Zell am See is the administrative capital of the Zell am See District in the Austrian state of Salzburg. Located in the Kitzbühel Alps, the town is an important tourist destination due to its ski resorts and shoreline on Lake Zell. While Zell am See has been a favored winter and summer resort for the European aristocracy since the 19th century, it is known as a hub of the international jet set today.
Geography
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 east of Innsbruck and north Austria's highest mountain, the Grossglockner. The historic centre of Zell am See is located on the western shore of the 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: Bruckberg, a residential area including the Zellermoos locality Erlberg on the southeastern shore of Lake Zell, including a nature reserve Schmitten, above Zell am See proper, location of many cableways Thumersbach, an affluent district and lakeside resort on the eastern shore, including the summer resort of Prielau in the north 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 .
The mountains of the area form a horseshoe shape; the slopes are mainly forested or covered with Alpine pastures. The Hausberg ("home mountain") of Zell am See is the Schmittenhöhe, , which together with the adjacent Salzburg Slate Alps range in the west is part of the Greywacke zone between Northern Limestone and Central Eastern Alps. Mt. Schmittenhöhe is a popular centre for skiing and winter sports. The nearby Mt. Hundstein ("Dog Stone") at is the highest peak of the Salzburg Greywacke Zone.
Tourism
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.
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 Empress Elisabeth "Sissi" of Austria, Emperor Franz Joseph, or the von Trapp family.
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. 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.
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.