Zell am See

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Zell am See
View over Lake Zell
Postal code		5700, 5702, 5705
Area code	06542
Vehicle registration	ZE
Website	www.zellamsee.salzburg.at

Zell am See is the administrative capital of the

The Zell Valley is a corridor in the Kitzbühel Alps, connecting the Saalfelden Basin of the Saalach River in the north and the Salzach in the south. Zell am See is located about 100 km (60 mi) east of Innsbruck and 30 km (20 mi) north Austria's highest mountain, the Grossglockner. The historic centre of Zell am See is located on the western shore of the 68 m-deep (223 ft) Lake Zell, with the villages of Thumersbach to the east, Erlberg to the southeast, and Schüttdorf directly to the south.

Subdivisions

The village of Zell am See comprises five cadastral communities:

1. Bruckberg, a residential area including the Zellermoos locality
2. Erlberg on the southeastern shore of Lake Zell, including a nature reserve
3. Schmitten, above Zell am See proper, location of many cableways
4. Thumersbach, an affluent district and lakeside resort on the eastern shore, including the summer resort of Prielau in the north
5. Zell am See, with the Old Town centre and Zell am See-Süd (Schüttdorf)

Landscape

The original Lake Zell reached somewhat further to the north and extended south to the Salzach River. The dimensions of the lake, however, have changed over time into marsh areas. The lake has the shape of a peanut, with an area of 4.7 km² (1.8 sq mi).

The mountains of the area form a horseshoe shape; the slopes are mainly forested or covered with

Skiing

Zell am See provides winter skiing on the above Schmittenhöhe mountain. The skiable area is around 138 km, including the pistes on the Kitzsteinhorn and Kaprun Maiskogel. The ski pass covers the whole area including transport to and from the glacier, which is open most of the year, dependent on snowfall. Zell am See is a low-altitude ski area and snow cover can suffer from higher temperatures, but the glacier has snow cover most of the year.

In 2017, Zell am See announced a potential merger with Saalbach-Hinterglemm ski resort. In the 2019-2020 ski season, the Zell am See Express 1 gondola was opened, which allows access to the Zell am See Express 2 gondola at the base of piste 21 from Viehofen.

Notable ski pistes in the resort include: The Trassabfahrt (14), which is the steepest piste in the region reaching an incline gradient up to 75%, the Standardabfahrt (13), which is another valley run reaching an incline gradient of 60%, and the recently reopened Tannwaldabfahrt (21), a ski-racing piste in the 1930s, and is well known for being consistently icy, and having a high steepness-width ratio in some sections of the piste.^[8]

Luxury tourism and Porsche family

In the 19th century, Zell am See became known as a summer and winter resort for the Austrian and European aristocracy, such as the

Zell am See is the seat of the Porsche family, which has significantly contributed to the town's international standing. Since 2001, the family operates the local airport, and in 2007, the Ferry Porsche Congress Center for conventions was completed. In cooperation with the municipality, the Porsche family annually hosts the International Porsche Days in summer and the Greger Porsche Ice Race (since 1952) in winter.^[9][10] The family also owns the Schloss Prielau hotel, situated in a historic castle formerly owned by Hugo von Hoffmansthal on the shore of Lake Zell. The family's private estate is located in the district of Zell am See-Süd.^[11]

In the 21st century, Zell am See became a popular summer vacation spot for wealthy Russians and Arabs, many of whom spend their whole summer in one of the luxury lakefront hotels.^[12][13]

History

The area of Zell am See was continuously populated at least since

From 1800, the town was occupied by

Timeline

• 1879, 15 July - Opening of the Hotel "Elisabeth"
• 1881 - Start of steam navigation with boat "Elisabeth" on the lake
• 1885 - Empress Elisabeth ("Sissi") visits the Schmittenhöhe (mountain)
• 1887 - The municipality takes over ship navigation on Lake Zell
• 1893 - Visit of the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef I
• 1894 - The Grand Hotel is built
• 1898 - Business start of the Pinzgau Local Railway (Pinzgauer Lokalbahn)
• 1906 - Foundation of the Zell am See Skiing Club; first winter sports festival
• 1906 and 1910 - Acquisition of electric motor boats, end of steamship navigation
• 1914 - Railway double tracked
• 1924 - A light plane lands on the frozen Lake Zell
• 1928 - Construction of the tennis courts (used for ice-skating and ice-hockey in winter)
• 1928, January 25 - Commissioning of the Schmittenhöhebahn (up to the Schmitten mountain)
• 1928 - Foundation of a chapter of the Austrian Aeronautical Association (Österr. Flugtechnischer Verein)
• 1930 - Opening of the Hauptschule (similar to a UK secondary modern school)
• 1937, February 5 - Academic World Wintergames
• 1945 - City serves as a base for
  506th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 101st Airborne Division. (See Band of Brothers
  )
• 1952, May 8 - Opening of the Alpine Gliding School
• 1959, May 15 - Opening of Zell Airport
• 1961 - Zell receives the status of a climatic spa
• 1966 - Serious damage caused by thunderstorms; the River Schmitten overflows its banks
• 1968 - Construction of the Spa and Sport Center and foundation of the Europe Sport Region
• 1973 - Ski-World Cup (12 to 20 December)
• 1975 - Rosenberg Castle (16th century) becomes the town hall
• 1976 - Opening of the new hospital
• 1977 - Commissioning of the one-rope chairlift "Zeller Bergbahn"
• 1979 - Opening of the pedestrian area
• 1979 - Women's Down-hill World Cup
• 1981 - Honorary citizen: Dr.h.c. Ferdinand Porsche
• 1981 - Honorary citizen: Commercial Council Dr.h.c. Louise Piech-Porsche
• 1989 - Barry and Helen Knight spent their honeymoon at the Hotel Lebzelter
• 1996 - Opening of the road tunnel (Schmitten Tunnel, 5,110 m)
• 2000 - Award ceremony of the Sydney Olympic winners Steinacher and Hagara (Tornado-Sailing)
• 2004 - Award ceremony of the Athens Olympic winners Steinacher and Hagara (Tornado-Sailing)
• 2005 - Naming of the third ship on Lake Zell, the "Schmittenhöhe"
• 2008 - World Hockey Tournament^[14]
• 2012 - Zell am See and Kaprun host the Ironman 70.3 Zell am See-Kaprun triathlon for the first time
• 2015 - Zell am See and Kaprun host the Ironman 70.3 World Championship, which is held outside US & Canada for the first time

(Source: Custos Cav. H. Scholz)

Attractions

St Hippolyte's Church Within

The highpoint of the church is its elevated walkway with its ornate parapet, built in 1514. The walkway rests on four carved columns of precious marble, in between which an intricate net-vault is spun. The three pointed arches are crowned with crockets, and end in pointed towers. Between the arches are Gothic baldachins with cut-out figures of St Hippolyte and St Florian, originating from 1520.

The tower is the main focus of the Zell am See skyline. It has a height of 36 metres (118 ft). The strong walls have a limestone exterior.

From 1660 until 1670, the main altar was replaced by a

The Grand Hotel Zell am See is situated in a unique position on a private peninsula right at the shore of Lake Zell, this large chalet is surrounded by water with a panoramic view of the mountains.

The

• Volksschule Zell am See[15]
• Volksschule Schüttdorf^[16]
• Volksschule Thumersbach^[17]
• Mittelschule & Musikmittelschule Zell am See^[18]
• Dr. Ernst Höfer Schule^[19]
• Polytechnische Schule Zell am See^[20]
• Landesberufsschule Zell am See^[21]
• Bundesgymnasium und Bundesrealgymnasium Zell am See^[22]
• Bundeshandelsakademie und Bundeshandelsschule Zell am See^[23]

Films shot in Zell am See

• 1944/45: Film Ein Mann gehört ins Haus directed by Hubert Marischka.
• 1963: Film Allotria in Zell am See [de] directed by Franz Marischka.
• 2001: Miniseries Band of Brothers "Part Ten - Points", directed by Mikael Salomon, executive producers Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.

Notable People

• Princess Maria Ana of Braganza (1899–1971), a member of the House of Braganza.
• Maria Franziska von Trapp (1914–2014), daughter of Georg von Trapp and member of the Trapp Family singers
• Herbert Feuerstein (1937–2020), Austrian and German journalist, comedian and entertainer
• Wolf-Dieter Heiss (born 1939), an Austrian neuroscientist at the University of Cologne
• Otto Brusatti (born 1948), an Austrian radio personality and musicologist.
• Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke (born 1967), an Austrian operatic tenor.

Sport

• Harald Ertl, (1948–1982), an Austrian racing driver and journalist
• Leo Lainer (born 1960), a retired Austria international footballer who made more than 500 appearances
• Hans-Peter Steinacher (born 1968), an Austrian sailor and twice Olympic champion at the 2000 & 2004 Summer Olympics
• Simon Eder (born 1983), an Austrian biathlete and twice team medalist at the Winter Olympics
• Bernd Hirschbichler (born 1984), an Austrian football referee and educator.
• Christoph Schösswendter (born 1988), an Austrian footballer who has played over 330 pro games
• Stefan Brennsteiner (born 1991), an Austrian ski racer

See also

• Salzburgerland
• Pinzgauer Lokalbahn

References