TRAVEL NOTES
-Winter Sports
AUSTRIA
To the ski-ing enthusiast the Austrian Alps have long been a very popular winter resort : indeed, the first competition of the Ski Club of Great Britain was held at KitzbUhel in 1908. Snow is plentiful, the ski-ing fields are varied, not steep, and British visitors are always popular and given a warm welcome. The Austrian centres offer magnificent scenery, good accommodation, skating, ice-yachting and tobogganing. The most popular times are at Christmas, and from mid-January to the end of April, when ski-ing is at its best in the higher altitudes. Sports teachers are available at all resorts, courses being organised, under expert guidance for every grade of proficiency, many of the larger hotels employing their own teachers. A new ski-ing technique has, during recent years, been developed in the Arlberg dis- trict, which, with Kitzbithel have long been favoured districts among Winter Sports enthusiasts.. The Arlberg is the 'tract of mountainous country dividing the Vorarl- berg from Tyrol. It contains such resorts as St. Anton,, ZUrs, St. Christoph ' and Lech. Obergurgl is another resort which is rapidly gaining popularity ; Hofgastein is a good, all-round centre and is to be recom- mended fora winter cure, as the mineral water from Badgastein is brought to Hof- gastein by pipe lines. Saalbaeli has excel- lent ski runs and good practice .slopes. Those who like an informal resort will like Saalhach, but early booking necessary: In the Vienna district two popular resorts are Semmering and Mariazell, the former,- two hours by train from Vienna, being much visited by fashionable Viennese. For those who intend a_long visit_ Salzburg, Innsbruck, Hofgastein and Badgastein are some of the holiday centres to be recom- mended.
The best route for the Tyrol and Western Austria is via Calais-Laon-Bale-Buchs. Through coaches run from Calais and Boulogne to Austria, and, on the Arlberg Express, there are through carriages with first and second-class sleeping cars. The duration of the journey from London to St. Anton is about eighteen hours.
NEW YEAR CRUISES A cruise of 8o days by the Swedish American motor liner Gripsholm ' (23,000 tons) leaves Southampton on January 14th. The ship has an English-speaking staff and is very comfortable. The Atlantic is crossed by the Southern route, and before calling at New York a stop is made at Nassau, in the Bahamas, where a whole week is allowed for passengers who wish to remain while the ship embarks American passengers : a refund will be permitted to passengers who stay at Nassau during this week. After her return to Nassau the ship continues southward to Cuba, Cris- tobal and via Panama Canal down the West coast of South America, then back, via the East Coast, Port-of-Spain, Martinique, New York and Southampton, having travelled 23,000 miles, fares are from 142 guineas. A group of shore excursions have been arranged in connexion with the cruise which are not included in the cruise fare, but may be purchased in a group for about L30. Full particulars are obtainable from any of the leading Travel Agencies.
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