Ski mascots come in all shapes and colours. These lively stuffed animals, always looking cheerful, are not only a distinguishing feature of the holiday regions, but also a symbol of child-friendliness in the ski area.
Ski Mascots as a Sign of Child-Friendliness
Almost every ski area has a ski mascot. The figures have established themselves as a hallmark of child-friendliness and as educational supporters in ski schools, where they help the little ones to ski. There are no limits to the creativity of the ski schools and tourism associations in shaping these characters. Sometimes they are cute, but sometimes they can also be odd figures that walk around the children’s area, greeting the kids. Animals near the Alps, like ibexes and cows, or snow animals like penguins are still close at hand. Dragons, elephants and monsters are more unusual. Even the mountains themselves become a cheerfully smiling figure.
FUNty from the Zillertal Arena
A large, yellow elephant with a top hat is one of the first things you will encounter in connection with the Zillertal Arena. He can already be found on the website of the Ski Association promoting the all-inclusive motto: tons of fun. His name is also very fitting: FUNty, who can also be found in the children’s areas of the four connected ski areas Zell am Ziller, Gerlos, Wald-Königsleiten and Krimml.
B.BIG and mini.b from the Stubai Glacier
In the BIG Family Ski-Camp on the Stubai Glacier, the monsters run wild. The whole children’s area, including the learning area of the ski school, is thematically designed for the mythical creatures, so that a particularly colourful world could be created. Mascots here are the hairy BIG.B and his little companion, the mini-monster mini.b. The following video shows them in full action:
Berta and Murmli from Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis
The children’s paradise of Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis in Tyrol also has two mascots to offer. They are adapted to the local animal populations in and around the villages. In Serfaus, for example, the mascot Murmli is a marmot, which runs thematically through all the children’s attractions – right up to the marmot enclosure with real rodents. The funny mountain cow Berta laughs for the children in Fiss-Ladis. Here they are at work:
Schmidolin from the Schmittenhöhe
The friendly dragon Schmidolin lives in the Schmittenhöhe ski area, which lies above Zell am See in the Salzburger Land. The “Kinderskiland” is the realm of the dragon, where the little ones slide through the dragon’s tunnel and ski over wave tracks or through archways in the dragon park. Schmidolin can be seen above in the first picture.
Lofi and Lofino from the Almenwelt Lofer
A cow with a playful scarf and a golden dragon with a bobble hat welcome the children to the Loferer Almenwelt in the Saalachtal. Lofi the cow is the mascot of the Almenwelt Lofer and the official “face” of the ski region. Lofino the dragon is the mascot of the “Skischule Herbst” ski school and is often on skis himself.
Schneewutzel from Hochkönig
The village of Dienten is centrally located in the ski region around the Hochkönig, which is known for its guaranteed snow and family-friendly flair. Here, the shaggy monster Schneewutzel practices skiing with the children. He has even created his own songs to sing along to, which can be played on the ski school’s website. Schneewutzel even attended a press conference here:
ArBär from Arber
Mascots also support children on German slopes. In the Arber ski area on the Großen Arber (1,455 m) in the Bavarian Forest, the man-sized ArBär is responsible for entertaining and looking after the little ones.
Pitzi from Hochzeiger
As the name suggests, this mascot is the ski school companion in Pitztal. The little ibex sweeps over the practice slope of Pitzi’s children’s club and entertains the children in the ski school on the Hochzeiger. His favourite dance is the warm-up dance:
Bobo the All-Around Mascot
Bobo the penguin can be found in many ski resorts. He is the official mascot of the initiative “Kinderclub”. This ski school association was founded 20 years ago and has developed into an international network with numerous children’s ski schools in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Russia thanks to a pedagogically valuable 10-step program. To date, around 3 million children have learned to ski under Bobo’s guidance alone. Together with all the other funny mascots, there are certainly many more. Good that they exist! Last but not least, the official Bobo song:
