The problem with being a travel journalist is that you often visit hotels you wish you didn’t have to tell the world about. Das Central in Sölden, in Austrian Tyrol – just an hour from Innsbruck – is one of them. It feels like the kind of place you only want trusted friends to know about: a family-run hotel that manages to be luxurious and unpretentious.
The location, of course, is no secret. Sölden’s cinematic peaks provided the backdrop for the iconic snow chase in Spectre, where 007 first encounters Madeleine Swann at the futuristic (and must-visit) ice Q restaurant, which sits at 3,048m and offers as much high-altitude drama as the film itself.
But while the resort’s Hollywood credentials and high-tech lift systems draw the crowds, Das Central brings the humanity to an Austrian ski trip.
Perhaps it’s the way technology has seeped into every corner of our lives, but lately, I’ve found myself drawn to the hotels with human connection and stories behind them. Das Central has many. It’s been run by the Gurschler family for over 50 years and this longevity creates a warmth that is visible throughout the entire team.
Take Director Michael Waschl, who spent his childhood in the hotel and his mother even managed the reservations team until recently. There is a real family spirit here. Then there’s the restaurant manager who moved from Sardinia decades ago, met her husband in the village and now watches their daughter play the violin for guests at Christmas. It’s these layers of history that make it incredibly hard to leave Das Central.
Checking into my Wellness Suite, I found a space designed in a modern Alpine style. The suite features a private sauna and a sunroom overlooking the Ötztaler Ache River, where the sight of glacial water tumbling over the rocks below reminds you of the calming power of nature. It’s a soothing sanctuary, with plenty of room to shed your ski gear and settle in with a glass of wine.
Courtesy of the hotel
Wellness at Das Central is a multi-storey journey. There is a labyrinth of an adults-only spa on the lower floors for those happy to go naked, home to countless saunas and steam baths, but the undisputed highlight is the textile-friendly Summit Spa on the top levels.
I spent every free moment I had here, alternating between long soaks in the scenic outdoor whirlpool and laps in the glass-bottomed (and very Bond!) Summit Infinity Pool. For sauna fiends, the choreographed sauna events are a must, turning a standard session into a rhythmic, sensory ritual.
With views over the 3,000-metre-high peaks and a rotating schedule of experiences, Das Central is easily one of the best ski hotels in Austria for spa lovers, and you could spend your entire stay here on a wellness break.
The new cryo chamber might have been introduced to help soothe ski-weary muscles, but the treatment has other benefits, from boosting circulation to promoting glowy skin. There was a certain thrill in the intensity of standing in a -110°C chamber for 150 seconds in only my swimsuit, a woolly hat, gloves and socks while Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now (my song choice) played through the headphones.
Since my first visit to Austria, I haven’t stopped raving about its cuisine and at Das Central’s celebrated Ötztaler Stube, Chef Stefan Speiser takes Tyrolean foundations and turns them into something revolutionary.
Rudi Wyhlidal
The restaurant earned its first Michelin star in 2025, and the experience is as theatrical as it is delicious. The journey begins with a lit candle brought to the table and as it burns, it melts into a warm, aromatic beef tallow for you to dip house-made bread into.
The tasting menu continues with marinated char tartare with frosted spruce needles and sharp loops of purple radish, and roasted saddle of deer with a rich deer essence. Even dessert – a dried pear ice cream in a saffron broth – is like eating a piece of art.
For oenophiles, Das Central’s wine cave is as legendary as Ötztaler Stube. The 30,000-bottle collection, which includes the hotel’s own PINO 3000, is as outstanding as the ethos behind it: prices here are stable to ensure that rare, older vintages remain an accessible pleasure to be shared rather than a trophy to be hoarded. In fact, the hotel has a history of turning down substantial offers from collectors. For the Gurschlers, these bottles are meant to be uncorked and enjoyed at the table, not tucked away in a private cellar elsewhere.
As tempting as it is to stay in a spa robe, the mountains call. Sölden is the largest ski area in the Ötztal Valley, a 146km playground that manages to feel both sporty and high-tech. While it lives up to its ‘Heartbeat of the Alps’ reputation at village level and has a legendary après scene, the mountain infrastructure is designed for high-volume efficiency.
The resort is home to two high‑capacity feeder gondolas that, alongside a network of high‑speed chairlifts, are specifically engineered to eliminate bottlenecking and keep skiers moving. This season, the smart infrastructure went even further with the debut of the AI-assisted Silberbrünnl lift, which uses intelligent cameras to monitor safety in real time.
A new 1.8km blue-run expansion now also links the valley’s key base stations, allowing beginners to cruise all the way back to the village on gentle terrain – a game-changer if you’re skiing Austria in a mixed ability group.
Advanced skiers head straight for the Rettenbach Glacier, but for beginners, the ski school at Giggijoch is an excellent place to build confidence. The magic carpet lift can help you master the basics in a protected zone, before you graduate to longer blue runs. When it’s time to stop for lunch, head over to Wirtshaus at Giggijoch for its terrific Wiener Schnitzel.
And after a day of high-altitude turns, Das Central’s steamy spa waters await…
Das Central offers double rooms from £220 per person per night, based on two people sharing on a half board basis.
British Airways flies daily from London to Innsbruck between December and April.