Ski Austria or Switzerland?

G%26#39;day

My girlfriend and i are travelling from Australia (home) through asia overland to europe and would love to spend a week skiing somewhere. We were thinking Austria or Switzerland but are open to ideas. It would be early to mid march %26#39;06. We would be intermediate skiiers. We would be looking for good skiing and not so worried about the nightlife, just a pub or two i guess! Being backpackers i guess the more reasonable priced places would be of interest, even staying in backpackers would be ok. Tips on resorts in any countries would be great, in fact any help you could give a couple of Aussies with not much idea on the topic would be fantastic! cheers.

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Hello, if you want to be with lots of other Aussies go to St Anton in Austria. It%26#39;s brilliant but it has lots of nightlife. Also great is Saalbach Hinterglemm. Much quieter but brilliant. I would give Switzerland a miss. I%26#39;ve skied in the Grindlewald and wasn%26#39;t impressed. Austria every time for me. Enjoy your trip.

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Mid-to end of March, you may want to pick a place with some altitude. St. Anton fits the bill, but it is not backpacker country.

Saalbach Hinterglemm is a possibility.

One year, when a lot of the lower altitude ski areas were washed out I skied in Arosa, Switzerland, and really liked it. It is accessible by train, from Chur I believe. (Idrove)

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The currency conversion on the Oz dollar is a killer. Budget at least double the cost at home. Austria should be cheaper than Switzerland.

If you are an intermediate, the lower resort at Seefield is a lot like Perisher (gradient %26amp; grooming).

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St Johan im Tirol has a Australian pub...but maybe you want to get away from the Aussies and South Africans?? They also do hostel accommodation I think (www.bunnyspub.com)Im not sure about conditions in March as I always go in Feb. Its a smaller, less expensive town than most of the big places, and has good runs for the intermediate.