e-trip to St. Anton am Arlberg for skiing

• Author: Thomas Biersack 
• e-trip nach St. Anton am Arlberg (Vorarlberg/AUT)
• E-car: BMW i3 
• Munich – St. Anton am ArlbergA93
• Route via Garmisch-Partenkirchen – Lermoos – Fernpass – Imst – Landeck
• Travel time: April 2022

Start altitude above sea level 514 m, total distance 212 km, 4 hours 7 min driving time, 53 km/h average speed, pass summit Fernpass 1216 m, average consumption 13.8 kWh, 23 % remaining capacity at destination (altitude 1304 m above sea level)

It was 2016. Since January, I had owned a Renault ZOE with the second-generation electric motor. A trip to neighboring Tyrol, a day trip to one of the well-known ski resorts in the Zillertal, the Stubai, or even to the internationally renowned Arlberg ski resort was out of reach, technically and somehow also in my mind.

Sure, the battery capacity of the early ZOE was manageable, 120 km effective everyday radius at temperatures around zero degrees Celsius and an inadequately perceptible heating performance below the 10-degree mark. A still hand-picked network of public charging stations with incomplete documentation had to be verified in various start-up applications for the smartphone. But on the other hand, there was the certainty that the charging stations were still regularly placed quite deserted and, moreover, were hardly visited.

With the acquisition of the BMW i3 in 2019, which has a range of around 300 kilometers and a network of charging options that has now been sufficiently laid out, the horizon for day trips and vacation trips widened considerably. A trip to ski at the end of the season to the ski resort of St. Anton am Arlberg no longer posed a challenge for the e-car driver. Rolling in from Munich to Garmisch on the autobahn at a relaxed 120 mph. 

Until, after the transition to the B 2 in the village of Oberau, the Neuner bakery delights with honest baking in the family tradition and a hearty breakfast. Oberland’s local color is exuded by the numerous regular customers, and sufficient charging capacity could feed the so far little-used battery just 100 meters away. Could. But there are still enough other options on the way and the need is not even for the complete route of a total of over 200 kilometers and a total climb net of about 700 meters in altitude.

So we continue calmly through the district of Garmisch west around the Zugspitze, over the border to Austria into the Ehrwald basin and over the Fernpass into the Gurgltal valley out to Imst. In order to save the highway toll for the 10-day toll sticker, the route continues on the country road to Landeck and up into the Stanzertal valley past the first villages that proudly adorn themselves with the name “am Arlberg”, promising tourist quality. Tip for those in a hurry: On the short stretch of highway, this section of the journey would probably be 15 minutes shorter.

Arrived in St. Anton am Arlberg, the path leads directly to the Garni-Hotel Almjur near the center, whose family atmosphere regularly makes guests loyal regulars and thus free rooms not always easily available. However, the hotel and guesthouse density is certainly so high that outside the peak season, accommodations are always good to grab. At the end-of-season weekend, this is just as true, although a lot of recreational racers have turned out for the grand finale spectacle: A wild ride from the top station of the Valluga over 9 kilometers of piste to the bottom station of the Galzigbahn, which is unprepared, even ransacked by the day’s activities, just waiting to throw off the overly daredevil racers like a stubborn rodeo horse.

After all, there are two charging options in the town. At the train station and above the town center at the arlberg well.kom congress hall. I head for the latter and during my first walk through the pedestrian zone and the meal at Skiing Buddha in the arl.rock climbing center at the train station, the i3 battery is already fully charged again.

For the journey home, because in the village and during the stay in the ski resort you move exclusively on foot or on skis.

After two days of wonderful firn descents on spring snow and the highlight of the White Rush race, we head back the same way we came. Even a traffic jam on the ascent to the Fernpass does not bother then. And thanks to the “downhill” ride, the dashboard display still shows a tidy 33% battery capacity when we arrive home.

On board: 

EnBW/ADAC e-Charge app and charging card
Shell recharge app and charging card