It’s safe to say that visiting the Matterhorn in Switzerland is on just about everyone’s bucket list. It’s natural pyramid shape mountain and other worldly appearance is like something out of a dream.
We decided to visit the Matterhorn after a perfect day spent in Zermatt, so that we could relax and take our time to enjoy the experience.
Interesting Fact about Matterhorn:
Toblerone chocolate was inspired by the triangular shape of the Matterhorn’s distinctive profile.
I was beyond excited to finally arrive in Zermatt, Switzerland for a few reasons: #1 – to see the famous Matterhorn, #2 – to touch the snow for the first time, #3 – you don’t need any more reasons. The most memorable part? My first Matterhorn viewing. The area has only 6,000 locals but come winter and summer peak times, this place lights up with tourists to bask in wintery mix and fresh mountain air. What surprised me the most about this slice of paradise was that it’s a car-free city. The only “cars” allowed are small electric buggies used by hotels for transport purposes. They have done this to prevent air pollution, which could obscure the view of the Matterhorn.
Zermatt is the closest town to the Matterhorn and is used by just about everyone visiting Matterhorn as a starting point. However, there are no cars permitted in Zermatt. So, we drove to Tasch, stayed overnight and parked at our hotel in Tasch. If you are going to stay in Zermatt, you can park your car at a special station called Matterhorn Terminal Tasch. When we arrived at the station, we didn’t see the typical Swiss train ticket machine, but there is a ticket counter staffed by people who speak English. We purchased our tickets and headed to the platform for the train to Zermatt. The Tasch train station had a specific “shuttle” train that only runs from Tasch to Zermatt and back, and the journey is very quick, only 12 minutes.
The train arrived in Zermatt around 9:10am and we only had to walk across the street to the Gornegrat Bahn train station to get our tickets and hop on the train. Gornergrat Bahn is the highest open-air railway in Europe. After boarding, we were really glad we chose to take the train. It is very comfortable and had huge windows so you could really enjoy the scenery on the trip up the mountain. We snagged seats on the right side of the train, we had such a spectacular view of the Matterhorn on our right side! The most fun part, we were able to see the Matterhorn for most of our journey up the mountain.
We found ourselves compulsively snapping photos all the way up, as the extraordinary shape of the Matterhorn loomed closer and closer. But the best view, of course, is at the very top. There were several stops along the way between Zermatt and Gornergrat and a lot of people got on and off the train along the way because there are a ton of beautiful hiking trails on the mountain. There were also few restaurants and hotels at the stops. After about 30 minutes, we arrived at Gornergrat and disembarked.
The view at Gornergrat was absolutely stunning! Not only we could see the Matterhorn, but we could also see several mountains and glaciers surrounding it. Considering Gornergrat is well over 3,089 meters, there were several different viewpoints at Gornergrat. Where we could see spectacular sight of not only the iconic Matterhorn, but the panoramic views of almost 30 Alpine peaks surrounding it. We spent about half day at Gornergrat and another two hours at Rotenboden, one station below Gornergrat before catching the train to head back to Zermatt.
We were really lucky that we had such a clear view of the Matterhorn. I think the trick was that we arrived in the morning before the clouds moved in. We were also lucky that while there were plenty of people in Zermatt, it wasn’t too crowded.
Helpful Tips:
- Try to make the earliest train to Gornergrat. The sky tends to be beautiful and clear in the morning with more chance of fog in the afternoon.
- Sit on the right side on the way up the mountain, to enjoy the best views of the Matterhorn and down to the valleys.
- Wear warm clothes and sturdy shoes! While I wore Sketcher’s sport shoe because that’s all I had with me, I would recommend any shoes with good traction such as hiking shoes because there was a bit of walking on dirt and the ice is slippery.
- In case you need to stay connected with the world, there is a free internet in the Zermatt tourist office right next to the central station. If that fails, buy hot chocolate from McDonalds and use the Wifi there.
- If you are a flexible traveler and there’s no strict schedule to follow, it is not necessary to buy the tickets online in advance. We bought all the tickets at the counter.
As much as admire the Matterhorn natural landscape, i can feel how challenging it is to climb the mountain. The challenge of the Matterhorn is not so much the climb up, but rather the descent. Over 500 people have died climbing or descending the mountain making it one of the deadliest peaks in the world. That’s double the number who have died on Everest. Matterhorn’s first accent were by Englishman. It was a dramatic affair as four other members of the roped team were killed on the descent when one slipped and pulled other three with him down. The three survivors were later accused of having cut the rope below to ensure that they were not dragged down with the others, and it’s a mystery that’s still talked about today.
How to Reach Zermatt from Täsch
2 options to get to Zermatt from Täsch:
By car: Drive to Täsch, then take a short train ride to Zermatt. In Täsch, park your car at Matterhorn Terminal Täsch located next to the train station. The parking rate is about 16 CHF per day. Alternatively, park your car if you are staying in any Täsch hotel. Buy return train tickets to Zermatt, about 16.40 CHF/adult, 8.20 CHF/child and children under 6 free.
By transit: Simply ride the train directly to Zermatt. You don’t need to change train in Täsch.
Matterhorn How to Get There
By train: Buy return train tickets to Gornergrat from Zermatt, at the Gornergrat Bahn station. It is 90 CHF/adult, 45 CHF/child and children under 6 free.
How Much and Where to Buy the Ticket to Zermatt and Gornergrat
You can always refer to Zermatt Matterhorn Official Website and Gornergrat Bahn Official Website for the price updates.
I had an amazing experience at the Matterhorn and highly recommend planning a visit while traveling in Switzerland!
132 Comments
Nice info.. love it😍😍😍
November 26, 2016 at 2:23 pmGlad you love it 🙂
November 30, 2016 at 1:24 pmCantiknya..
November 27, 2016 at 7:12 amEnjoy scrolling 🙂
November 30, 2016 at 1:25 pmSwitzerland wasn’t only in my bucket list for travelling but also I’ve been dreaming to attend Auckland University for my master. Ahah.
Nice info dear, definitely will bookmark this for reference. Also, it look so fun and beautiful, I envy youu
November 27, 2016 at 2:49 pmOh damn, I was confuse, Auckland wasn’t in Switzerland it’s in NZ. Ahaha, pardon my mistake.
November 27, 2016 at 2:51 pmHaha. No worries 😀
November 30, 2016 at 1:27 pmSuka tengok gambar2 entry ni.. Cantik view kat sana. 🙂
November 28, 2016 at 1:03 amThank you 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:39 pmbestnya..nice view.
November 28, 2016 at 1:45 amIt is 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:38 pmHi Fatin. Thank you for writing this very lovely & helpful entry. May I know, where do you base at for the trip to Zermatt?
Do you stay overnight at Matterhorn?
We are planning to go there on May-June next year.
Thank you for your help 🙂
November 28, 2016 at 4:49 amHi Deeja! Glad to know it is helpful 🙂
I was staying in Tasch. You can either stay in Tasch or Zermatt. Matterhorn’s hotels are super expensive.
But, if you are staying in Tasch, you need to pay for return train ticket to Zermatt town. We have overlooked this part 🙁 Cost-wise, more or less it is about the same either you are staying in Tasch or Zermatt. If more people going I recommend to stay in Zermatt instead of paying return train ticket from Tasch-Zermatt.
If you need help, you can PM me in fb Deeja 😀
November 30, 2016 at 1:39 pmseronoknya..
Toblerone chocolate was inspired by the triangular shape of the Matterhorn’s distinctive profile – ini sy baru tahu..
November 28, 2016 at 5:38 amGood you learn something 😀
November 30, 2016 at 1:40 pmbestnya ! toblerone punya sign 🙂
November 28, 2016 at 7:49 amYeah 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:38 pmHi, saya tag awak 🙂
November 28, 2016 at 10:34 amHi Intan. Tag tu macam mane? Sorry, I’m a newbie to blogging world 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:37 pmthe view of the mountain covered in snow are so beautiful. subhanallah
November 28, 2016 at 1:38 pmIt is 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:36 pmwow, tengok switzerland teringat satu je, filem kaho naa pyar hai hehe
November 29, 2016 at 2:21 amBanyak filem box office hindustan shooting kat oversea kan.. 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:35 pmcoklat kuning yang bentuk segitiga tu dah dikecikkan saiz dia kan? mengundang kemarahan orang ramai 😉
November 29, 2016 at 2:24 amsaya memang tak gemar ke tempat-tempat sejuk-sejuk ni…switzerland masa tak sejuk cantikkan?
p/s: ada ke tayangan filem hindustan Dear Zindagi kat Switzerland nih??
November 29, 2016 at 2:27 amSwitzerland anytime pun cantik 😀 Tak aware pulak film kat swiss
December 10, 2016 at 9:34 pmA breathtaking view. It is one of my dream to visit Switzerland, one day 🙂
http://www.fatinamdzfr.blogspot.com
November 29, 2016 at 4:36 amInsyaAllah 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:33 pmSubhanallah. So beautiful.
November 29, 2016 at 7:52 amIt is 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:32 pmAll the pictures are so pretty!
And never knew that Toblerone is based on the mountain shape.
Nurul Rasya
November 29, 2016 at 8:37 amGood you learn something dear
November 30, 2016 at 1:41 pmbestnyaaa.. cantik sngt!!
November 29, 2016 at 1:53 pmVielen Dank 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:32 pmCantikkkk sangatttt..
November 29, 2016 at 3:16 pmMerci! 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:31 pmSubhanallah the view is so perfect! So jealous that you had a chance to travel around the world 🙁
November 29, 2016 at 3:18 pmMay inspire you to go there one day 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:31 pmSubhanallah indahnya ciptaan tuhan.
November 30, 2016 at 1:22 amUntungnya Fatin dapat bersalji di Matterhorn 😉
Alhamdulillah dapat sampai sini 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:30 pmcantik tempat ni…enta bila dpt prg kan..
November 30, 2016 at 4:44 amThere will be one day :p
December 10, 2016 at 9:29 pmwunderbar!
November 30, 2016 at 2:02 pmDanke schön 😀 Viel Spass noch
December 10, 2016 at 9:28 pmoooo kat sini rupanya Coklat Toblerone mendapat inspirasi.. Memang cantik sgt!
December 1, 2016 at 1:35 amAwesome 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:26 pmwow bestnya
December 1, 2016 at 11:20 pmsuka anum singgah blog nie
banyak tip2 travel
Thank you Anum. Visit more often 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:26 pmThanks for the tips. What a cool connection to the chocolate – I didn’t realise – interesting fact.
December 2, 2016 at 11:50 pmGlad you learn something 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:25 pmMinds blown
December 3, 2016 at 12:37 amIt is! 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:25 pmBestyaaa Fatin dapat merasa ke Swiss .
My wishlist country to go .
Nnt boleh buat as reference blog Fatin .
December 3, 2016 at 4:56 amBoleh takde hal lah. Datang selalu pun takpe 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:24 pmBeautiful snowy mountains. Such a wonderful holiday!
December 3, 2016 at 3:46 pmIt is Nancy! 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:24 pmVery well written piece of information on Matterhorn. The views are phenomenal. I have visited Switzerland 20 over years ago in the month of September, the landscapes are beautiful, I really love to see the flowers planted in front of their windows.
December 3, 2016 at 4:03 pmWe need to repeat Swiss vacation many times ;p Swiss natural beauty is seriously breathtaking
December 10, 2016 at 9:23 pmWow bestnya travel..kak lina suka jugak travel..tp dah lama x ke mana2..kekangan ms dan duit hahaa..paling jauh pun beijing ajer..
December 4, 2016 at 10:50 amSwiss teringin jugak nk pi tp lom tercapai lagi
Takpe kak lina. Boleh punya one fine day. Skg aim dlu nak g ke mana 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:22 pmMasya Allah.. cantiknya pemandangan.. putih bersih mesti udara pun segar..
December 5, 2016 at 2:48 amOn top of the mountain. Memang fresh! 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:21 pmFatin, naik ke keretapi yang lalu bukit bukau tue apa ye namanha Nadia lupa . Masa plan nak gie sana buat research pasal keretapi tue tapi dah tak ingat nama nya.
December 6, 2016 at 12:26 amHi Nadia. Banyak train kat Europe & kat Swiss ni. X tau yg Nadia tanye ni which one. Maybe Glacier Express?
December 10, 2016 at 9:19 pmsuch a luvly place…thx for sharing fatin…tak dapat pergi…dpt tgk photos pun jadi lah.. 🙂
December 6, 2016 at 1:10 amMost welcome. Datanglah sini selalu, boleh ‘melancong’ banyak tempat lagi tggu next entry 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:01 pmsubhanallah …it’s really breathaking by simply looking at your pictures! Splendid view indeed. Love it! Thank you for sharing this beautifully 🙂
December 7, 2016 at 12:35 amMy pleasure 😀
December 10, 2016 at 9:00 pmsyoknya main salji…
December 7, 2016 at 12:55 amMemang syok 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 9:00 pmFatin, cantik nya pictures ! Sya bukan kaki travel. Cuma recently start explore tempat dekat-dekat (negeri sebelah) then from there baru develop interest nak tengok tempat orang. Since dah ada sorang baby, now everytime nak travel kena ada 1 designated tabung @ dana. Backpacking memang pangkah besar. Kena masuk dalam azam tahun baru nih, Hiks
December 7, 2016 at 1:12 amHi Sya. Faham sgt klo ade baby komitmen jd lagi tggi. Skg sy senang nak travel sbb single lagi. Good effort buat 1 tabung utk travel. Menabung cara ni mmg famous skg, especially yg dah ada family. InsyaAllah azam sya akan tercapai 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:59 pmseriously…gambar semua super…
December 7, 2016 at 3:46 amcantiknya alam ciptaan Allah ini…
Thank youuu 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:52 pmsalam sis… wow… bestnye main salji… thanks for ur tips
December 7, 2016 at 9:12 amWslm sheila. Mmg best! Most welcome 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:52 pmsubhanallah…cantiknya
December 7, 2016 at 9:50 amIt is!
December 10, 2016 at 8:50 pmowh, baru tau toblerone punya choc logo ada wujud, kikiki..
December 7, 2016 at 2:05 pmGlad you learn something 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:51 pmNice shots.. Toblerone and the Matterhorn suit well…
December 7, 2016 at 11:48 pmThank you 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:50 pmSwiss nie semua tempat2 dia cantik sangat kan..
December 8, 2016 at 12:16 amAah. Macam perlu repeat byk kali je swiss ni ;p
December 10, 2016 at 8:49 pmokeh.
macam best aje kalau pegi nih.
tunggu anak besaq sikit.
December 8, 2016 at 7:27 amKalau pergi masa anak tgh kecik lg boleh dapat ticket train for free. So parents je kne bayar 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:48 pmOmaigod…
December 8, 2016 at 6:31 pmCantiknyaaa
Cantik kan ;p
December 10, 2016 at 8:47 pmSubhanallah…cantiknya…tetiba rasa mcm dh smpai sana plak bl tengok gmbr2 fatin ni
December 9, 2016 at 1:35 amHaha. Glad to hear that 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:46 pmSuka tengok keindahan New Zealand. Bila entah dapat jejak kaki kat sini.
December 9, 2016 at 4:36 amThis is Switzerland tau, bukan New Zealand. Don’t be confused ;p
December 10, 2016 at 8:44 pmbestnya fatin! seronok tak main salji? puncak gunung tu sebijik macam kat coklat..haha
December 9, 2016 at 5:29 amWas my first time. Haruslah teruja! 😀
December 10, 2016 at 8:45 pmwah, menariknya tempat tu
December 9, 2016 at 9:01 amboleh masuk dalam wishlist ni 🙂
It’s amazing 🙂
December 10, 2016 at 8:42 pmCantiknya pemandangan, first time singgah blog ini! Teruja gila..
December 10, 2016 at 9:59 amThank you. Datanglah selalu 😀
December 10, 2016 at 8:40 pmMasya Allah.
Masuk2 je sini terus SAMPAI Swiss…
Sukanya.
December 11, 2016 at 12:25 amBoleh saya sambung beranga
Swiss ni cantik.
Baru sampai NZ… okay lh cantik juga … subhanallah.
Harap satu hari nnt blh sampai swiss . Insya Allah
December 11, 2016 at 12:30 amOoo itu asal usul tobleron.
Hihi.
Gigih bawah tobleron utk bergambar.
Tp sib baik lh cuaca okay.
Sy dh buat iti swiss ni sikit2.
Bnyk review yg sy dapat … sian kengkawan sy … g je hujan.
So x dpt enjoy bnyk bnda katanya
December 11, 2016 at 12:32 amAwesome tips and insights! Didn’t know the linkage between Toblerone chocolate & Matterhorn earlier. Now I’ll think of the place when eating my fave chocolate!
December 11, 2016 at 3:53 pmbestnye dah sampai switzerland.. cantik gile tmpt tu..
December 12, 2016 at 9:20 amBestnye dapat berjalan kat negara orang.. Cantik sangat pemandangan..
December 12, 2016 at 1:32 pmbestnya tempat dia cantik sgt. I hope I’ll go there one day
December 14, 2016 at 3:37 amLawanya tempat tu..
December 14, 2016 at 4:49 amCantik2 gambarnya…
cantik view
December 14, 2016 at 8:34 amnice tips
Fatin this is my first time visit your blog. Menarik sekali blog ini. Tahniah. Gambar-gambar shot di Zermatt Switzerland pun cantik-cantik. Mesti seronok dapat bercuti di Switzerland 😀
December 14, 2016 at 9:40 amJaw dropping view of swiss! thank you for the tips. saya pun akan ke swiss hujung bulan ni tapi x pi tempat ni sbb dah buat iti awal2 area bernese oberland.
sabahanlovestravel.blogspot.com
December 14, 2016 at 3:21 pmmatterhorn ni cantik rupanya. saya teringat jenama kasut matterhorn yang diguna oleh askar kita. memang sturdy. tak terfikir pula rupanya jenama tu adalah daripada nama matterhorn di swiss.
December 14, 2016 at 10:35 pmSubhanallah.. Its amazing! feels like I wanna give it a touch.. :’)
December 15, 2016 at 2:36 amHai Fatin, cantik sungguh gambar2 dari lensa kamera Fatin.
December 15, 2016 at 3:15 amwalla , sgt2 mengujakan.. thanks sharing story n nice pics dear…
December 15, 2016 at 5:00 amSubhanallah….cantiknya Fatin. Bersih, putih, redup mata memandang.
December 15, 2016 at 6:50 amBetullah org kata ye Fatin banyak berjalan, banyak pengalama …
Subhanallah….Cantiknya…hope one day i will go there too…
December 16, 2016 at 2:31 amsalam..
December 16, 2016 at 7:35 amhi fatin..yaya singgh melawat blog fatin sat.. =)
cantik gmbr.. ^_^ bestnyer main salji ^o^
Subhanallah…. Cantiknya pemandangan… syok pula tu dapat pegang snow!!! 😍
December 17, 2016 at 3:35 amcantiknya tempat ni
December 22, 2016 at 3:31 ampernah berangan nak ke Switzerland, tapi berangan ajelah
naik kapal terbang pun tak pernah…haha
wowww…
January 4, 2017 at 5:12 amserius cantik sgt view,,
untungnya muda2 dah boleh jejak kaki kat situ
bestnye…xpernah pergi mna mna luar negara lgi…dalam negara pown blom smpai sarawak lgi…
January 4, 2017 at 5:51 amthe view subhanallah..amazing lorh!!
btw nice tips..saved!
January 5, 2017 at 9:33 amSo gorgeous! i really miss Switzerland, and I miss snow… And I miss the cold! haha! Great pics!
January 6, 2017 at 5:53 amcantiknya gambar! Suka lah tengok..ni yang nak masuk dalam list ni..
btw, oh…baru tau toblerone diinspirasi dari situ..tq info.
January 7, 2017 at 4:27 pmWooowww Subhanallah cantiknya.. Thanx for sharing.. Aiyaaa rindu Switzerland..
January 17, 2017 at 12:00 amSubhanallah! Breathtaking views 🙂
January 25, 2017 at 4:34 amSeriously ! bestnya.!
January 27, 2017 at 1:27 amwooahhh. such a beauty. cantikknyaaa. subhanaAllah.
February 10, 2017 at 4:24 amuntung dapat pergi sana:) tq kongsi dgn semua org info yg sgt bagus:)
salam..sis..harga utk beli tiket direct kaunter n online sama ke atau beza..
July 10, 2019 at 6:11 amWslm shasa. During my time sama je harga. That’s why we bought the tickets at the counter je. Just in case ade last minute change of plan. Enjoy your trip!
September 19, 2019 at 2:31 pmmay I know u pergi bulan berapa ni
September 23, 2019 at 9:11 amHi fatin..may i know in what month u visited zermatt..thanka
September 23, 2019 at 12:12 pmHi Nik, it was in October. You’re welcome 😀
October 4, 2019 at 4:34 pm