Christmas Day in the Austrian Alps

Being Australian, it is rather ironic to sing Christmas carols about having a ‘White Christmas’. Our ambition was to go somewhere that had an abundance of snow and Austria seemed to be calling to us…

Christmas Day ended up becoming an adventure up to the Austrian Alps, Ramsau specifically. There are less than 5 days a year that sleigh rides are offered in this area and so we were going to make the best of it. The only tricky part about going to Ramsau, you have to go up a very icy mountain! If you are someone who is afraid of heights…shut your eyes, or pretend your in Narnia!

Ramsau is a beautiful little skiing village and on Christmas Day, was covered in a fresh dusting of snow. Before embarking on our sleigh ride, we had a little wander of the area and some plates of hot food before getting on our sleigh.

Side Note: I have never actually been skiing but I think I completed a passable second option of sliding down the steep snow-covered pathways and managing to stay upright!

I swear I was in Narnia! Ignoring the biting cold winds, I was enamoured with my surroundings. The sky was clear, the snow was bright and everything felt very much like a winter wonderland. I would have happily taken 200 more photos but my phone decided that cold weather was not an option and promptly died on me. C’est la vie!

Another side note: Three cheers to the coachman who helped us fight the cold with lots of blankets and a bottle of schnapps (adults only)! Schnapps seem to be a common beverage in Austria and I am all for it…I’m rather sad I ran out of the Pina Colada flavour I got in Salzburg…I guess I’ll just have to go back one day and get some more!

The quiet ambience of the sleigh ride really gets you cosy as you slip into your seat a bit more and just take in the surroundings.

We also really lucked out on our tour as the clouds drifted away for us all just enough to take in the view of the alps with a relatively clear blue sky background.

Pictured below is the sleigh we had for the day. We were all originally set up in a conga line behind other carriages and I was a bit worried it was going to get crowded but then we all took a different route so you really get some time to yourselves with an uninterrupted view.

The last stop on the tour was a quaint little restaurant called Ederstub’n, serving every kind of hot drink and a delicious looking strudel with vanilla sauce. I honestly miss the hot chocolate from here…I don’t know why it was just one of the most superior I have ever had. The location was very cute too. This was perhaps the only downside of the trip. Thanks to central heating in most European buildings you have to take off so many layers when you get inside or you’ll cook yourself. Unfortunately the restaurant was so cosy I didn’t want to leave and go through the reverse…but I guess I didn’t want to be left behind either.

Christmas Day in the Austrian Alps was a must-do bucket list event. Beyond the snowball fights and hot chocolates it is a beautiful day out to spend with family in a dreamlike fairy-tale setting.