Twenty years ago Nick Colgan put on a party in Croatia. It went well, and was instrumental in helping establish the country’s coastline as one of the European party capitals.
His venue in Tisno has since hosted over a dozen festivals, and these days Love International, Outlook, Defected and Dimensions are just some of the events hosted by Colgan at his waterside Garden Resort. Croatia is now viewed alongside Spain and Germany by people looking to go gig-tripping (holidaying while taking in a festival or gig).
Colgen is celebrating the big 20th anniversary with his first ever knees-up in the Alps, this December transplanting his festival formula to the village of Obertaeur in Austria for the first of what he hopes will be a new series of festivals in the ski town.
A WINTER GARDEN: A NEW FESTIVAL IN THE ALPS
Nick Colgan and his partner Charlotte set up The Garden festival in Croatia in 2006; this year they bring it to the Alps
Tickets are available for this year’s event, which will bring together just 350 people for an initial trial run. Packages include airport transfers and half-board accommodation. The Obertauern by Valamar hotel and venue will host a variety of the parties throughout the week.
Skiing, wellness activities like yoga, and live and electronic music programming is taking place, with sets in après bars on the mountain and in the village. “2025 is a pivotal year for us,” says Colgan. “We yearned for a new project which captures the essence of what we started in Croatia, only this time, instead of sun there’s lots of snow!”
The line-up features local Croatian artists popular at Colgan’s summer events (Zagreb is only a few hours away from Austria by car) as well as bigger international names. Unusually for a snow music festival there is also a decent curation of more sophisticated bits, including pre-dinner live performances in the hotel “paving the way for vibrant nights on the dancefloor”.
Read more: The Austrian ski resort offering great powder without the crowds
THE SKIING
There are more than 100 kilometers of slopes in Obertauern, offering runs for all levels. Most of the hotels have a ski-in ski-out facility and one particular attraction is the ‘Tauernrunde’ 30 kilometre circuit that allows intermediate skiers to tour the best of the area’s natural beauty.
Open November to May, Obertauern has a reputation for being fairly snow-sure. Music lovers new to skiing needn’t worry as 61 per cent of the runs are beginner-level, and there are plenty of nursery slopes (and decent black runs for the experienced). It is one of Austria’s highest non-glacier resorts, with skiing between 1,600m and 2,300m.
THE RESORT
The village of Obertauern has a reputation for lively nightlife, and two new hotels are attracting ski and snowboarders from the nearby competitor regions of Kitzbühel and St. Anton.
The Obertaeurn by Valamar opened in time for the 2023 season and features a rooftop bar with views over the mountain range, as well as a lounge bar with fireplace for nightly live performances during the festival. There is also a spa area with indoor pool and sauna. The Valamar hotel group is partly Croatian owned, with 12 properties in that country, and Colgan, who lives in Croatia, is partnerning with the hotel by serving his Croatian-brewed beer in the Austrian Alps.
“It’s about blending music, nature and connection,” says Colvey, who is gearing up for the event kick-off. “That’s where the magic of A Winter Garden lies: ski, dance, recharge and repeat.”
Twenty years ago Nick Colgan put on a party in Croatia. It went well, helping establish the country’s coastline as the European party capital.
His venue in Tisno has since hosted over 20 festivals, and these days Love International, Outlook, Defected and Dimensions are a handful of the festivals hosted by Colgan at his beautiful waterside Garden Resort. Croatia is now heard of in the same sentence as Spain and Germany for people looking to go gig-tripping (holidaying while taking in a festival)
Colgen is celebrating the anniversary with his first ever knees-up in the Alps. This December he’s transplanting his successful formula to the village of Obertaeur in Austria for the first of what he hopes will be a series of festivals in the ski town.
Read more: The future of the Swiss Alps? A ski holiday in Andermatt
A WINTER GARDEN
Tickets are available for this year’s event, which will bring together just 350 people for an initial trial run. Packages include airport transfers, half-board accommodation and ski passes for the week. The idea is that the Obertauern by Valamar hotel venue will be able to host a variety of different ski festivals throughout the winter season, similar to how his Croatian venue functions during the summer.
Skiing, wellness activities like yoga and top DJs are on the schedule, playing sets both on the mountain in apres bars and in a club in the village. “2025 is a pivotal year for us,” says Colgan. “We yearned for a new project which captures the essence of what we started in Croatia – only this time, instead of sun there’s lots of snow!”
The line-up features local Croatian artists popular at Colgan’s summer events (Zagreb is only a few hours away by car) as well as bigger international names. Unusually for a snow music festival there is also a decent curation of live music, including pre-dinner live performances in the hotel “paving the way for vibrant nights on the dancefloor”.
THE SKIING
There are more than 100 kilometers of slopes in Obertauern, offering runs for all levels from beginner to experienced. Most of the hotels have a ski-in ski-out facility and one particular attraction is the ‘Tauernrunde’ 30 kilometre circuit that allows intermediate skiers to tour the best of the area’s natural beauty.
Open November though to May, Obertauern has a reputation for being fairly snow-sure. Music lovers new to skiing needn’t worry as 61 per cent of the runs are blue or easy, and there are plenty of nursery slopes for the very beginners (and decent black runs for the experienced). Part of what makes it fairly reliably snowy is that the resort is one of Austria’s highest non-glacier resorts, with skiing between 1,600m and 2,300m.
THE RESORT
The village of Obertauern has a reputation for lively nightlife, and two new hotels are attracting ski and snowboarders from the nearby competitor regions of Kitzbühel and St. Anton. The Obertaeurn by Valamar, from the Placeshotel group, opened for the 2023 season and features a rooftop bar with views over the mountain range, lounge bar with fireplace for those nightly live performances during the festival, and a spa area with indoor pool and sauna.
The Kesselspitze Hotel & Chalet, Valamar Collection is also new and features similarly modern spa and wellness facilities. Croatia and this small Austrian town already have a connection: the Valamar hotel group is part Austrian-Croatian owned, with major shareholders heralding from both countries. Colgan is a partner, supplying his Garden Brewery beer brewed in Croatia to the Austrian hotel. In total the group has 12 properties in Croatia ranging from five-star city centre properties to those with a beachfront seaview.
“It’s about blending music, nature and connection,” says Colvey of his new party in the Alps. “That’s where the magic of A Winter Garden lies; ski, dance, recharge and repeat.”
Go to awintergarden.hr