"Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways” Lift Co's Start Summer Season
The quality initiative of the Cable Cars Association already has around 80 member companies and offers a wide range of mountain experiences for every type of holiday
Some regions already got a taste of summer 2024 in the spring, when temperatures reached summer levels. The real start of the summer season now begins in May, when the first summer cable cars open the gondolas and lifts for their holiday guests. Whether action, relaxation, sport or activities for the whole family - the "Best Austrian Summer Cable Cars" are once again impressing this year with their adventure offers across the entire country.
Reliability through quality-tested offers
"Interest in movement and variety in the Austrian mountains in summer is constantly increasing," says Franz Hörl, chairman of the Cable Car Association in the Austrian Chamber of Commerce. "Summer tourism now accounts for over 15 percent of the cable car industry's turnover. By specifically strengthening the mountain summer, we are also boosting the regional economy and securing jobs all year round. This is exactly what the quality initiative of the 'Best Austrian Summer Cable Cars' stands for."
The recipe for success of the “Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways” lies in the variety of services on offer. The gondola ride makes the mountain easy and barrier-free to reach. The award of the seal of approval as a certified family mountain, panoramic and nature experience mountain, adventure mountain, pleasure mountain or art and culture mountain provides additional security and precise information about the activities that await you on site.
Further development around sport, family and sustainability
"The variety of offers from the 'Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways' is attracting more and more younger guests between the ages of 20 and 30 to the mountains in summer," explains Kornel Grundner, spokesman for the "Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways". "In general, we benefit from individual travelers in the local mountains and very stable overnight stay figures in the mountain regions. This is why the demand for 'new things on the mountain' is also increasing." For the member companies, this means constant development and innovation of the nature experience offers on the mountain.
The focus in 2024 will be on sports, family and sustainability. Action lovers can look forward to new bike trails or an expansion of the mountain carts. Those looking for relaxation can enjoy offers such as yoga on the mountain, organized sunrise hikes or concert highlights at the summit. The little ones can let off steam in the swing park at 1,600 meters above sea level or discover puzzle trails. In 2024, the members will again invest in improving the ecological footprint - for example by expanding the infrastructure together with the region for a climate-neutral journey, new PV systems or the detailed review of their own consumption through sustainability reports.
All quality-tested summer mountain railways including thematic specializations can be found at: www.sommer-bergbahnen.at
About the seal of approval “Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways”
The “Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways” seal of quality is an initiative of the Cable Cars Association (Austrian Chamber of Commerce). The seal of quality brings together the experts and pioneers of domestic summer mountain tourism and now has 79 members with 96 themed mountains. Only companies that meet at least 100 quality criteria become one of the “Best Austrian Summer Mountain Railways”. Specialized in five themed worlds - adventure, family, panorama & nature experience, enjoyment, art & culture - the members must pass a recertification every three years. A varied range of experiences is guaranteed - not least for this reason, the seal of quality has now become an important decision criterion when holiday guests choose their destination.
