Innsbruck Airport to Mayrhofen
About an hour east. The neat public route is the Giselabahn to Jenbach and then the narrow-gauge Zillertalbahn, which runs to Mayrhofen every half hour.
At the head of the Zillertal, Mayrhofen is the one British skiers name first in Austria — partly for the Harakiri, the steepest marked run in the country, and partly because the village works as well in summer as in winter.
Every way to get there
Our verdict: for Mayrhofen, a private transfer is the easiest door-to-door option (from €130). Travelling light on a budget? The bus is cheapest (from €28) but slower, with a change in the city.
What it costs for your group
The bus is charged per person, while a taxi or private transfer is one price for the whole car — so the more of you there are, the better door-to-door value looks.
| Group | Bus (per person) | Private transfer | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo · 1 traveller | €28 | €130 | Bus |
| Couple · 2 travellers | €56 | €130 | Bus |
| Family of 4 · 4 travellers | €112 | €130 | Bus |
Which option should you choose?
| If your priority is… | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest price | Bus | From €14, though slower with a change in the city. |
| Speed & comfort | Private transfer | Door-to-door, fixed price, a driver waiting for you. |
| A group of 3–4 | Transfer or taxi | One flat fare splits cheaper than several bus tickets. |
| A late-night arrival | Transfer or taxi | Both run 24/7 when buses and the tram have stopped. |
By transport mode
Train
One of the more pleasant transfers in the Alps: the Zillertalbahn is a narrow-gauge line that runs the length of the valley every half hour and stops at every village on the way. The change at Jenbach is across a platform rather than through a subway, which matters with skis.
Where to catch it: Bus F to Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof, eastbound Giselabahn service to Jenbach, then the Zillertalbahn from the adjacent platform.
Best for budget travellers near a stationShuttle
Straightforward here because the Zillertal is a single road in and out. Vans often serve Hippach and Finkenberg on the same run, so confirm your stop rather than assuming Mayrhofen centre.
Where to catch it: Arrivals hall meeting point.
Best for budget travellersPrivate transfer
The shortest of the big Tyrolean transfers, which keeps the price down. Sensible for a group with a late landing, when the last Zillertalbahn has already gone.
Where to catch it: Met in arrivals, flight tracked.
Best for families, groups & late arrivalsCar rental
Motorway most of the way and then a flat valley road, so the drive is easy by Alpine standards. Mayrhofen is compact enough to walk once you arrive, and the ski buses cover the outlying lifts.
Where to catch it: Arrivals hall counters.
Best for travellers who want to exploreMayrhofen & Innsbruck in photos
Getting from INN to Mayrhofen
The transfer that is actually enjoyable
Most airport-to-resort journeys are something to be endured. This one is worth doing on purpose. The route runs east along the Inn valley to Jenbach, then turns south onto the Zillertalbahn — a narrow-gauge railway that has run the length of the Zillertal since 1900, stopping at every village, with rolling stock that in places still includes steam on tourist services.
From the terminal: bus F to Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof (fifteen minutes, €3.20), the eastbound Giselabahn to Jenbach, then the Zillertalbahn from the platform alongside. Trains down the valley run every half hour, daily. Reckon on an hour and fifty end to end for €14 to €24.
The detail that makes it work with luggage is the interchange at Jenbach. The narrow-gauge platform is across from the mainline one rather than down a subway and up again, so skis and cases move once, on the level.
Why British skiers know this village
Mayrhofen has been on the UK package circuit for decades and has the infrastructure to match — English spoken everywhere, big ski schools, and an après scene centred on a handful of very well known bars. It also has the Harakiri, the steepest marked piste in Austria at 78% gradient, which draws people who mostly photograph it from the bottom.
The skiing itself is spread across several mountains up the valley: Penken above the village, Ahorn opposite, and the Hintertux glacier at the head of the Zillertal, which runs all year. The lift pass options differ depending on how far up you intend to go, and that decision is worth making before you arrive rather than at a ticket window.
Transfers, and the neighbouring villages
Shared minibuses run from arrivals from about €28, roughly seventy-five minutes. Because the Zillertal is a single road in and out, the drop-offs are efficient.
One thing to confirm when booking: vans serving Mayrhofen usually also serve Hippach, Finkenberg and sometimes Tux on the same run. Those are separate villages a few kilometres apart, and "Mayrhofen" on a booking site occasionally means an address in one of them. Check what the accommodation actually says before assuming you will be dropped in the centre.
A private car is €130 to €200 for the vehicle — the cheapest of the big Tyrolean transfers because the distance is the shortest. For four people that lands near the shared-seat total, and it matters most on a late landing, when the last Zillertalbahn has already gone and the alternative is a taxi from Jenbach.
Driving
Budget €38 a day upwards. The route is motorway to Jenbach and then a flat, wide valley road — one of the easier winter drives in the Tyrol, with no pass to cross and nothing that resembles a mountain climb until you turn off towards Hintertux.
The seasonal tyre rule applies here as everywhere in Austria, November through mid-April. Mayrhofen itself is compact enough to walk end to end and the resort runs free ski buses to the outlying lift stations, so the car will spend most of the week parked. It earns its keep only if you intend to move between Zillertal resorts, which the lift pass allows and the buses do slowly.
Summer, which is half the point here
Unusually for a resort on this list, Mayrhofen works as well in August as in February — the Zillertal is a walking and climbing valley, the glacier keeps skiing available, and the railway runs the same timetable. If you are looking at this page in summer, the transport advice above is unchanged and the shared ski transfers simply become shared transfers.
Buying the train ticket
Two operators means two tickets in principle, but in practice ÖBB will sell you the whole journey through to Mayrhofen, and the Zillertalbahn leg is included. Buying online or in the ÖBB app before you land is cheaper than the machine at the Hauptbahnhof and avoids a queue behind an arriving charter.
Worth noting the Zillertalbahn does not always accept the same discount cards as the mainline, so if you are travelling on a rail pass, check whether the narrow-gauge section is covered before assuming it is.
In short
Take the train. It runs every half hour, costs under €25, changes once across a platform, and is genuinely a nice ride. Book a transfer if you land late or your address turns out to be in Finkenberg rather than Mayrhofen. Hire a car only if the whole Zillertal is on the plan.
INN to Mayrhofen — FAQ
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Other destinations from Innsbruck Airport
