The Thurnhers Alpenholf in Zurs is a delightful family run hotel nestling in the Arlberg region of Austria above St Anton.

Zurs is a skiing village rather than a resort and the Alpenholf hotel is an intimate miniature of this charming Alpine community, the jewel in a very special crown.

A fleeting visit to a rental shop and skis, boots and lift passes miraculously appear in your personal heated locker the following morning. A stone's throw from the hotel are two chair lifts that take you to either side of the valley and the pristine skiing for which the area is famous. The hotel has its own guides who wait patiently in the lobby and you can ski in a group or hire them individually. And the slopes are deserted - no queues, not may skiers and mercifully no sign of those latter day Alpine terrorists, the snowboarders!

Zurs is an old fashioned skiing resort but with all the modern amenities one would expect. The lack of chalets, apartments and cheap hotels ensures a high class of patron but the lack of bling and dazzle means it holds nothing for the types of arriviste who have ruined so much of the Alps in recent years.

And what is true of Zurs is true of Thurnhers - the clientele are reserved, charming and stylish like the hotel itself. Many guests do not ski but come to take the air in the mountains and relax in the pristine environment. The hotel has an exceptional spa and swimming pool and offers a range of treatments that would take a month of Sundays to experience.

The food is fabulous - not may Alpine Hotels include Lobster Thermidor on their menu, a good 3000 kilometres from the nearest sea. But here it brought in by plane and train, caught the previous day and still twitching. The hotel offers a number of themed dinner options promoting the local cuisine and has a fabulous wine list covering all Europe's great regions. Breakfast is a 100 yard buffet, the perfect preparation for a morning on the slopes. And the Arlberg has more Michelin starred restaurants on its pistes than a small city so it is safe to go out for lunch!

The Alpenholf really excels in the early evening, a wonderful bar (smoking permitted), an accomplished jazz pianist flown in from New Orleans for the season, and a magnificent ambience of cool, classy sophistication. Claridges on ice!

The staff are delightful and the attention to detail quite astounding - nip out of your room for a moment and the place is Spring cleaned with an extraordinary zest and enthusiasm.

And out of season (so January to late March excluding half term), the hotel is quite reasonable despite the ruinous rate of exchange to the €uro.

This is how skiing holidays used to be and Dr Beatrice and her team are determined to keep it that way.'

The epitome of understated elegance, the hotel is an excellent choice for the discerning traveller. Characteristic of the old-school attention to detail in the best hotel practice tradition, the exemplary personal service is precise and warm, yet unobtrusive.

We stayed at Thurnher's only for two nights and with a last minute reservation. The first thing taht struck me was the friendliness of the the front desk and the warm welcome the owners gave us. We had two adjacent rooms and they were comfortable. Although the rooms were looking on the main road we didn't encounter traffic noise (or we didn't care). We resting part of the room was very comfortable and was immeadiately occupied by our daughter for play and reading zone.
The bathroom and WC were separate which I find very healthy and functional. The restaurant and the food was great. We enjoyed the atmosphere and the dining time. Compared to other hotels it is a "small" hotel, meaning less noise, less hassle. As we were travelling with a 7-year old and an infant (5 months) we had to keep our day well-planned splitting it between inside time for baby (hence the lounge area is nice and cozy) and action-based activity (hence bob/skiing etc.).
I agree with one reviewer who pointed out the size of the gym and the sitting area in the pool/sauna area. We were lucky that it was not crowded. But for those who crave for workouts, why not opt for the wonderful hiking paths in the area.
We thank the hotel and its staff for the nice time we had.