Almhof Schneider

About Almhof Schneider

By the ULTIMATE Ski Resorts Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

The Almhof Schneider sits right on the slope in Lech, run by Gerold and Katia Schneider; the family first took in guests in 1929. Its spa, opened in 2015, was inspired by ancient bathing culture and built in Austrian limestone and oak, with a pool, steam baths, a tepidarium, a fitness room, a yoga room and treatment rooms.

On the slope

The Almhof Schneider stands on the slope above the village, so you step out of the door onto the piste. The Schneider family has lived on the Arlberg since 1451; Gerold’s great-grandfather and grandfather turned part of the farmhouse into guest rooms in 1929. Today Gerold and Katia Schneider are the hosts, and most guests are returning friends of the house.

The Almhof Spa

The spa opened in 2015 after the Almhof was, in its words, turned upside down. It is light-filled and spacious, with views over the garden, the village and the old church, and it takes its inspiration from the bathing cultures of Greece, Rome and the Middle East. Radiant heat in walls and floors replaces the old hypocausts, so the steam baths wrap you in gentle warmth rather than clouds of steam. Surfaces near water are bush-hammered Austrian limestone, floors and ceilings oak, matching the existing swimming pool.

The Almhof is far from a wellness hotel, in its own words, but its spa invites you to slow down.

There is a nude zone with separate areas for men and women, which then lead into a shared, clothed tepidarium and warm bath; guests under 15 enter the nude zone only with a parent. You rest in the relaxation room or by the fire in the fireplace salon. A fitness room and a studio for yoga, Pilates and TRX look over the garden. Treatment rooms, set apart for quiet, offer reflexology, Tibetan massage and hot stones; the cosmetics room uses Biologique Recherche, Nectarome and Royal Fern, and Aesop products run through the spa, starting with Austria’s first Aesop kiosk at the entrance.

Rooms and suites

The rooms were modernised with the British interior designer Anthony Collett: light wooden cassette ceilings, antique cabinets from the region, settees in local wool and mattresses handmade for the Almhof, many with balconies over the slope.

Eating and drinking

The house has a dining room, the Herbarium and Wunderkammer restaurants, the Tagesbar, a sun terrace and a smokers’ lounge. The family also runs Restaurant Klösterle in Zug.

Our advice: ask for a room with a balcony over the piste, ski back to the door at four, and give yourself two hours in the spa, following the rooms in the order the house recommends.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Almhof Schneider before you go.