Black hoodie, black trousers, burgundy cap and a smile from ear to ear: This is how Eva Patscheider greets us in the centre of Serfaus. We meet her in front of the "Peep Shop", which is run by her sister Pia. But more on that later, because first it's off to the ski area - underground.
We unpack our skis and walk to the underground station in the village centre of Serfaus.
The best thing about Austria's only village underground railway? The underground aerial tramway costs nothing and is also barrier-free. This is important for people with disabilities and especially for the many families with pushchairs, as Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis is one of the most popular family ski resorts in Tyrol.
We get out and Eva directs us to the ski depot. Once there, we put on our ski boots and leave our street shoes with the young men who work here. A babble of Spanish and English voices fills the air, Eva is hugged and laughs: "I see these guys almost every day."
We board the Komperdellbahn, switch to the Lazidbahn and, after a short ski descent, take another gondola lift up to the summit of the 2,770 metre-high Pezid - a panoramic mountain par excellence, as Eva confirms to us while pointing to the snow-covered mountain slopes and peaks: "I really like being back here, I feel a bit hidden."
Our view extends to the 3,004 metre high Furgler in the north and the Kaunergrat in the east. Somewhere in the valley to the south-west lies Samnaun in Switzerland. When conditions are safe, Eva likes to ski off-piste with friends through the deep snow - a glance at her extra-wide skis is enough to confirm this. "You can reach the most beautiful terrain on foot in just a few minutes." But that really only applies to real ski connoisseurs. We stay on the piste today and enjoy the beautiful view on the Pezid, over to the Masner, the westernmost point in the Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis ski area. Eva also recommends the Masner as a great viewing mountain, but due to the late hour and our hunger, we decide to stop for a bite to eat.
"They have the world's best Kaiserschmarrn here," says Eva, looking at us seriously. Of course, we have to verify this claim on the spot. And indeed: this is how Kaiserschmarrn should be! Even Eva, a self-confessed vegan, is really tucking in here for a change.
The warm-hearted landlady Veronika Schalber tells us an incredible story about a guest who was here at Christmas 2016. He had heard about the Schalber Alm and the delicious Kaiserschmarrn at a business dinner in Dubai. During his visit to the Schalber Alm, he confirmed to Veronika that he had eaten the best Kaiserschmarrn of his life here. For those of you who don't like sweets: I can also warmly recommend the Brettljause here.
As a former professional freeskier, Eva naturally recommends that we shred in one of the snow parks here. There are actually several fun areas, from the fun slope for the little ones to the shred park for the older ones. We decide in favour of the Snowpark Fiss, our last destination in the ski resort for today.
We finally reach the Schönjoch shortly before the lift closes and only now realise how big this ski area really is.
In the snowpark, we meet two guys who are working on the snow with rake-like tools - they are smoothing the approach to an obstacle. Their job up here is to "shape" the obstacles, as snowboarders and freeskiers would say. The working day doesn't end for them today until ten o'clock in the evening - quite a lot of work for a snowpark like this. We wish them all the best and let the shredding go for today. Then one last ascent on the Schöngamp cable car to Schönjoch and we swing down towards Fiss.
From Fiss, we could make a detour to the polychromelab, which is located just below the village. Unfortunately, we have to postpone our visit to another time due to time constraints. What is the polachromelab? An entrepreneurial duo that develops innovative outdoor clothing and tests it on the mountain in real conditions - more precisely on the Schönjoch at 2,500 metres above sea level, where just a few minutes ago the wind was blowing in our faces and the sun was tanning our skin.
In the centre of Fiss there is also a listed farm which houses the Fiss Museum - a good tip for those interested in history and culture.
"The Peep Shop is my sister Pia's baby," Eva tells us, "for me it's something special because it's a place for young people, and that was missing in Serfaus before. Freeskiing and snowboarding have found a place and a justification there."
Five years ago, bank customers were still waiting for their advisor where we are now lounging on the leather couch and being offered an espresso. Then the bank closed. "We had exactly two weeks to turn it into a sports shop," says Eva, who helped her sister Pia to get the whole thing up and running. Instead of bank employees, we are surrounded by racks of clothes with snowboarding gear, and instead of savings accounts, customers get deep-snow skis.
The pullovers, caps, beanies and drinking bottles from the "Peep" own brand are also well received by the young people who are on skiing holidays here with their parents. Eva herself comes from the freeskiing scene, having thrown herself over house-high jumps on skis as a professional. "And now my knees are knackered," she says. But she doesn't seem to mind. She has been living and working in Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis again for three years. Her family owns several shops in Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis.
Eva is also fond of old things. She points to a centuries-old wooden house right next to the Serfaus village fountain. "A tree doesn't just need a trunk, it also needs good roots. I think it's wonderful that an old wooden house like this is being preserved and looked after."
In an almost equally old building just opposite, we find s'Ladele - where you can sample fine schnapps, liqueurs, syrups, honey, handmade chocolate and jams. All the products are from North, East and South Tyrol. "You can just go there and taste special things," beams Eva, "it's not like in the supermarket, you just go and enjoy."
There are almost as many top accommodations in Serfaus, Fiss and Ladis as there are inhabitants. Naturally, it is not easy for Eva to single out one hotel. Her personal tip: Hotel 3 Sonnen in Serfaus, a four-star superior hotel.
"No wish goes unfulfilled," says Eva, "the boss Irene is so welcoming, you just have to get to know her." Eva also stops by the Hotel 3 Sonnen every now and then to get a massage, "when I've had a nasty bump on my skis. Regina - the masseuse - has thumbs from hell. You wouldn't believe that this petite woman can have such strength."
At the beginning we wrote about three villages - this was our test to see if you were really paying attention. We noticed Laudeck Castle (or Laudegg), the obvious landmark of the village of Ladis, as soon as we arrived.
In Ladis, Eva visits an old friend with us, Markus Neier, "a really good skier", as she confirms. In addition to his job as a ski instructor and ski guide, he rents out beautiful holiday flats in Ladis - another good tip from Eva. Markus welcomes us warmly and offers us a sip of mineral water - from the Sauerbrunn spring in Obladis, just a few hundred metres further up the mountain.
One stop is still missing at the end of today's ski day - an insider tip. The Hüftgold snack bar, opened by the two young women Isabel and Lisa, is located right on the village street in Ladis. "We thought about what didn't yet exist in Ladis. The idea for the name 'Hüftgold' came to us by chance while searching the internet."
Eva tastes the vegan burger and is delighted. Lisa and Isabel source the meat for the non-vegan burgers from the butcher in the valley town of Prutz. The flavour of the mighty rösti burger wins us over, as do the homemade fries.
In the meantime, the sun has sunk behind the mountains and we say goodbye to Eva. She gives us another laugh, a warm hug and leaves - because she wants to go to yoga tonight. Yes, that's also available here in Serfaus, Fiss and Ladis.
