I originally drove to the Alps for one road. I came home with Highland cattle, the best Brotzeit at a hut with no power, and a family story that could carry its own documentary.
But let’s take it from the top.
This whole trip started as a classic road trip in a Mercedes convertible. Me, my girlfriend Terka, and a plan to drive the Grossglockner. But when we were working out where to spend a few nights in Austria, the local tourist office, Tourismusverband Altenmarkt-Zauchensee, reached out and connected us with a hotel I had never even heard of.
And I’m glad it did.
What Scheffer’s actually is
Scheffer’s Hotel sits in Altenmarkt im Pongau, a small town at 842 metres, roughly 65 kilometres southeast of Salzburg. It’s a family business that has been running for about 70 years, since the 1950s, and today it’s led by Verena.
And it’s exactly the kind of place where you’re not processed by a receptionist with a plastic smile, but welcomed by a host who, five minutes in, is already helping you figure out where to catch the best view and whether you’d like to meet their own cattle.
A double room with a balcony, bathroom, robe and slippers, plus half board. That was our base camp. Nothing over the top, just honest Austrian classic.
But the best part wasn’t happening in the room.
The barbecue, the cattle, and dinner with no power
On the very first evening, Verena invited us to a barbecue they were hosting right by the hotel. And that’s one of those moments when it hits you that this isn’t a chain. Food from their own farm, quiet all around, mountains on every side, and a family that treats you like you belong there.
The highlight of the stay came on another day, though, when Verena drove us up to their mountain hut. No electricity, only solar. No hot water, just cold from the stream. And yet, or maybe precisely because of that, they serve one of the best Brotzeit I’ve ever had.
A board loaded with cured meats, cheeses and bread, plus Verhackerts, a spread of minced smoked bacon you won’t find back home. And all around grazed Highland cattle, the shaggy ones with the big horns.
This kind of authenticity can’t be staged. Either a hotel has it, or it doesn’t. Scheffer’s has it.
Wellness that hits after the mountains
After a day in the mountains, we wound down every evening in the hotel’s wellness area. Indoor pool, sauna, exactly what you need after a full day of hiking or after the switchbacks of the Grossglockner.
A balm for the body, and for me the perfect way to close each day.
The story that gives it all deeper meaning
And now the part that got me the most.
Over one dinner, Verena started telling us the history of Zauchensee, the ski area just above Altenmarkt. Her father and brother built the first lifts and gondolas here. Her mother runs the lifts today. And Zauchensee is still privately owned, unlike neighbouring Flachau, which belongs to the banks.
Verena has old photos from the 1960s at home, the names of the founders, even a retired gondola she wants to turn into a café. You sit at dinner and listen to how a handful of enthusiasts and one set of sleds grew into a ski resort.
And when you add that Altenmarkt is the home of ski legends like Hermann Maier and Michael Walchhofer, it hits you that this small town has a heart far bigger than its not-quite five thousand residents.
You can’t buy that. And that’s exactly why a family hotel beats a chain every time it comes down to the experience.
What comes with your stay
A quick practical note you’ll appreciate if you’re planning to go. Altenmarkt looks after its guests well beyond the hotel too.
When you check in, you get what’s called a guest card. With it you ride the Gamskogelbahn cable car for free, along with the local buses and shuttles around the area. And a short hop from the hotel is Erlebnis-Therme Amadé, thermal baths right in Altenmarkt. Eleven pools, a sauna world, and even the only looping water slide in Austria.
What worked best for us was turning up right at nine in the morning. Quiet, the sauna area almost empty. Exactly how it should be.
It all fits together beautifully. The hotel feeds you and puts you up, and the surroundings are sorted with a single card, so you don’t have to worry about a thing and can simply enjoy it.
Who I’d recommend it to
If you’re after an Austrian hotel where they treat you like a person and not a booking number, and you want the area served up by people who know it better than any map, Scheffer’s is an easy call.
Family, food from their own farm, wellness, mountains at the doorstep, and a story you take home with you.
You’ll find more about the hotel at scheffers-hotel.at and about the whole destination at altenmarkt-zauchensee.at. On Instagram you’ll find them as @scheffershotel and @visitaltenmarktzauchensee, and the thermal baths as @erlebnistherme.
We’ll definitely be back. And next time maybe not just the two of us, but with a crew. But that’s a story for another time.
