Wagrain from Innsbruck Airport

The route

There are two sensible routes to Wagrain. On the day we choose the better one according to the traffic.

The first, usually the slower one on peak travel days, heads east from the airport on the Inntal motorway to Kufstein. At Kiefersfelden it crosses into Germany, where border checks often cost a lot of time, and continues to the Inntal junction near Rosenheim and past the Chiemsee towards Salzburg, to the Walserberg crossing. Heading into Austria there are only occasional checks there, heading into Germany there are checks all the time. From there it follows the Tauern motorway to the Pongau exit, on to St. Johann im Pongau, the district’s main town, and finally about 9 km or 15 minutes up the Wagrain valley.

In winter the motorways are easy to drive with winter equipment, even when it snows, and the Wagrain valley is no particular challenge for experienced drivers in well-equipped vehicles. Our vehicles are fully equipped for winter from the start of the conditional winter tyre rule on 1 November.

The second route stays in Austria the whole way, with no border crossing, though it does change province. It also heads east on the Inntal motorway, but only as far as Wörgl. From the Wörgl Ost exit it follows the Loferer Straße to the Brixental/Kitzbühel roundabout, then goes through the Brixental via Hopfgarten, Westendorf, Brixen im Thale and Kirchberg to Kitzbühel. From there the Pass Thurn road leads via Jochberg and over the Pass Thurn down to Mittersill, on towards Zell am See as far as the edge of town, and then towards Bischofshofen to St. Johann im Pongau. From there it is the same as the first route, up the Wagrain valley.

This route is also easy to drive in winter thanks to well-built roads, including over the Pass Thurn, with no waiting at borders and usually less traffic. On peak travel days it can take longer here too, for example in Kitzbühel on Hahnenkamm weekend.

Either way, allow around three hours.

We drive to your accommodation, in the village centre or in any of Wagrain’s outlying districts, always at the same fixed price.

Private transfer vs. public transport

The private transfer runs straight from the arrivals hall to your accommodation, whatever time you land, with no changes and no hauling gear and luggage between trains and buses.

The fixed price is per vehicle, not per person: two people pay the same as seven, gear and luggage included. The longer the route, the further it comes in below the cost of individual public transport tickets.

Wagrain is easy to reach from Innsbruck by public transport, and we say so. From the airport you first go into the city to the main station, then take a direct train via Zell am See to St. Johann im Pongau and a bus on to Wagrain. Two changes: a long but perfectly comfortable trip.

The effort lies in the gear and luggage. With children, and perhaps bad weather, it can be harder work than the timetable suggests. If you land later it gets more difficult too, as buses from St. Johann im Pongau thin out late in the evening.

When you travel

Wagrain is in the middle of Snow Space Salzburg, which is linked with Flachau and St. Johann-Alpendorf and is part of the Ski Amadé ski region. The season usually runs from late November to early or mid-April.

Saturday is the main travel day in this region too, with heavy traffic and queues that can stretch for kilometres. When there are queues, holiday traffic is also banned from leaving the motorway. Shuttles and taxis are exempt, but just reaching an exit in a queue can take a long time.

That is exactly why we only choose the route for your transfer on the day, so you reach your destination as smoothly as possible and without stress.

The fixed price applies at any time of day.

Arrival and meeting point

Your driver will be waiting in the arrivals hall with a name sign. Before you travel we send you the vehicle’s make, model and registration, along with your driver’s name and phone number.

Give us your flight number when you book and we will track your flight in real time. Delays, diversions and early landings are handled automatically. We wait 60 minutes free of charge after landing, which covers passport control and baggage reclaim.

On a route this long, the flight number matters most. The longer the drive, the more difference it makes whether we can time the departure to your actual landing.

Please switch off flight mode on your mobile phone once you land, so we can reach you.

The return journey: Wagrain to Innsbruck Airport

The return journey also has a fixed price, just like the outbound. We collect you from your departure address. You are welcome to book the return when you book your outbound transfer, or at a later date.

We time the pickup so that you reach the terminal around two hours before your flight. Please take an early pickup time seriously and do not push it back: your driver knows the route, the traffic and the road conditions, and our aim is to get you to your flight without stress.

We plan generously on departure day. Three hours on the road, possible border checks and Innsbruck Airport’s winter departure peaks all add up. Expect an earlier pickup than on shorter transfers. We agree it with you when you book.

Easily confused

Wagrain is closely linked to the carol “Silent Night”: its lyricist Joseph Mohr served as priest here and is buried here.

The valley and its village make a varied destination in winter and summer, and together with Kleinarl in the next valley form the Wagrain-Kleinarl tourist board.

Flachau and St. Johann-Alpendorf in Snow Space Salzburg are linked to Wagrain by lift. By road they are separate destinations with their own fixed price.

St. Johann im Pongau is not St. Johann in Tirol. The two are around 100 km apart.

Salzburg Airport is closer to Wagrain, but not every airline lands there every day. Innsbruck and Munich are good alternatives, and we drive from both at a fixed price.