Bible School Course Information

Here is your mailing address and telephone number during the course:

Your Name

Tauernhof

Coburgstrasse 50

A-8970 Schladming

Austria

Student Phone: 0043-3687-24190 (dial 011-43-3687-24190 from North America)

Office Phone: 0043-3687-22294 (dial 011-43-3687-22294 from North America)

Phone calls for you can be received during our office hours (CET) only. 

Please note the time difference, for example Austria is 6 hours ahead of Toronto, and 9 hours ahead of Seattle.

The Course Fees include: Tuition, accommodation, meals, tourist tax, weekly gym usage, class picture, a T-shirt, the use of washing machines, tumble dryer, washing powder (one load per week) and various social activities (personal Saturday outings are not included).

There is a room deposit of 50 Euros included in the course fee which will be refunded at the end of the course if you leave your room neat and tidy.

If you have not yet paid your full balance, please do so as soon as possible and in no event later than the first week of Bible School.

There are 2 possible ways to pay:

1. Bank Transfer: Please use the Account Number 17400007708 at Tauernhof’s bank “Steiermärkische Sparkasse”, A-8970 Schladming, Austria (International Bank Account ‘IBAN’: AT25 2081 5174 0000 7708, Bank Identifier Code ‘BIC’: STSPAT2G).

2. Visa/MasterCard: It is possible to pay online by Visa or MasterCard. Please see the payment window that you can access under Payments and ensure that you give details of the course you are attending as the “order number”. It is possible to select “English” as the language by clicking on the British flag at the top right.

You must have your own health and accident insurance coverage and you must bring a copy of your current insurance card or similar evidence with you. If you require medical treatment while you are in Austria, then (unless you are a European) you will have to pay when you have the treatment and then make a claim from your insurance provider.

Since many insurance companies do not cover rescue and rescue costs, we recommend sport and accident insurance (including helicopter rescue) that covers these costs.

For example: OEAV (Austrian Alpine Association), DAV (German Alpine Association)

If your families and friends intend to send you a package during your stay in Europe, they should know and take into consideration the following:

During the past years, the Austrian Government has changed their policies and regulations pertaining to customs. This has had enormous implications for our Bible School students, as the receiving of packages from outside the EU-area is now subject to the payment of custom fees. This includes both simple care packages from home as well as the sending of personal luggage to Tauernhof prior to the beginning of the semester. Students will have to pay a customs fee upon receiving the packages/goods from the delivery service. The fees are absurdly high and, in combination with regular postage, often times defeat the purpose of sending a package after all. Therefore, we highly encourage students and their families from outside the EU, to refrain from sending packages to Tauernhof Bible School. As mentioned above, this includes sending luggage to Tauernhof ahead of time. Unless packages and/or luggage is sent from within the EU, customs fees are due. Please note that Postcards, Letters and/or regular mail is not subject to customs fees.

Please do not plan to leave Tauernhof before the conclusion of the course.

Please note that it is not possible to stay at Tauernhof before or after the dates of the course. If you arrive earlier in Schladming or wish to stay in Schladming after the course has ended, you must arrange your own lodging at a guesthouse or hotel in town (please contact the tourist information).

You will need to bring the Acceptance Letter issued to you and your passport (make sure it is valid for the duration of your stay).

If you don’t stay longer than 90 days in Europe, and have no plans to return to Europe in the next 6 months after leaving Europe, you don’t need a Visa. Please note that if you are a non-European national, you may only spend a total of 90 days in Europe without a visa in any given 6 month period.

This does not apply for people from Asia and Africa who will always need a visa for the duration of the time in Europe.

ATTENTION: Due to recent local authority changes it is no longer possible for Tauernhof to assist you in applying for a visa from Austria unless you are attending courses that finish six months after they started. That means you will have to contact the Austrian Foreign Ministry in your home country and apply for a visa there before you travel to Austria!

Please refer to the FAQ’s page on our website for further information. Schladming is located about 90 kilometres (55 miles) southeast of Salzburg, in the heart of the Alps of central Austria.

Flying: The nearest airport is Salzburg. From the airport take bus # 2 to the main train station “Hauptbahnhof” (travel time approx. 20 minutes, frequency: every 15 minutes).

Then follow the train directions below. From North America cheaper flights may be available to London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich or Vienna. From all of these cities there are train connections to Schladming (see Austrian or German Railway Websites).

Train: Schladming is easily accessible by train from anywhere in Europe. From Salzburg “Hauptbahnhof” take any train going towards Graz, Austria. It will stop in Schladming but you may have to switch trains in Bischofshofen which is approx. 30 minutes after Salzburg. There are several train connections from Salzburg to Schladming available each day (see Austrian or German Railway Websites).

Travel time from Salzburg is approx. 1.5 hours, Munich approx. 4 hours, and Vienna approx. 5 hours. When you arrive in Schladming, you can call us (just dial 22294 from the phone booth in front of the station) and we will pick you up if it is the first day of the course. Alternatively, you can walk – approx. 15 minutes: turn left outside the train station, and walk into town. Tauernhof is located by the base station of the Planai ski area gondola “Planai Bahn”, right next to the “Charly Kahr” ski and sport shop. Please see the FAQ’s page on our website for a map with the directions to Tauernhof marked on it.

If you are making any additional travel plans prior or subsequent to the course, or between if you are attending consecutive courses at more than one European Torchbearers’ School, you may want to purchase a Eurail pass before coming, or if you are under 26, you may buy an Inter-Rail pass, available at most European train stations. An International Student Identification Card and an International Youth Hostel Card are also advisable.

Because of limited space, and also for traveling convenience, we suggest that you bring along only what is essential. Here is information to help you know what to bring.

Clothing: Located in the Austrian Alps, Tauernhof experiences a typical temperate and mountain climate, with a fair degree of temperature variation and precipitation.

Therefore you should bring some warm clothing for both indoors and outdoors. Please see www.meoweather.com for historical weather trends. We suggest that you bring easy-care clothes that may be put in a tumble dryer. You can label your clothes for easier identification. Our dress standards require students to maintain a general neatness in appearance. Neat clothing should be worn for lectures, meals, outreaches, and other activities.

For meetings and meals on Sunday students are expected to dress up appropriately . Bring along some clothes suitable for practical work, both outdoors and indoors. For the fitness plan and recreation you should also bring running shoes, shorts, a swim suit, a towel if you plan to use the sauna. A bathrobe and slippers are also advisable, and hiking boots are highly recommended.

Other: You must have a good English Bible (a translation such as NASB, NIV, ESV or similar, not a paraphrase) as well as pens for lecture notes and assignments. Tauernhof has concordances, commentaries and Bible dictionaries. We encourage you to bring your personal PC-notebook/laptop for taking notes during lectures. Also be sure to bring towels and toiletries (bedding is provided). Please note that the electrical current in Austria is 220 Volts A.C. Therefore if you intend to bring any electrical appliances, you may need to bring a voltage converter as well as an adaptor plug. We encourage you to bring along any portable musical instrument that you play. For days where there is no lunch, we recommend you bring along a small lunchbox (Brotdose). 

Because food intolerances are unfortunately on the increase, we cannot accommodate all food requests for reasons of space and staff. If required, it is only possible to prepare vegetarian, gluten-free and lactose-free meals. We would like to point out that all dishes may contain traces of gluten and lactose.

In the event of cancellation, the following terms and conditions apply: In the event of withdrawal, the deposit of € 300 is forfeited. Up to 1 month before the day of arrival, 40% of the leisure price will be charged. Up to 1 week before the day of arrival, 70% of the leisure price will be charged. In the last week before the day of arrival, 90% of the leisure price is due.

We therefore recommend travel cancellation insurance. (e.g .: ADAC.de; Europäische.at, Reiseversicherung.de, ÖAMTC.at)