Love Obertauern? Where to go next for the height, the snow or a bigger map

Livigno is the closest match to Obertauern we measure, anywhere, and it keeps the thing Obertauern is built on. The village sits at 1,816 metres, 76 above Obertauern's, and every kilometre of piste we measure is at or above 1,800 metres, the joint highest share of the 55 resorts we cover. The skiing reaches 2,767 metres, measured, 463 higher, so it is snow sure on our measure. The season is the same, late November to May.

The size is close, too. We measure 80.9 kilometres around Livigno, 7 more than around Obertauern, and its 115 kilometre area is a figure we trust. But it comes in two sectors facing each other across the valley with no lift between them, so there is no loop.

The skiing is redder and steeper. Fifty nine percent of the piste is red, and there are 24.6 kilometres of blue and easier against Obertauern's 40.9. Forty percent of the piste is steeper than one in four, the fifth highest share of the 55 we cover, against 29, and 25 percent is gentler than 15 percent, against 36. Italian grades run kinder than Austrian ones on average, so go by those shares. For a strong skier there is more black, 8.9 kilometres against 4, more than twice, though it averages 33.2 percent against your 37.8.

The mood changes as well. We class Livigno as lively, high and lively by our read, and duty free and value are on its list of what it does best. The nearest airports are Bergamo or Innsbruck.

If Obertauern's long season is what you love, Hintertux takes it as far as it goes. Its glacier is open every day of the year, and it stays in Austria. It is snowy and no frills by our read, close in feel to Obertauern's high and snowy. Ninety six percent of the piste we measure is at or above 1,800 metres, the highest share of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover, and the skiing reaches 3,239 metres, measured, 935 above Obertauern's top. Snow sure on our measure.

The village is lower, at 1,500 metres, 240 below Obertauern's, so the height is up the hill rather than at the door. The glacier area itself is 62 kilometres, and we measure 110.2 kilometres of piste around the village against Obertauern's 73.7. The bigger Zillertal figures you will see quoted either need a bus or count some slopes twice.

The trade is the easy end and the hard end. Hintertux's blues average 19.3 percent, the steepest of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover and the second steepest of the 55 we cover, against your 14.5. Only 28 percent of the piste is gentler than 15 percent, against 36. And there are 2.9 kilometres of black, the second least of the 55 we cover, against your 4. It is a red mountain: 59 percent of what we measure is red. A nervous skier who was happy on Obertauern's blues will find these steeper.

Sestriere keeps the high village and the easy cruising, and more than doubles the skiing. The village is at 2,035 metres, the fourth highest of the 55 resorts we cover and 295 above Obertauern's. Ninety one percent of the piste is at or above 1,800 metres, up to 2,788, measured, 484 higher than Obertauern's top, so it is snow sure on our measure. It is high and practical by our read, a purpose built resort, and snow and a big area are both on its list.

The gain is room. We measure 160 kilometres of piste around Sestriere, the most of the 10 Italian resorts we cover and more than twice Obertauern's 73.7. There are 17.9 kilometres of black, more than four times your 4, and 10.8 kilometres of marked itinerary where Obertauern has none, the most of any Italian resort we cover in both cases. The area it sits in, the Milky Way, is bigger again, though the figure usually quoted for it is not one we trust enough to print.

And it is gentle where Obertauern is gentle. The blues average 12.0 percent, the second gentlest of the 55 we cover, against your 14.5, and 35 percent of the piste is gentler than 15 percent, against 36. The steep share is all but the same, 30 percent against 29. The difference is in the middle: 58 percent of the piste is red, 92 kilometres of it against your 28.9.

The trade is the calendar and the country. Sestriere's season runs December to April, shorter at both ends than Obertauern's late November to May, and the nearest airport is Turin.

Zürs is the near twin you might not expect. Its village is at 1,720 metres, 20 below Obertauern's and the second highest of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover. We measure 74.9 kilometres of piste around it, against Obertauern's 73.7. The skiing reaches 2,440 metres, measured, 136 higher, and 74 percent of the piste is at or above 1,800 metres. That top sits within 60 metres of our snow sure line, and on Zürs we have not made the call either way.

What Zürs adds is the ground between the pistes. It has 40.2 kilometres of marked off piste itinerary, the fourth most of the 55 resorts we cover, where Obertauern has none. If your strong skiers have run out of Obertauern's 4 kilometres of black by Tuesday, this is the answer. The Arlberg's total size is not classified in our data, so the measured figure is the fair comparison.

The trade is the gentle ground and the mood. Only 21 percent of Zürs's piste is gentler than 15 percent, the smallest share of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover, against Obertauern's 36, and there are 31.3 kilometres of blue and easier against 40.9. We class Zürs as upmarket and quiet, exclusive by our read. The season is December to April, and the nearest airports are Innsbruck or Zurich.