General Terms and Conditions of Schmittenhöhebahn AG
These general terms and conditions of business regulate the contractual relationship between the partners of the Zell am See-Kaprun region, the Zell am See-Kaprun Summer Card, the Viehhofener Summer Card and the natural and legal persons who use the services of the Schmittenhöhebahn AG (hereinafter referred to as "users"). The general terms and conditions of business apply to the use of the website www.schmitten.at and all subdomains that belong to this domain, to the extent that they offer online card sales of the SuperSkiCard and the Alpine Card. These are also applicable if you use the online ticket sales of the SuperSkiCard and the Alpine Card of other websites that enable access to the www.schmitten.at website in full or in part. The general terms and conditions of business also apply to all other services that are provided directly by Schmittenhöhebahn AG, such as carriage by cable cars and lifts, passenger boats, the provision of services in the restaurants of Schmittenhöhebahn AG and other services in particular.
The contractual components are:
- These general terms and conditions of business
- The conditions of carriage approved by the authorities, as displayed in the access area of the respective cable car facilities
- The rules of the International Ski Federation
These general terms and conditions of business apply to the use of the cable car facilities of Schmittenhöhebahn AG, as well as to boat travel based on one's own tickets and tariffs, (ii) to gastronomy, (iii) to other services, (iv) to the purchase of merchandise and (v) to the use of the pistes.
1. Conclusion of the contract
The online order of the customer is subject to the complete and correct entry of all mandatory fields in the booking window, as well as the express acceptance of the general terms and conditions of business by means of the application provided in the booking window. Incorrect statements can lead to confiscation of the entitlement without compensation and exclusion from carriage. The customer is obliged to provide immediate notification of any changes to his or her contact details (name, residential address, email address). Entering the data and clicking the "place binding order" button represent, in legal terms, an offer to conclude a sales agreement in relation to the tickets, vouchers or merchandise items of Schmittenhöhebahn AG. The acceptance of this offer to purchase remains expressly reserved. There is no obligation to accept the offer of the customer. Where applicable, the customer will receive an email to the provided address at the latest within 10 days, by means of which an acceptance of the offer to purchase takes place. The provisions shall apply accordingly to the purchase of tickets at the Schmittenhöhebahn AG ticket offices, on condition that a customer who is a consumer in accordance with the Austrian Consumer Protection Act (KSchG) is entitled to a right of revocation for online orders; the revocation notice and a revocation form are linked on the Schmittenhöhebahn AG website. The services included in the Schmittenhöhebahn AG tickets can be used after receipt of the respective data carrier and/or after the cable car and lift facilities, as well as the carriage by boat have been put into operation.
The sale of Schmittenhöhebahn AG tickets takes place at the current rates that are listed on the Schmittenhöhebahn AG website or in the price lists, price notices and folders etc that are available at Schmittenhöhebahn AG. Schmittenhöhebahn AG tickets can be purchased by credit card (for example Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Diners Club), by advance bank transfer or in cash.
2. Online shops
Only persons who are over the age of 18 are permitted to make purchases in our online shops. Depending on the voucher selected, these may be redeemed in value, in kind or for services. Should the voucher be purchased using an electronic ordering process, the relevant conditions in this respect apply in particular (see point 1 - conclusion of the contract).
3. Service provision
The service provision may be temporarily restricted in full or in part due to technical disruptions, lack of snow, force majeure, in case of natural disasters such as storms, thunderstorms, heavy rain, snow chaos, risk of avalanches, etc or due to other operating circumstances. Insofar as the company is, in principle, capable of providing the services, i.e. the lift systems are at least partially in operation and the use of the respective pistes is possible by virtue of the snow conditions, the customer has no right to terminate the contract, especially but not limited to, in the event of bad weather, the risk of avalanches, the customer’s unforeseen departure, temporary disruptions to services, individual lift systems or ski areas ceasing to be in operation due to weather conditions, individual pistes being closed, overcrowded pistes and illness of the pass holder. As a result of certain weather and operating conditions, sales and/or carriage limitations may occur. In any case, limited lift and piste availability are to be expected early and late in the season. In addition, the regulations and measures set out by the authorities in connection with pandemics (for example COVID 19) are applicable.
It is hereby being expressly pointed out that no (pro rata) refund can be claimed if Schmittenhöhebahn AG is willing to provide services but the user does not make use of these as a result of personal considerations or decisions; therefore, as an example, should official measures be implemented for the use of the services (for example obligation to present a negative test certificate, proof of vaccination, etc) and should the user not be able or willing to provide such proof, no claim for a (pro rata) refund can be made. It is also hereby being stated that compliance with the respective measures issued by the authorities or other protective measures to contain a pandemic is the sole responsibility of the user. Should the user be unable or unwilling to comply with measures issued by the authorities, he or she may not be carried and no claim to a (pro rata) refund may be made. In addition, there is no entitlement to a (pro rata) refund or extension if Schmittenhöhebahn AG takes individual or multiple lifts out of operation due to low user frequency as a result of the pandemic, as the user still has the option of making use of the majority of the services that are being provided.
4. Ticket exchange and replacement
Exchanges, transfers to other persons, extensions or postponements of the period of validity are not possible. In addition, lost and forgotten ski passes cannot be replaced.
5. Control system
All use entitlements are checked automatically at access points that are equipped with electronic control systems and by visual inspection at access points without such systems. Tickets, whether in the form of barcodes or electronic tickets (KeyCard), must be presented at the respective control point for visual inspection during random checks in the control zones of the facilities, as well as in the areas of the valley station, ticket offices and car parks. Tickets must also be presented to the designated mobile control points in the ski areas on request. The control points are authorised to confiscate ski pass entitlements that have been misused. Anyone who uses a carriage service with cable cars and lifts without a valid ticket is committing a criminal offence under Austrian law. Breaches will be punished with a criminal complaint.
6. Misuse of tickets
Tickets are non-transferable (also within families). Any misuse will lead to confiscation of the ticket without compensation. The customer is also obliged to reimburse the cost of a day ticket and to pay a fine to the sum of 70 EUR. The ticket must be kept in such a way that it cannot be misused by third-parties. The right to bring criminal charges remains expressly reserved.
7. Refund of ski passes (from 2 days)
Should the customer be prevented from skiing as a result of injury or illness, no entitlement to a refund exists. However, as a gesture of goodwill, the cable car and lift companies reserve the option of issuing refunds at their own discretion (with the exception of day tickets and uphill and downhill rides). This is subject to the presentation of a medical certificate from a local doctor. Notification of the injury or illness must be made immediately.
8. Ticket validity
When using the carriage services of Schmittenhöhebahn AG, a valid ticket must be carried and presented in the control zones on request. Multiple day tickets are only valid for consecutive days, unless a different period of validity is expressly stated in writing (for example elective ski passes). Unused days will cease to be valid and cannot be refunded, replaced or credited. Tickets are non-transferable.
9. Liability
Liability for property damage is limited to cases of intent and gross negligence. Damages claims are excluded in case of simple negligence. The service provision for individual or multiple cable cars and lifts, as well as carriage by boat may be temporarily restricted in full or in part due to technical disruptions, lack of snow, force majeure, natural disasters such as storms, thunderstorms, heavy rain, snow chaos, risk of avalanches or other operational disruptions. No guarantee can be provided concerning the uninterrupted availability of the services offered at each individual cable car and lift location, as well as in relation to boat travel on each day.
There is no obligation for all facilities and passenger boats to be available at all times. The range of usable facilities and passenger boats can vary each day and throughout the day. Information concerning the available (daily) service each day can be found at the ticket offices, on the electronic panorama boards, on the panorama TV, at the respective lift entrances and on the www.schmitten.at homepage.
10. Ski bus
Free-of-charge use of the ski bus in Zell am See and Kaprun or between the two regions with a valid ski pass (BUS imprint) in the winter season during the daily opening hours of the Schmittenhöhebahn AG cable cars.
11. Obligations of the user
The conditions of carriage, as displayed in the access area of the respective cable car facilities are applicable. The instructions of the mountain railway staff, the information team and the piste and rescue team concerning the technical operation of the facilities and use of the pistes must be complied with. The environment and fellow skiers must be treated responsibly and with consideration. Any contamination and throwing away of rubbish or cigarette butts etc must be avoided. Tickets will be confiscated in case of non-compliance.
12. Rescue costs
We kindly request your understanding that rescue costs will be charged for (according to time and expense). Our piste and rescue service teams only supervise marked and open pistes - in open terrain, you ski at your own risk! Should an accident occur, it is up to the piste and rescue team to decide how to provide care and rescue measures.
13. Piste closure
Please check the operating hours of the carriage facilities as stated on the notice board. Outside of these times, all pistes are either closed or being re-prepared - there is no organised ski area and no hazard protection. Please watch out for ruts, winch cables, exposed cables and snow making equipment hoses.
14. Provision of proof
Various proofs of entitlement to reductions (for example child discounts) must be provided or kept on your person.
15. Data protection
Schmittenhöhebahn AG takes the protection of the personal data of our customers extremely seriously. Therefore, the data of our customers is processed exclusively in accordance with the statutory provisions (in particular the GDPR and the Austrian Data Protection Act - DSG). The data protection policy can be viewed at www.schmitten.at/en/Data-protection.
16. Choice of law and place of jurisdiction
The substantive law of Austria shall apply, to the exclusion of the United Nations Convention governing the International Sale of Goods and the reference norms under international private law. Should the customer be a consumer in accordance with the Austrian Consumer Protection Act (KSchG), the court in whose geographical area the domicile, habitual place of residence or place of employment is located shall have jurisdiction for any legal disputes. Should the consumer maintain his or her habitual place of residence in the EU, he or she can either bring a lawsuit before the objective court of jurisdiction in Salzburg, Austria or before the court of the location in which the consumer maintains his or her place of residence. In all other cases, the objectively competent court at the place of business of the company is hereby being agreed.
As at: April 2024