Live saxophone player + wine list + dancing on the bar

There's a saxophonist playing over the house beats. The wine list runs deeper than any après bar has a right to. And at 4pm, someone climbs onto the bar and starts dancing - and management actively encourages it. Basecamp is St Anton's answer for those who want the party but also want options. Premium burgers by day, buzzing après by afternoon, full club mode by night.

What to do there

3 things to do

1. 1 Find the Saxophonist Playing Over the DJ Adventure · Price: moderate

   Basecamp has been St. Anton's most sophisticated party bar since 2000 — a live sax player improvises over house music beats from 3pm while the slope-side terrace fills with powder-drunk skiers.

   Basecamp's signature move is a live saxophonist who improvises over the DJ's house beats — not instead of them, on top of them. The sax plays from 3pm. The wine list is genuinely deep for an après-ski bar: Austrian reds (Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch from Burgenland), champagne, and curated international selections. At Kandaharweg 13 (directly opposite the Galzigbahn base station), arrive by 3:15pm while the first gondola crowds are still trickling down. Order from the wine list — ask the bartender for an Austrian red or champagne by the glass. Claim a terrace spot if weather allows — you'll watch skiers bombing the Gampen runs with a glass in your hand while the sax player warms up inside.

   Backup: If Basecamp is shoulder-to-shoulder, the terrace has heaters and usually has space even when the interior is full. Alternatively, arrive at 3pm on the dot before the main rush.

   Log Memory
2. 2 Witness the Bar Dancing Moment Management Wants You to See Adventure · Free · Optional

   Around 4pm, someone climbs onto the bar and starts dancing. The staff don't stop them — they turn up the music. This is policy, not rebellion.

   Unlike most bars where dancing on the bar gets you ejected, Basecamp management actively encourages it. It typically starts around 4pm when a skier in boots makes the first move and the sax player pivots to whatever keeps the energy up. Stay through the 4pm hour at Basecamp's main interior bar area. Position yourself near the bar (not at it) where you can see both the bar-top and the terrace. When the moment happens — and it will — the whole room shifts. The sax, the DJ, the crowd on the bar, the skiers outside watching from the piste. That's the Basecamp reveal.

   Backup: Weekdays see smaller crowds and more intimate moments. Weekends are more chaotic but the energy peaks higher. If you're uncomfortable with the intensity, the terrace is always calmer — you can watch through the windows.

   Log Memory
3. 3 Order the Best Burger in St. Anton Wine · Price: low

   Basecamp's kitchen is the worst-kept secret on the slope — locals skip the tourist traps on Dorfstraße and ski straight here for a burger that's been consistently called the best in the resort.

   While everyone assumes après bars serve nothing edible, Basecamp does homemade pasta, homemade pastries, and a burger that repeatedly wins the informal title of St. Anton's best. Main courses run €13.90–€19.90. Order food when you order your first drink — kitchen can get backed up after 4pm when the dancing starts. Tell them you want the burger and whatever Austrian red they're pouring by the glass today. The combination of proper food and proper wine here is genuinely unusual for slope-side après.

   Backup: If the kitchen is overwhelmed, the pastries and pasta are faster and equally good. The goal is pairing slope-side food with slope-side wine — both are available here.

   Log Memory

Insider tips

• Happy hour 3:30-4:30pm is 30% off - time your arrival

• The wine list is extensive for an après bar - ask for Austrian reds

• Opens later than MooserWirt/KK - come here as your second stop