It’s for good reason Austria’s lovely and dramatic Arlberg region is commonly referred to as The Cradle of Alpine Skiing. Linked by the Flexenbahn cableway, the Trittkopfbahnen I and II and the Albonabahn II, Arlberg’s ski resorts are all connected to one another and can be reached on skis. With 88 state-of-the-art lifts and cableways, the region ranks as the largest connected skiing area in Austria and among the top five worldwide. Resorts include Warth, Schröcken, Lech, St. Anton, St. Christoph, Stuben, Zürs and Oberlech.

Zuers © Austrian Tourist Office

The area’s fascinating ski history took off when ski racing enthusiast Johann Schneider, born in 1890, transitioned from ski instructor to founder of a ski school in St. Anton, then helped found the Arlberg-Kandahar race. Meanwhile, in 1894, a pastor from Warth imported the first pair of skis to western Arlberg to ease his travel between Lech and Warth. Shortly after, Ski Club Arlberg — the world’s first official ski club — formed in 1901, Arlberg hosted the first alpine race. Since then, it’s all been downhill so to speak, including the introduction of the first artificial snowmaking equipment in 1907, when Michael Manhart employed the use of snow cannons in Lech. Manhart’s technique became known as the Arlberg Jet, used at the Calgary Winter Olympics.