Wank (Germany)

...to say “I’m going to Wank on holiday”) and yet just a stone’s throw away, is the resort of Wank.

>--On the piste in Wank--<

Whilst Garmisch has the trickiest runs, Wank is ideal for beginners and less experienced skiers and is great for a family skiing holiday, as there are a lot of nursery slopes. Part of the beauty of Wank is that your skipass extends beyond the resort and you can enjoy skiing at five resorts ...
...can find a place in Wank rather than Garmisch, you’ll probably find the prices are slightly cheaper, and that due to the fact that it is slightly further away from the Garmisch ski area, less congested. At the end of the day the savings are not going to be that huge over Garmisch, and you are better suited staying here if you want self-catering, than if you want a large hotel, with most of the large hotels being in Garmisch itself.

... more

If you are perturbed by the title, read on, and all will become clear...

Germany’s highest mountain, the Zugspitze is located right on the Austrian border, and rises to 2,964m, with a funicular railway from the famous resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, which was the venue for the 1936 Winter Olympics, and which is still regularly on the circuit for World Cup races, with its Kandahar piste being out of the most famous and yet feared courses on the circuit. However, much overlooked (other than by tourists wanting to go somewhere with a silly name, or by people who want to say “I’m going to Wank on holiday”) and yet just a stone’s throw away, is the resort of Wank.

>--On the piste in Wank--<

Whilst Garmisch has the trickiest runs, Wank is ideal for beginners and less experienced skiers and is great for a family skiing holiday, as there are a lot of nursery slopes. Part of the beauty of Wank is that your skipass extends beyond the resort and you can enjoy skiing at five resorts that all fall under the Garmisch-Partenkirchen umbrella, with a week’s ski pass costing around EUR 160 (GBP 100) for adults, with a 10% discount for 16-18 year olds (Jugend) and a 40% for 6-15 year olds. For the very young there is a ski school near the cable car station so anyone from the age of three can enjoy skiing. Other prices are available for passes all of which are on the Garmisch website (see below). Wank’s slopes are lower than Garmisch’s which means that summer skiing is not possible, whereas Garmisch is well known as a favourite for snowboarders during the summer months.

>--Accommodation--<

The composite resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen-Grainau has approximately 10,000 hotel beds, and there are also a lot of self catering options. If you can find a place in Wank rather than Garmisch, you’ll probably find the prices are slightly cheaper, and that due to the fact that it is slightly further away from the Garmisch ski area, less congested. At the end of the day the savings are not going to be that huge over Garmisch, and you are better suited staying here if you want self-catering, than if you want a large hotel, with most of the large hotels being in Garmisch itself.

>--Nightlife/Après Ski--<

Garmisch is where it is all happening, with Wank being really quite quiet, with a few restaurants, which will suit families better. Taxis to Garmisch are pretty inexpensive, and will run all through the night, with a range of bars/clubs and restaurants for all tastes, so you name it, you’ll find it here. Some charge cover charges, whilst those that don’t can be quite pricey for drinking in. If you are short of cash then a supermarket fuelled pre-going out session is well worth it, especially if you typically drink spirits. For the more adventurous, a quick hop over the border to Seefeld and you can go to the casino, which is one of the twelve casinos run by Austrian state monopoly Casinos Austria. For information about the casino including special packages of dinner and gaming chips, see the link below.

http://www.casinos.at/e/service/seefeld/index.htm

>--Things to do in Wank if you don’t ski--<

Whilst there is no summer skiing in Wank there are a wide range of summer activities that can be enjoyed in Wank and the surrounding areas. Golf is starting to take off, although green fees are still quite pricey, although for outdoors fans there are a lot of hiking trails, so that if you enjoy walking you’ll be at home here. One to recommend is taking the Wankbahn and descending the Wank on foot – the views are well worth it and you’ll get a bit of a tan in the process. There are other flatter trails in the valley, and the peaks that surround the valley tend to have snow on all year round (well the Zugspitze certainly does). For fans of wild flowers and fauna there are plenty to see and again this makes an ideal venue for a family holiday.

>--Getting there--<

By plane:

The closest airports are Innsbrück (approx 60 km/40 miles), Salzburg (approx 90 km/60miles) or Munich (approx 120km / 75miles), with various airlines flying to these airports (e.g. Ryanair to Salzburg, a lot of charter airlines to Munich, or flights to Innsbrück are often via Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Amsterdam or Vienna from London).

By train:

There are regular train connections from Munich (München Hauptbahnhof to Garmisch takes about 90 mins direct by regional train and according to Deutsche Bahn’s website (for an op about Deutsche Bahn worth reading, I’d recommend the one by JVL) a single adult ticket will cost about EUR 14 – although for groups of 6 or more you can save up to 75% per person by booking as a group – well worth doing if you are travelling further on the train than just Munich).

For information on train services (in English) try:

http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

which is part of the Deutsche Bahn website and is very easy to use. If you are coming from Austria, then you’ll also find the Austria Federal Railways site (ÖBB) useful, although it is in English only.

http://fahrplan.oebb.at/bin/oebb.s01/query.exe/dn

They also offer savings for groups of 2-6 travellers (up to approx. half price saving) and for more info, you might find my op on them useful.

For basic details about getting there by car (i.e. to Garmisch), consult

http://www.garmisch.de/kv/?l=e&p=info/anreise

>--To satisfy the inquisitive cerebella amongst you...--<

So the people of Wank are “die Wanker” (pronounced Dee Vanker!), and the adjective is “wanker” and in compound nouns it is often incorporated at the front of the noun e.g. the private railway in Wank is “die Wankbahn”. To prevent any pending comments from people wondering what the German for the English homonyms are, they are as follows:

The verb: wichsen, selbstbefriedigen, sich einen runterholen
The noun: (to describe a person) Wichser, Wappler

>--Useful links--<

For a panorama of from the Wank, the following link will give you a

http://www.panopix.at/garmisch/garmisch_wank.htm

For skiing conditions in Wank:

http://www.zugspitze.de/english/weather/

For general information on the whole surrounding area:

http://www.garmisch.de

This summer I am off to Wank for a few days, as it is a convenient place to meet up with friends, allowing the skiers and snowboarders amongst the group to do their thing and the walkers and golfers amongst to enjoy our stuff to.
 

...less