Where can I see the matterhorn?
If hiking with matter horn views, scenic train Journeys, epic cable car rides and some of the best food in Switzerland. Sounds like fun to you. Therefore, on your subsequent vacation to Switzerland, you won’t want to miss Zermatt. However, if you’re not prepared, traveling to Zermatt might be challenging.
How do I get to Zermatt?
Today we’re answering your biggest question to make you Zermatt ready.
1. Reason people visit Zermatt – Zermatt Travel Guide
The number one reason people visit Zermatt is to see the Matterhorn. The matterhorn is the most photographed mountain in the world. Its Fame dates back to 1865,when there was a competition to determine who could climb the massive peak the fastest. Spoiler alert: the Matterhorn Museum offers further information about the tragic conclusion of that story. But ever since then, it’s been the center of attention for tourists and Mountaineers alike.
So, here’s our first insider tip. You don’t have to go way up in the mountains to see the matter horn. You can get views of it from all over the village. Especially if you walk to the far end of town or along the river. Now, you might be visiting just to see the most recognized peak in the world. But there’s a whole lot more to Zermatt.
When there was a competition to determine who could climb the massive peak the fastest. If you follow the meet the Sheep trail, you can even pet them and meet their shepherdess. Which is one of my personal favorite highlights from our time in Zermatt.
Another reason visitors come is to witness the lovable and amiable blacknose sheep. Needless to mention that edelweiss grows here organically in abundance and of course. This is a paradise for mountain adventures, which we’ll talk more about later and we unpack even deeper in our 3-Day Guide to Zermatt. But first things first.
How do you get to Zermatt?
Train travel times are as follows: 3.5 hours from Zurich Airport, approximately 4 hours from Geneva Airport, nearly 4 hours from Basel Airport, and 3.5 hours from Milan’s major train station, Italy.we live near Interlaken, which is about to 2 hour and 15 minutes away by train as well.
2. Insider Tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
Is that you cannot drive to Zermatt. you can drive your car as far As Tasch, which is a village just 5 km from Zermatt. For about 16 CHF per day, you may park your car in the enormous parking garage there. and proceed the remaining distance to Zermatt via rail. The trip takes roughly 15 minutes, and the train runs every 20 minutes.
which means that your first steps in Zermatt are going to be in the Zermatt train station, which is a pretty good starting point for understanding where things are located. so, let’s go show you around the village. just outside of the train station is the main Square where you’ll find the tourism office a few convenient shops like a pharmacy and a mini market.
This is probably where you’ll see a bunch of e taxis and maybe hor drawn carriages too. and that’s because Zermatt is a carfree village and it’s basically been that way its entire existence. the first electric vehicle didn’t come here until the 1940s, and they still use electric vehicles today to protect the valley against pollution.
So even though zeron is a carfree village, there are still plenty of vehicles here threatening to run you over. Zermatt is very walkable, but depending on where your lodging is, you may not want to drag your suitcase through the streets. so that’s where you have three options e-buses, e taxis or our next Insider tip: see if your hotel has a shuttle.
3. Insider Tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
Many of them offer this service to their guests and you can reserve it in advance. when you get to the train station, you can just come here, call the hotel, and they’ll come pick you up.In fact, we were picked up in a Hors drawn carriage by one of the hotels we stayed at. Being in a carriage and traveling across a busy pedestrian street seemed incredibly opulent, but also a little strange.
Before we start walking down the main street. We wanted to point out that the gornetgrat railway station is literally across the street. A 30-minute scenic train ride takes you up to gagrat where you have a stunning view of 29 mountain peaks over 4,000 Meters, endless sparkling glaciers, and of course. The majority of the retailers and eateries are located on the Matterhorn Bahnhofstrasse; numerous lodging options and supermarkets can be found a short distance from this thoroughfare.
Remember that there are still electric cars on the street. Even though it is a pedestrian one and please try not to be that really. Oblivious tourist walking in the middle of the road and blocking all the traffic behind you. Okay, thanks. after about 7 Minutes you’ll reach the intersection of bahnhofstrasse and kirchstrasse.
This is basically the center of town right beside the matron museum, which, as we mentioned earlier, is where you can learn about the history of mountaineering on the Matterhorn and the rise of tourism in Zermatt. From here, Bahnhofstrasse turns into oberdorfstrasse.
There are fewer eateries, fewer stores, and more understated hotel alternatives as you stroll.
Where else should I go other than Glacier Paradise?
This is definitely a quieter part of town that leads down to the river and directly to one of the main attractions, Glacier Paradise. This is the valley station for the series of gondolas and cable cars that eventually lead you all the way up to Matterhorn Glacier Paradise. It’s just a 12-minute walk from the center of town or a 20-minute walk from the center of town or a 20-minute walk from the Zermatt train station.
In case you were unaware. Glacier Paradise is the highest cable car station in Europe, offering year-round skiing and walking beneath glaciers.
4. Insider Tips – Zermatt Travel Guide
Glacier Paradise is not available through the SBB mobile app. Believe me, the first time I looked for it, I made the same error! instead, type in “Klein Matterhorn” and you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for since that is the name of the actual Peak where Glacier Paradise is located. You’ll notice that we crossed the water to get over to the station.And that river is the Vispa River, which divides Zermatt into two main halves and essentially runs through the entire town.
On both sides of the river, the community is almost entirely covered in highways. at this point, you’re at the far end of the village. and like we mentioned earlier, there are three, or maybe four ways if you count walking, that you can get around the village. so, in addition to hotel, shuttles, and taxis, there are also e-buses.
5. Insider tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
The public e -buses are free. you don’t need a ticket or a pass to drive them. You can just hop on! and they run every 8 to 20 minutes, depending on the location of the Stop and the time of day. There are two distinct bus lines that stop at all of the main locations in the town, including the Sunnegga-Rothorn station. The Zermatt train station, the Gornergrat railway station, the glacier Paradise station, and the Zermatt train station. Along the way you’ll cross under kirchstrasse, Which we mentioned earlier, that intersects with Bahnofstrasse in the center of town.
Should the need arise, there is an elevator and a set of steps. However, if you continue to stroll alongside the river, you will ultimately reach the Sunnegga-Rothorn station. It took us 15 minutes to walk from the glacier Paradise cable car station here to the Rothorn station. Now, you could also get here in just 5 minutes if you take the bus. And riding up this Transportation line into the mountains takes you to the Famous Five Lakes hike and the foodie Paradise of Findeln.
We have now essentially sketched the two sides of a very long triangle. Which you might finish by crossing the river again and hiking for seven minutes to arrive at the main square in front of the Zermatt train station. Where our brief village tour began. For context, Google Maps says this entire walk is just under 1.8 miles and would take about 45 minutes.
While knowing the locations of the major sites is quite useful, knowing where to stay is much more crucial. Of course, lodging near the town center makes it very easy to get to restaurants and transit, but it is also the most congested and touristy area.
Staying at the end of The Village near the glacier Paradise station is a lot quieter, although you’re not as close to many of the other restaurants and attractions. On the other side of the river is also quiet and has a lot of potential lodging options and restaurants, but you’ll have to walk a bit farther in order to reach the main sides and stations.
However, this is most likely our preferred location for lodging. You might also think about Randa, which is 20 minutes away by train, or aasch, which is 15 minutes away by train from Zermatt. However, we think that Zermatt offers a ton of much more convenient hotel possibilities. The only thing that might change our minds would be if the hotel was far less expensive.
But when we personally travel Switzerland like our trip to Zermatt right now and want to find the best prices on Swiss hotels, we use Hotel card.You can save up to 50% per night with it. For example, on our last trip to Zermatt, seven nights in hotels using Hotel card was actually cheaper than an entire week booked on Airbnb! Checking out Hotel card before your vacation to Zermatt can be worthwhile as we saved an average of 83 CHF per night.
6. Insider Tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
When’s the best time of year to visit?
You’ll also need to consider when to visit Zermatt. Now, theoretically, you can come any time of year. Although we realize that most of you are intending to visit in the summer, it’s an ideal vacation in the winter. Moreover, we believe that mid-June through early-October is the ideal period to visit Zermatt.
Almost everything is open during this time of year, including mountain restaurants, cable cars, hiking routes, etc. Of course, the crowds and the prices will be higher during this season.
But be careful about visiting during shoulder season. Outside of June, July in August (which is the true summer season), some destinations might be unreachable.
This is either because the transportation lines are closed or because of snow. However, the fact that Glacier Paradise and Gornergrat are accessible all year round is a welcome relief.
7. Insider tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
Zermatt uses a dynamic pricing model for tickets, passes and some activity I based on the time of year.That basically means that the cost varies according on the time of year you arrive. While we don’t advise arranging your vacation only around the time when tickets are at their lowest price, it’s something to consider. Fine. So far, we’ve covered a lot! When to go, where to stay, and how to navigate the town.
8. Insider Tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
How long should I stay?
Now let’s talk about how long to stay. We’ve heard from so many Travelers who are planning short day trips or overnight stays to Zermatt. But we think three full days is the perfect amount of time to spend here. For this reason, our 3-day Zermatt guide was created.
There’s just so much to see here, and we think you can enjoy the highlights and a variety of experiences without going at a frenetic Pace if you give yourself three full days.
plus, shorter trips are always more expensive than longer ones at least in terms of cost per day. And you want to give yourself every possibility of having full Sunshine so you can enjoy those stunning matter horn views you’re surely coming for.
In terms of climate, Zermatt has the most sunshine in all of Switzerland. I love Sunshine, so this makes me really happy. In fact, we read that 62% of days in Zermatt are bright and sunny, and Sunnegga,one of the mountain destinations here, literally translates to” Sun corner”.
9. Insider Tip – Zermatt Travel Guide
So, give yourself 3 days, and while it won’t guarantee you those matter horn views you crave, it’ll give you a reasonable chance. Many travelers come to us asking for guidance regarding altitude sickness. We’re originally from Tennessee, specifically the Nashville area, which sits just above sea level. So, we totally understand this concern. The peak of the matter horn sits at nearly 14,700 feet.
And while you’re unlikely to go to the top, you might be concerned about the effects of altitude.
After all, the village of Zermatt itself sits just over a mile high. In fact, Gornergrat and Rothorn Horn are just over 10,000 feet, and glaci Paradise is almost 12,800 feet compared to visiting the jungfrau Regin. Where we currently live, all of these Peaks are higher than the schilthorn, and Glacier Paradise is 1,000 feet higher than jungfraujoch! So our next Insider tip is actually a collection of five tips to help you beat the altitude.
10. Insider Tips – Zermatt Travel Guide
Tip Number One:
Don’t do your highest elevation activities on your very first day, especially if you just came from sea level. Spend some time in the village or lower in the mountains to help you acclimate.
Tip Number Two :
Alternate higher altitude days with lower altitude days. It’s amazing how Just One recovery day can give you an extra energy boost.
Tip Number Three :
Give yourself time to rest after going up in elevation. You might find that you’re sleepier than usual, and that is totally normal. The air is thinner, which means less oxygen, and therefore your body has to work harder than it does at lower elevations.
Tip number four:
At higher elevations, if you begin to feel uneasy, take a seat and eat something high in carbohydrates or sugar. This provides a brief burst of energy for your body.It’s also a fantastic justification for consuming more Swiss chocolate.
Tip number five:
If you’re anxious about altitude concerns talk with your doctor before your trip.We are not medical professionals and this advice is just purely from our experience. Another question we get asked all the time is what are the can’t miss attractions in Zermatt? like, is Glacier Paradise worth it?
what about the five leges hike?
For just these reasons, we developed our 3-day Zermatt guide. It’s a done for you itinerary with minute by minute recommendations for how to spend your time in Zermatt. Whether you’re just here to see the matter horn, want to do some hiking, or are ready to indulge in the best culinary Village of the Alps. Our guide is chalk full of bonuses like our favorite restaurants. How to reach Zermatt with the glacier Express?
The best viewpoints in town, and a few other bonuses so you’ll just have to wait and see.
Check out our 3-day guide to Zermatt, please.
Is there a train pass for Zermatt?
We’re on the subject of excursions up into the mountains. You’re probably wondering what kind of train pass options. There are and Zermatt offers two possibilities the peak pass is the main pass for Zermatt and it’s available year-round as a one-day pass or all the way up to one month. It goes up into the mountains and covers every gondola, cable car, and train line.
The second is a unique ticket known as the peak2peak ticket. And the second is actually a special ticket called the peak2peak ticket. It’s only available for about a month and a half in the peak summer season, but it could save you some money. If you plan to visit Gornergrat and Glacier Paradise on the same day.
Which we don’t recommend but we wanted to tell you about the option anyway but you know we always have Insider tips to maximize your transportation in Switzerland. And this tip is that the half Fair card is almost always the best choice when you visit Zermatt.
We give all the details as well as when you should consider the other two options in our 3-day guide deser dermont. But most of you will see more than just Thurmont on your next trip to Switzerland. So watch this next to learn 50 plus things to know before your Swiss vacation and check out our Swiss. Travel guides to help you maximize your experiences minimize your planning time and travel with confidence and we’ll see you in Switzerland.
