While it's possible to find passable skiing conditions any time of year, depending on location, it's winter time that ski aficionados spend the year anticipating with zeal. Europe, with its bounty of snowy climes, is home to some of the world's best and most exclusive ski chalets—locations that provide near perfect powdery conditions for "woosh-wooshing" downhill.

We've sussed out some of the continent's most luxurious ski hotels for this feature; they're places you can kick back with spiked hot cocoa if you so choose, yet still get you up close and personal with slopeside action. Take note, Jonny Moseley-types.]]> Heidi Atwal 2011-12-08T16:18:42-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/8/10/211328/876

Look familiar? Yep. The concrete tube hotel phenomenon strikes yet again, this time in Germany and Austria.

Though there are lots of small details that are making us fall deeply in love with this "hotel" and its amenities, we feel this tagline on the website sums things up pretty well:

"dasparkhotel would like to offer a temporary comfortable uncomplicated home for a certain time."

Gee, thanks, dasparkhotel. Read on below to see inside one of the pimped-out drain pipes!]]> ASchechter 2011-08-11T09:35:01-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/3/19/215328/587 <![CDATA[<p> <i>Cubicle Dreamin' is a feature in which we ask the hotel mavens to take some time out of their busy work day, surf the Internet, and tell us what hotel they wish they could beam themselves to right that very second--all on the slave driving companies dime, of course. Oh, like these people aren't surfing aimlessly anyway--at least now their purposeless clicking will be cobbled together into useful hotel stories--we hope. Have a destination hotel you are just dying to leave your cube for? <a href="tips@hotelchatter.com">Send the story our way</a>.<p> In this episode, Hotel Maven <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/user/katiek/stories">Katie K</a> visits Austria...in her mind. Enjoy.</i><p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/17697/schloss.jpg" class="top"></p> <p>The recent teases of springy weather have me in a Julie Andrews sort of KatieK 2009-03-20T09:27:49-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/3/4/926/13984

This week we will be bringing you a special series from contributor Carolyn Banfalvi on the most luxe Alpine hotels in Austria. If you ever fancied a "Sound of Music" getaway, here's how to do it without taking the Vow of Poverty. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know.

It’s easy to find a hotel in Seefeld, one of the greatest destinations for cross-country skiing in the Austria. The town has one of the highest concentrations of five star hotels in Austria.

While the four star AlpenMedHotel Lamm doesn’t rank among the town’s most luxurious, it has something that few hotels in the word have: a cryotherapy chamber.]]> carolynb 2009-03-06T12:22:24-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/3/4/84240/72670 <![CDATA[<p><p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/pamperdiekrone.jpg" class="top"><p> <i>This week we will be bringing you a special series from contributor <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/user/carolynb">Carolyn Banfalvi</a> on the most luxe Alpine hotels in <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/country/austria"><b>Austria</b></a>. If you ever fancied a "Sound of Music" getaway, here's how to do it without taking the Vow of Poverty. Any questions or suggestions? <a href="mailto:tips@hotelchatter.com">Let us know.</a></i><p><p> Lech and Zürs, two neighboring towns in Austria&#146;s Vorarlberg region, are among the country&#146;s most fashionable ski resorts. Skiers love the ski pass system here, in which passes are valid on a huge network of lifts spanning several towns. <p>Zürs is solely a ski town, with no actual residents just a row of hotels, which is why the more year-round Lech attracted me more. Lech, carolynb 2009-03-05T12:01:15-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/