Grossglockner Winter Ascent
Challenge yourself against Austria’s highest peak in winter conditions
Tackle technical ice and snow sections with the guidance of IFMGA-certified guides
Experience the unique beauty of the Eastern Alps in winter, with panoramic views over a pristine snowy landscape
Experience the thrill of winter mountaineering, from snow-covered ascents to the crunch of crampons on ice
Celebrate the accomplishment of summiting Grossglockner amidst the tranquility of winter
Brave Grossglockner's winter peak
Master icy climbs with expert guides
Gear up for glacier crossing
A moment of fulfillment - reaching the summit of Grossglockner
Witness the Eastern Alps' winter glory
Navigate the Pasterze Glacier's snows
Rest at Stüdlhütte's winter refuge
Itinerary
Your Grossglockner climbing adventure begins at Lucknerhaus, the starting point for most expeditions aiming to summit Austria’s highest peak. Your guide will meet you there to embark toward Stüdlhütte, where you’ll spend the night. The section to Stüdlhütte isn’t technically challenging, but winter presents different challenges than summer, so you’ll have to use crampons and an ice ax from the beginning.
Stüdlhütte
5 km and 900 m of elevation gain
Today, the fun part follows – the final ascent along to the summit of Grossglockner. First, you’ll need to cross the Pasterze glacier, meaning your guide will rope you up and lead you safely across. The final part of your journey requires a certain amount of experience in height-exposed technical terrain, with the technical problems reaching the II grade on the UIAA scale, winter making it even more challenging. The guide has fixed belay bars at his disposal to help you safely navigate this terrain up and down the mountain. After the climb, you’ll descend to the starting point at Lucknerhaus, stopping for a meal en route at Stüdlhütte.
13 km and 1000 m of elevation gain / 1900 m of elevation loss
Guided
Included in price
What to bring to the tour
Description
Embark on a winter journey to conquer Austria’s highest peak, Grossglockner, a challenge heightened by the season’s snowy conditions. This two-day guided climb, set against the backdrop of a frost-covered landscape, pushes the boundaries of high-altitude mountaineering.
The ascent to Grossglockner’s summit at 3,798 meters during winter transforms familiar trails. Snow covers the ground from the onset, replacing the lush meadows with a blanket of white that extends to the Pasterze Glacier, the largest in the Eastern Alps.
Your path leads to Stüdlhütte, serving as the primary stop in the colder months, with the Erzherzog-Johann-Hütte closed for winter. The summit reveals the Eastern Alps in their winter majesty, with peaks like the Glocknerwand and Kleinglockner standing stark against the snowy expanse, magnifying Grossglockner’s grandeur.
Guided by IFMGA-certified professionals, you’ll navigate winter-specific hurdles, including glacier crossing and sections rated II on the UIAA scale, requiring experience and resilience.
We handle all logistics to ensure a seamless climb, from arranging your stay at the high-altitude hut to providing rental equipment for those without winter-specific gear like crampons and ice axes.
Prepare for an unforgettable winter ascent of Grossglockner, embracing the unique challenges and beauty of mountaineering in the snow.
Location
Start planning today!
Things to know
If you have no previous mountaineering experience or proper alpinistic education, you’re most likely not ready to undertake Grossglockner by yourself. Therefore, acquiring a guide is a step in the right direction if you want to get off the mountain in one piece. The guide has essential skills like glacier crossings and belay and rappelling techniques. Without these, you cannot safely ascend and descend the Grossglockner.
Our agency works with various experienced IFMGA-licensed guides. All of them meet the highest standards in mountain climbing and guiding, with 10+ years of experience in this field. You can check them out on Our Mountain Guides page.
Grossglockner is a very popular mountain, attracting thousands of climbers every year. Consequently, the chance that you’d be alone on the mountain is virtually nonexistent, especially during summer. It’s much likelier that you’ll have lots of company, even in your group, as each guide can lead up to 3 clients on the mountain. If you prefer to hire a guide individually, you’ll have to pay a higher price.
Grossglockner isn’t among the most dangerous mountains in the world, as many people safely summit it annually. The only danger could stem from ignorance of the mountain world and your own lack of skills. By joining a guided tour, you rule out 99% of the possibility of a life-threatening mistake.
It depends on how well you are acclimated to the altitude. Normally, an altitude of 3500-4000 meters shouldn’t be severely problematic but can cause some issues for climbers who are physically less prepared. Therefore, climbers usually take two days to summit the Grossglockner, allowing themselves enough time to acclimatize.
If you don’t think the normal route presents enough of a challenge to you, then you can try summiting the Grossglockner along the Stüdlgrat ridge, which includes sections of III+ climbing grade per UIAA, or book a ski-touring ascent if you’re a skilled off-piste skier.
Depending on availability, your ascent of the Grossglockner includes lodging at Erzherzog-Johann-Hütte or Stüdlhütte. Both provide basic accommodation and meals, allowing climbers to gather their strengths before the final push towards the summit.
Given its extreme popularity and dependence on the availability of one of the two mountain huts, we would suggest booking a tour with us as much as six months in advance so that we can guarantee a spot for you.
If climbing the Grossglockner presents too big of a challenge to you, then you can look into booking one of our hut-to-hut hiking tours, which can be done without a guide:
Most people begin their ascent of the Grossglockner from the starting point above Kals am Grossglockner, Lucknerhaus. There’s a large parking space there, meaning you can access it on an asphalt road by car. Getting to Kals is fairly easy by taking a train from one of the nearest airports, such as Munich and Innsbruck.
