A new tourist resort in the Tyrolean Alps

Scheffau am Wilden Kaiser, a small municipality of 1,300 inhabitants in the mountains of the North Tyrol, is today one of the most popular holiday resorts in the Eastern Alps. Together with the nearby villages of Ellmau, Going and Söll, it is located at the foot of the Wilder Kaiser mountain range in a nature reserve that was set up in 1963, and offers year-round holiday and leisure activities. Set amongst peaks that have long been popular with mountaineers and climbers, in the winter visitors can ski in Skiwelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental, Austria’s largest skiing centre with more than 284 km of slopes, and in the summer hike along the extensive network of trails and cycle the 350 km of mountain bike and e-bike tracks belonging to the Kitzbüheler Alps-Kaisergebirge.
The local economy is focused mainly on eco-friendly tourism and sustainable development while continuing to promote investments in new hotels and accommodation facilities.
The Kaiserlodge was designed by the practice Planwerker Holzerber based in the nearby village of Ellmau and constructed in a short space of time, reaching completion in September 2017. Built on behalf of the local cable car company Bergbahn Scheffau, it is run by the Kaiser Hotel chain which already operates one four-star hotel in Scheffau. It is a dynamic complex distributed internally on several different levels and heights set on a curved site overlooking the Alps and extending around a 1,300 square metre artificial lake.
While the exterior has a traditional Tyrolean appearance characterised by low-impact massing and extensive use of local wood, the interior follows advanced accommodation principles based on comfortable, high-quality spaces and a range of complementary activities and flexible accommodation solutions. It has 17 double rooms and 44 luxury apartments with sizes between 66 and 125 square metres (the 14 on the ground floor also have direct private access to the lake), along with spacious, welcoming common areas offering a wide range of services. These include a bar open during the day and evening, an area for organising guest workshops, and the Kochtisch («cooking table») where guests can find the recipes and ingredients they need to prepare meals in their apartments, all of which are equipped with a kitchenette. For the smaller rooms, the restaurant service is provided by the nearby Kaiser Hotel.
As a now essential feature of all high-end accommodation, the 700 square metre wellness centre occupies an extensive part of the top floor looking out over the imposing Wilder Kaiser mountain range. Divided into interior and exterior sections, it is equipped with a swimming pool, a Turkish bath, two saunas, a massage room and a large outdoor solarium. Featuring the use of local wood and high-quality porcelain tiles from the Loire collection by Ceramiche Coem (which were also chosen for the bathrooms and the bar surfaces), the interiors are modern and ideal for relaxation.