening. There were no rules in the concert, the manager of the Beatles, Brian Epstein, did a completely unique thing – this is the only Beatles concert that was definitely not recorded by anyone. Ask Herbert if he likes the music of the Beatles, and he will give you a diplomatic answer: “Well, Alpine folk music is more to my liking.” Lutzer and his neighbors had a great time with Paul, John, George and Ringo. “They were really cool guys, no tricks,” he says. “They especially liked the fact that we really didn’t want anything from them, not even autographs.”

Nowadays, Hotel Edelweis offers its guests “Beatles rooms”. Hotel Seekarkaus is another hotel in the area that still preserves the memory of its most famous visitors. It not only displays photos and other memorabilia, they also have a Beatles Bar.

“Help!” ended up being a wildly interesting film and a successful performance for the group. He continues to delight to this day. “Help!” was also the most commercially successful Beatles film with 29 million viewers in the first 6 months.

It is interesting that in the 1980s and 1990s, Soviet students had a peculiar rite associated with the song “Help!”. It was believed that if you listen to it while standing straight before the exam (for example, leaving the house), then successful passing of the exam is practically guaranteed.

The Beatles finally left Obertauern on March 21 and spent one night at the Osterreichischer Hof Hotel in Salzburg before flying back to London and the snowless world for which they were certainly more suited.