Living tradition.

Summer.solstice:
The longest day and the shortest night are celebrated particularly extensively in the Gastein Valley.
MOUNTAINS IN FLAMES is the name of the festival, which is celebrated on June 21 of each year (if the day falls on a weekday, it is postponed to the preceding or following weekend). For weeks, young boys and girls bring collected wood to the mountain peaks. Hundreds of bonfires are lit along the mountains on midsummer’s eve.

After the alpine summer, the animals are brought back down to the valley. Then there are celebrations at the cattle drive and the harvest festival. In gratitude for a good year. The autumn farming season begins at the end of August and ends in mid-October. Throughout the summer, you can watch the dairymen making cheese, distilling schnapps and baking bread on the mountain pastures. During the autumn farming season, the mountain huts and restaurants offer many local dishes based on old recipes. There is a farmers’ market once a week. There you can buy organic quality at the market.

A whole valley on the move. When on 5. and December 6, St. Nicholas and his Krampus go from house to house.
This tradition is still very important in the Gastein Valley. Wearing ancient furs and handmade wooden masks, the men in the valley go from house to house with St. Nicholas. Around 180 passengers, 5-10 people each, are on the road and can be found everywhere.

Advent in the mountains is a very special time. A time for reflection. A time of tradition. A time of silence. Mountain Christmas in Austria. A very special experience. Numerous events take place in all villages in the Gastein Valley.