Zermatt provides for a unique nature experience! Mountains, glaciers, larch forests, flowers, mountain lakes and game animals are to discover. It is a paradise for skiers with snow guaranteed even in summer. Zermatt's wind-protected southern location, embraces three skiing areas that enjoy superb snow conditions and the longest skiing season in the Alps. Four summits are accessible by mountain railways and Zermatt is excellent for family vacations!
Gornergrat Mountain
Discover a top-class natural paradise: the Gornergrat Bahn takes you from Zermatt up the 3089 m high Gornergrat. Through aromatic stone pine and larch forests and across alpine meadows in summer time full of flowers and in winter time deaply snow-capped you arrive in the midst of 29 snow and ice-covered four-thousand-meter-high mountains.
Matterhorn
glacier paradise (3'883 m / 12'736 ft)
The
Matterhorn Glacier Paradise is the highest sightseeing point in
Europe and accessible by cableway! There is a yellow-green electric
bus leaving at the entrance of Zermatt, if arrival by shuttle bus
from Täsch or from the train station in Zermatt, to the bottom
station of the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise.
Rothorn
Paradise «Best View of the Matterhorn»
The bottom station of Rothorn Paradise is about five walking minutes
away from the train station or the entrance of Zermatt. The name
of the middle station on your way to Rothorn is called Sunnegga,
which means «sunny corner». A gondola for four people
takes you from Sunnegga to Blauherd (2'588 m) From there a panoramic
cable car takes you up to Rothorn (3'100 m) and its lovely mountain
restaurant with a beautiful terrace.
Hiking around Zermatt
For the descent from Gornergrat to the Bärghüs Grünsee
you can take the same trail going over Riffelberg and Riffelalp
in the direction of Grünsee or you can take the direct but
steeper trail from Gornergrat over "Kelle" to Bärghüs
Grünsee. From here you can hike to Findeln and Sunnegga.
City Excursions
Montreux - on Lake Geneva
Full-day excursion by rail. This attractive excursion crosses the
"border" between German and French-speaking Switzerland.
The trip runs from Zermatt down the Matter Valley to Visp and from
there along the Rhone River to Lake Geneva. Can be combined with
wine-tasting in Switzerland's largest wine-growing region.
Skiing/Snowboarding
The
394 km of ski runs include slopes ranging from the simplest to the
most challenging. Easy access is provided by an extensive network
of 74 transport facilities, with high-capacity cableways, mountain
railways and ski-lifts (incl. connection to Cervinia, Italy) capable
of conveying up to 75,180 passengers an hour.
Ski Schools
175 - 200 ski instructors are available to teach all levels including
beginners and advanced skiers
Snowboarding
Zermatt is excellent for snowboarding. There are many halfpipes
available and getting to them is easy since many of the transport
facilities are cable railways and chair lifts.
Curling
Curling is available on 10 different curling rinks. Training, matches
or tournaments daily.
Ice Skating
Zermatt offers Ice Skating on natural ice as well as on artificial
ice.
Cross-Country
Skiing
Zermatt offers 7 km of cross-country slopes
Paragliding
School & Taxi Flights
Flights with a paragliders. Start on skis and land in Zermatt...
Other winter activities include ice climbing, indoor climbing, tennis, sleigh rides, snow-bikes, squash, swimming, tobogganing, twenty saunas, 1 salt water swimming pool, ice driving.
Summer Sports
Hiking
Zermatt has many opportunities for hiking. There are numerous
well-marked footpaths and walks (400 km in all) which will take
you through pine-scented mountain forests, to the shores of calm
Alpine lakes and to the ice-blue glaciers. Mountain railways make
it easy to reach the high altitude rambling areas. There are many
mountain cabins and restaurants ready to offer a warm welcome and
a leisurely rest.
Mountain
Climbing
Alpine tourism was the beginning of Zermatt's development. Situated
at the foot of the Matterhorn and surrounded by 38 fourthousend-meter
high mountains, Zermatt has always been the beloved goal for mountain
climbers from all over the world. The Zermatt Alpine Center organizes
training sessions, day tours, glacier walks every day, while for
longer tours there are 80 state-registered mountain guides available
for our guests.
Summer Skiing
Summer Skiing is possible too, on the everlasting glacial snow at
the foot of the Matterhorn, between 2900 and 3900 meters a.s.l.
in the superb mountain scenery of Zermatt. A snowy expanse free
from crowds, with 6 ski-lifts and 21 km of well-marked and safe
pistes, among them a downhill run of 7 km with a 999 m difference
in altitude.
Golf
The Matterhorn Golf Club's golf course at Randa-Täsch is located
on the valley floor between the two villages of Randa and Täsch
at 1400 m above sea level and very close to the international resort
of Zermatt. The golf course has been laid out on two separate pieces
of land on either side of the River Vispa. The course is almost
level and easy to walk around. A former area of marsh has been transformed
into a lake that contains an unique island green. The Scottish golf
course architect John Chilver-Stainer planned the 21-hectare golf
course to blend in with the natural landscape. It may be extended
to an 18-hole golf course.
Other summer activities indclude Glacier excursions, a Paragliding school & taxi flights, tennis, squash, mountain biking, bowling and mule trekking.
Entertainment
Under the careful direction of many of Zermatt's hotels, you will
be able to enjoy a variety of traditional Swiss foods, some with
live folklore music. Cheese and meat fondues are featured in many
restaurants and are a must. Zermatt also offers superb bars featuring
memorable cocktails and exciting night-life.
Shopping
With many shops dedicated to quality and style, Zermatt is guaranteed
to have something to please even the most discerning shopper.
Many souvenir boutiques with sections dedicated to the famous Swiss watches and knives; and the latest creations of folk art can be found in Zermatt. After shopping have a cup of coffee or tea at one of the many traditional cake cafes in town.
Zermatt Marathon in July
A marathon from St. Niklaus (1116 m above sea-level) to the Riffelberg
(2582 m above sea-level).
Golf Tournament,
Matterhorn
Eagle-Cup in August
This Alpine-Golf competition is taking place in the Gornergrat area
above Zermatt between 2'500 m and 2'800 m. On natural alpine meadows
is a 9 hole stroke-play golf course marked without greens and fairways.
(Total length: of 3,5 km).
Link to other current Zermatt events
The new Matterhorn Museum (opening in Dec. 06)
Zermatt can now lay claim to one more major attraction: the new Matterhorn Museum is telling the exciting story of the Matterhorn - from its origins in Africa and the terribly dramatic first ascent to the present day. However, it also tells the story of Zermatt, the small farming village that became an internationally famous health resort.
Alpine Museum
On the ground-floor the visitor finds a unique collection of documents
which bears witness to the heroic first ascents of the mountains
around Zermatt beginning with the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise which
was first climbed by the scientist H.B. de Saussure from Geneva
in 1792, and ending with the triumphal and tragic first ascent of
the Matterhorn on 14th July 1865.
Further exhibits on the ground floor draw the visitor's attention
to the fact that few places in the Alps have such a rich variety
of different rock types in such a small area as Zermatt. This section,
devoted to natural history, also has a wonderful collection of butterflies
found in the local area, and representations and exhibits of alpine
flora and fauna.
The rooms on the top floor are devoted to the history of life in
the Alps. Numerous artefacts and utensils provide insights into
everything from the simple life of alpine farmers to the equipment
of the first skiers. The main attraction is a fully equipped kitchen
as it would have appeared around 1770 the beginning of alpine tourism.