Tr avel report MAYRHOFEN

my one-kilometre body surf, that I could class it as a mere slide, rather than a crash – though buying the ‘I survived Harakiri’ T-shirt in the piste shop felt a little like cheating.

But if you never even consider braving the Harakiri, there is tremendous skiing to be had in and around Mayrhofen, towards the end of the picturesque Zillertal Valley.

The Zillertaler Superskipass opens up a number of resorts linked by efficient public transport, especially the reliable and rather charming train service.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m no trainspotter. I like to think my anoraks are more Ian Brown than Kevin Turvey. But I have to agree with that pink-trousered former politico Michael Portillo when he says the train is by far the most romantic way to travel while on holiday.

So it was a real treat to be able to visit Hippach, Kaltenbach and Zell am Ziller on board the dinky red train which scooted up and down the pretty Tirolean valley, all free of charge with the Superskipass.

Every half hour or so, the oversized Brio-style engine shunts modern and largely empty carriages between the working town of Jensch and Mayrhofen, past lovingly constructed wooden homes, through day-glo green fields and rickety, straw-strewn farmsteads.

The lovely journeys weren’t long enough for me though, only 15 minutes to Zell, where the Sperskipass links up to Gerlos and Gerlosstein, and just 10 minutes more to Kaltenbach, where you can ski on to Hochzillertal and Hochfugen.

Mayrhofen’s is the end of the line and you need to take a coach – also free with your Superskipass – to ferry you further up the valley from the combined railway and bus station. The coach is well worth taking as it ends in the spectacular – and I mean really spectacular – Hintertux glacier.

Mayrhofen is very snow-sure, with great conditions when I visited at Easter, but Hintertux has all year snow. It is one of the biggest glacier ski area’s I’ve come across – with 196km of piste – and the wide runs soak up a huge number of people.

Don’t miss the Panorama Terrace, at 3,250m it has one of the best mountain vistas I’ve ever gawped at in the Alps – just jaw-droppping.

It is a real must if you are staying in Mayrhofen, but don’t get stranded – the coaches back to the resort are pretty full at the end of the day.

And being so close to the railway and bus station was one of the pluses of our Crystal accommodation at the edge of town.

We were at the Landhaus, the annex of the beautifully old Austrain Gasthof Neuhaus hotel, with its stunning, authentic green and white exterior and elegant reception, dining and bar rooms, with wood panelling and stained glass windows. If a building could wear costume, this would be full lederhosen.

And the delightful staff wear traditional uniforms themselves to set it all off. I imagine it is magical at Christmas but we were here at Easter and they celebrated that, too, with Easter trees and a special Easter banquet.

The food was excellent. A big buffet breakfast, with eggs cooked to your requirements, and a fourcourse evening meal, which included dishes such as rack of lamb. Desserts looked like something from Masterchef.

You can also use the hotel’s swimming pool, Jacuzzi, sauna and steam room area with an elegant, relaxing