Tourism Association - A-6580 St. Anton am Arlberg, Tyrol - Tel +43 5446 22690 - Fax 2532 -
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Foundation of the Arlberg Ski Club (1901),
the first ski race (1904),
the first ski school (1921)
and the Arlberg-Kandahar Race (1928)
Tourism on the Arlberg dates back to the 19th century. But it was not until the advent of Alpine skiing, pioneered to a large extent by men from the Arlberg, that the region acquired the outstanding reputation it still enjoys today as a winter sports centre. Hannes Schneider was one of the foremost figures in the early days of skiing and starred in the films directed by Arnold Fanck which did a great deal to popularize the Arlberg. In the decades that followed a succession of great skiers made the Arlberg a household word for the best in skiing.
The museum in the Arlberg-Kandahar-House is celebrating a
new era with a recent renovation. Since 1978, it has given visitors and
historians an overview of the history of skiing in the Arlberg area,
regarded as the “Cradle of Alpine skiing”. With loving attention
to detail, the different stages in history are now portrayed in an even
more impressive way. Old maps, wooden fold-outs with photos of
“yesterday” and “today”, winning skis and portraits of great downhill
racers and personalities of Arlberg are presented in an interactive
way. There are also old films and 3-dimensional photos. St. Anton am
Arlberg through the ages – the renovation helps guests learn more about
the past in Arlberg, including also worthwhile information about
culture and customs as well as the development of tourism in this
region.
Visit our Museum St. Anton am Arlberg and
combine it with a short break. If you would like to combine the
experience with a homemade cake, a good wine or a gourmet dinner, you
are warmly invited to enjoy the comfortable atmosphere of the museum
restaurant. Treat yourself to a homemade cake, ice cream from the farm,
smoked trout or Styrian apple juice. Catch your trout yourself or watch
your children romping about in our children’s playground.
The desire to record the ancient
tradition of our village as farmland and stopover along the trade route
from the Inn Valley over the Arlberg Pass towards Western Europe, and in particular its development as a summer resort in the 19th century to the world-famous winter sports centre of our times, and to pass it down to posterity, gave rise to the idea, decades ago, of establishing a local museum.
The fact that, after many changes in ownership, the idyllic villa in the holiday park, built by Bernhard Trier in 1912, was put up for sale in the 70s coincided with the ideas put forward for a museum.
The villa was purchased by the municipality of St. Anton am Arlberg and
the Tourism Association, and the unanimous decision was made to house
the museum in these stylish premises. Spiritual precursors of the idea
to set up a museum were the “Kommerzialrat” (Councillor of Commerce),
Walter Schuler, and the mayor, Hermann Schuler.
The municipality of St. Anton am Arlberg with the mayor Dir. Herbert Sprenger and the Tourism Association with Chairman Rudi Tschol made the whole project possible with their invaluable support.
Crucial specialist help in setting up the museum was provided by Privy
Councillor Dr. Egg and Dr. Meinrad Pizzinini of the Tyrolean Provincial
Museum as well as Luis Langenmaier and Erwin Cimarolli.
The museum represents a worthwhile cultural achievement: it is the
venue for a vivid portrayal of the history of St. Anton and the Arlberg.
Part of the museum is dedicated to the twin town of Nozawa Onsen (Japan).
