Kronplatz Retires Its Iconic K1+2 Gondola as Construction of Pininfarina-Designed Replacement Begins

One of Kronplatz's most-used lifts is being retired, and its replacement is getting the full Pininfarina treatment.

The K1+2 gondola - long considered one of the South Tyrolean resort's most important mountain connections - has been decommissioned at the close of the 2025/2026 winter season. Dismantling begins in the coming weeks, with construction of a completely new system starting immediately after. According to Kronplatz, some components from the old lift will be repurposed at another location rather than scrapped outright.

Why This Lift Matters

The K1+2 has been the primary route up from Reischach for the majority of skiers visiting Kronplatz. It's not a secondary or supplementary connection - it's the one most people use. That makes this more than a routine infrastructure refresh. Replacing it requires getting the new system right, and Kronplatz appears to be taking that seriously.

The Pininfarina Angle

The design partnership with Pininfarina is the headline element here. The Italian firm is best known for its automotive work - Ferrari, Maserati, Alfa Romeo - but has increasingly moved into architecture and product design. For Kronplatz, the collaboration covers the valley and mountain station buildings as well as the cabin interiors. The aesthetic is described as bright and minimalist, with gold and bronze detailing that ties in visually with the existing LUMEN museum and AlpiNN restaurant at the summit.

Inside the cabins, the seats will be upholstered in South Tyrolean loden fabric sourced from Moessmer, a regional textile manufacturer, with the Kronplatz logo worked into the backrests. It's a deliberate effort to ground a high-design project in local identity rather than making it feel like a generic lift upgrade.

Timeline

The summer season at Kronplatz opens on May 16th via the Kronplatz 2000 cable car, which remains operational while work proceeds on the K1+2 replacement. The resort describes the current period as the "implementation phase" - construction is underway now, with the new system expected to be ready for the 2026/2027 winter season.

For a resort that has invested significantly in its summit architecture and dining experience in recent years, upgrading its main access lift to match that standard makes reasonable sense. Whether the finished product lives up to the Pininfarina billing will become clear when the doors open next winter.