Hintertux ski resort for an autumn holiday

Autumn also brings another event for Tyrol’s farmers. The livestock is driven down from the high alpine pastures into the valleys. The cheerful, festive cattle drives attract not only locals but also many visitors. From mid-September to early October, around 50 cattle drives are held in Tyrol as huge folk festivals. This ancient, solemn ritual gives thanks for the livestock’s safe return to the valleys. If all the “cattle commotion” is too much, a cattle drive in the rustic atmosphere of a traditional farm offers just the right setting. Visitors can hike up to the alpine pasture, even help decorate the animals, and then accompany the herd down into the valley. The reward is a hearty snack made with home-grown produce.

Autumn in Tyrol has incredible offerings for winter sports enthusiasts. Five ski resorts in Tyrol—Hintertux, Pitztal, Kaunertal, Stubaital and Sölden—kick off impressive winter openings as early as the beginning of October. Powder snow beneath brilliant autumn sunshine makes for a truly unique experience. And there’s more to enjoy than just the Oktoberfest in Hintertux on 28 and 29 September, or the cattle drives with their ringing bells. The Hintertux Glacier is one of the most beautiful ski resorts in Austria. It offers a year-round snow paradise with breathtaking slopes and state-of-the-art lifts. Eighteen kilometres of pistes and around 10 ski lifts are in operation—and that’s 365 days a year.