Virgen: Fellach Lift, Cross-Country Skiing and Culture

The Fellach Lift, a small ski area particularly suitable for beginners and families, is located right in the village of Virgen.

Winter Activities and Landscape

This does not imply any classification of other ability levels or specific accommodation locations. The cross-country ski trail network offers a second winter sports perspective: it is integrated into the Dolomiti Nordic Ski network and also makes Virgen interesting for guests who prefer cross-country skiing to alpine skiing. The Virger Feldfluren are a distinctive landscape feature. They are a hedgerow landscape that developed over centuries through local farming practices. They complement the winter activities with a view of the village’s evolved cultural landscape. The Feldfluren do not represent an additional winter sports offering, but rather the landscape character of Virgen.

Castles, Trails and Crafts

Rabenstein Castle was probably built in the 12th century. It was the seat of a custodian, that is, an administrator and judge, of the Virgen district court. This court also included Prägraten and St. Jakob in Defreggen. Today, the Rabenstein ruins are also connected to a hiking trail as a historic site: they are located directly on the Virgentaler Sonnseitenweg trail. This trail takes leisure hikers from Matrei in East Tyrol to Prägraten am Großvenediger in two to four stages. On the banks of the Isel is a stone sculpture workshop housed in a former sawmill. Visitors can often watch the artists at work there. The site thus combines craftwork with a distinctive architectural setting. During your stay in Virgen, this creates a choice between winter activities, landscape experiences and insights into regional culture, without requiring the individual destinations to be grouped together as one location.

Churches and Living Traditions

The present-day parish church of Virgen is a Gothic church consecrated in 1516. The pilgrimage church of Maria Schnee is located in Obermauern. It was expanded and remodelled from an originally Romanesque church into a Late Gothic building; the expansion was completed in 1454. The frescoes depicting scenes from the Passion of Jesus were painted by Simon von Taisten at the end of the 15th century. Maria Schnee is also associated with the Virgentaler Opferwidder tradition. It is based on a vow made in 1635. During the Opferwidder procession, the supplication procession leads from the parish church of Virgen to the pilgrimage church of Maria Schnee in Obermauern.

More destinations for your stay

The Trail of the Senses includes a water playground with Kneipp pools, watercourses, channels and sluices. The Iselschlucht suspension bridge offers a different way to experience the landscape: from the Obermauern bus stop, it can be reached via Trail No. 46 in about 30 minutes. If you would like to compare Virgen with other places, you can also find [Tristach](Tristach), [Außervillgraten](Außervillgraten), [Hinterbichl](Hinterbichl), [Sankt Leonhard](Sankt Leonhard), [Heinfels](Heinfels), [Nußdorf-Debant](Nußdorf-Debant), [Matrei In Osttirol](Matrei In Osttirol) and [Huben Im Ötztal](Huben Im Ötztal).

To the overarching travel overview: Lienz District.