Saalbach Hinterglemm, the Austrian ski resort with the highest visitor numbers (around two million) and which operates more gondolas and six-seater chairlifts than any other resort on the planet, is spending another €38.5 million this summer on yet another two cool lifts to take its total investment since 2000 past the €300 million mark.
The new Polten 8-seater chairlift by Doppelmayr (pictured above) will feature heated seats and pull-down bubble covers and replaces the old Polten quad chairlift at a cost of € 7 million.
Another ultra modern, 10 passenger cabin capacity gondola will also be added above Leogang, the second cable car from the valley up to the Saalbach Skicircus thanks to a € 17 million spend.
In addition there'll be a further expansion of the snowmaking system, including a new reservoir with a capacity of about 80,300 cubic meters. Being built over two years it will cost € 10.5 million.
The new investment takes Saalbach Hinterglemm's uplift capacity past the 100,000 mark to 103,000 people per hour and its 56 lifts include 18 gondolas, more than any other resort in the world, and most of its 19 chair lifts are 6 and 8 seaters – again world beating stats.