Zermatt - 3 Days

Itinerary created by

Tanya@SwissFamilyFun

What you’ll do

Zermatt has three distinct mountain areas, accessed by different mountain railways. We suggest one day in each area. If you have only one day, Gornergrat is our favorite.

Gornergrat - spectacular viewpoint of Matterhorn & glacier, nice
Matterhorn Glacier Paradise - Matterhorn viewpoint, walk on glacier snow, ice tunnel, hike close to Matterhorn peak
Sunnegga - 5 Lake Trail, playground for kids, go-carts, mountain scooters

Gornergrat

The Gornergrat area is our favorite mountain area in Zermatt, particularly with kids. The viewpoints are easy to access and the hikes very customizable to fit different abilities.

At a minimum, we suggest visiting the Gornergrat viewpoint and Riffelsee lake, no hiking required.

If you like to hike, we have a few options of different lengths and difficulty.

Planning your day

We suggest a minimum of 4 hours for this outing, longer if you hike. We typically spend the whole day on the mountain, stopping for a picnic and lots of photos.

Since the Gornergrat railway runs later than most other transport, it's possible do this in the late afternoon if you just arrive in Zermatt that morning.

Suggested itinerary

Mountain train Zermatt to Gornergrat.
Enjoy views from Observation Platform and 360 loop path.
Ride down to Rotenboden to visit Riffelsee lake. (Or hike down on Gornergrat Scenic trail).
Enjoy photos at Riffelsee lake, perhaps a picnic here.
Walk back to Rotenboden and ride down to Zermatt.
Or hike down to Riffelberg (1h), Riffelalp (2h), or Furi (2h30).

Minimum 3 hours, or 4-6 hours if hiking.

Gornergrat Mountain Train

Scenic rail journey with Matterhorn views

Category

Public Transport

Direction

Gornergrat Mountain Viewpoint

Best Matterhorn views

Category

Sightseeing

Est. Price

$$$

Direction

At the Gornergrat, you get nice views right next to the train station. But best to walk above the hotel for an even better observation terrace and short scenic walk.

Gornergrat Observation Platform

Spectacular panoramic views of Matterhorn

Category

Photospot

Direction

Gornergrat "360° loop hike"

Short panorama walk with glacier view

Category

Hike

Est. Price

Est. Duration

0-30m

Direction

Ride or Hike to Riffelsee lake

After visiting the Gornergrat viewpoint, you should next visit the Riffelsee lake. To get there, you can ride the Gornergrat mountain train down one stop to Rotenboden. Then a short walk down to the lake.

Or you can hike down on the Gornergrat Scenic Trail, about 90 mins to reach the lake.

This one is optional

Gornergrat-Rotenboden Scenic Trail

Matterhorn and glacier views

Category

Hike

Est. Price

$$$

Est. Duration

30-60m

Direction

Riffelsee Lake

Beautiful reflections of Matterhorn peak

Category

Photospot

Est. Price

$$$

Direction

Hiking options

After visiting the Riffelsee lake, you can walk back up to Rotenboden and ride train down to Zermatt.

Or hike further down the mountain on one of these trails.

Easiest: Hike to Riffelberg, about 1 hour. Then ride mountain train down to Zermatt.

Moderate: Hike to Riffelalp, about 2 hours. Lots of switchbacks and lots of uneven terrain. Then ride mountain train down to Zermatt.

Long: Hike via Glacier Garden to Furi, about 2h30, lots of downhill. Includes beautiful river and suspension bridge over gorge. From Furi, gondola to Zermatt or hike down Zermatt, another hour.

Choose the option that fits you the best