Zermatt & Gornergrat summit day tour from Zurich

Visit with me Zermatt and the Matterhorn, Switzerland’s most famous mountain, on this day tour from Zurich. We cross the Alps and travel from north to south. We arrive in Zermatt at the latest by noon. You can enjoy up to six hours in Zermatt. That gives you plenty of time to admire the gorgeous views, discover the village, have lunch, and for the one-of-a-kind ride on the Matterhorn railway to the Gornergrat, from where you have a fabulous view of the Matterhorn, the Gorner Glacier, and the Monte Rosa, Switzerland’s highest mountain.

Highlights

  • Spectacular ride to the Gornergrat with the Matterhorn railway

  • Fantastic views of the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa

  • Visit the lovely car-free village of Zermatt

  • A scenic train ride through Switzerland

  • No rush: up to 6 hours in Zermatt

  • Season 2024 & Availability

    Summer: May 1 - October 13

    Winter: December 1 - April 30

    As a sole proprietor with a capacity of one tour per day, I can be fully booked far in advance.

    Click here to see my availability calendar

  • Detailed tour description

    Zermatt & Gornergrat tour from Zurich

    From Zurich we start our train journey to Zermatt. From Zurich we travel to Bern. There we join the Lötschberg line to Visp, on which we cross the Alps from north to south. In Visp we make another change to a train which heads further south and up to the moutains to Zermatt. We arrive around noon.

    We can stay up to 6:30 p.m. in Zermatt. Hence we have a whopping six hours, leaving us with plently of time to visit the village, have lunch, and the ride on Gornergrat mountain railway, which takes 40 minutes in each direction. This mountain railway will take us on a spectacular journey to one of the best vantage points for the Matterhorn, the Gornergrat.

    The views from this summit, located at 3,090 m/ 10,140 ft. above sea level, are impressive. On a clear day, you have perfect views of the Monte Rosa massif. See the Dufour Peak, the highest peak in Switzerland, the Matterhorn, and the Gorner glacier.

    As this is a private tour you can organize your time freely. If you prefer to spend less time in Zermatt, we can return earlier, as we have at least an hourly connection back to Zurich

  • Inclusions & Exclusions

    Inclusions

    - All required train tickets in first class for you and the guide

    - Gornergrat mountain railway tickets for you and the guide (price includes entry fees)

    - Meeting at any centrally located Hotels, Apartment, or Airbnb

    - Return to any centrally located Hotel, Apartment, or Airbnb after the tour

    - Fee for the private guide, who will stay at your disposal throughout the tour

    - Car-free tour by train, mountain railway, and aerial cable car as per the tour description

    - Photography by the guide (with your own camera or smartphone)

    - A booklet with comprehensive information about Switzerland (one per party, for groups of four persons or larger are two printed copies included)

    - Use of a mobile hotspot with unlimited data (Speed: 4G)

    What is not included in the tour price?

    - Your meals and drinks

    - Any personal expenses

    - Optional activities

    - Travel insurance (participation at your own risk)

  • Example itinerary

    This itinerary is only an example. The schedule can vary due to various factors such as the season, the day of the week, construction work, service, and schedule changes.

    The exact departure and return time depends on the pick-up/drop-off location.

    Pick-up  7:00 a.m. - 7:30 a.m at any centrally located Hotel or Apartment

    InterRegio  7:53 a.m. - 9:21 a.m. Zurich - Bern

    InterCity   9:34 a.m. - 10:31 a.m. Bern - Visp

    RegioExpress   10:41 a.m. - 11:51 a.m. Visp - Zermatt

    Gornergrat Matterhorn Railway  12:24 p.m. - 12:57 p.m. Zermatt - Gornergrat

    Sightseeing  12:57 p.m. - 3:07 p.m. Enjoy the Gornergrat summit

    Gornergrat Matterhorn Railway   3:07 p.m. - 3:51 p.m. Gornergrat - Zermatt

    Sightseeing  3:51 p.m. - 6:37 p.m. Visit Zermatt

    RegioExpress   6:37 p.m. - 7:46 p.m. Zermatt - Visp

    InterCity   7:57 p.m. - 9:58 p.m. Visp - Zurich

    Drop-off   10:15 p.m. - 10:45 p.m. at any centrally located Hotel or Apartment

    Customization possibilities:

    You can spontaneously extend or shorten the visit to the Gornergrat summit.

    You can spontaneously shorten the visit to Zermatt. We have a connection back to Zurich every half-hour. The connection at 6.37 PM is the latest possible departure time from Zermatt.

  • Lunch options

    Please regard that your lunch is not included in the tour price.

    During lunch hours:

    à la carte restaurant at the Gornergrat (summit) * +

    This restaurant serves various specialties of Switzerland and the Canton of Valais.

    Vegetarian dishes are available.

    Click here to see the website and menu

    Click here to read the restaurants' reviews on TripAdvisor

    Outside of regular lunch hours:

    We can have a late lunch after descending from the Gornergrat. There are various restaurants in Zermatt.

    Quick lunch:

    There are bakeries, convenience shops, sandwich outlets, a sausage stand, and a fast food outlet in Zermatt, where you can grab a bite, either before or after the visit to the Gornergrat peak.

    International food options:

    McDonalds (at the village of Zermatt)

    (online menu not available)

    Restaurant Golden India (at the village of Zermatt) *

    Click here to see the website and menu

    Click here to read the restaurants' reviews on TripAdvisor

    * This option may not be available at all times, especially during low season (i.e. April, November, and early December). If you want to eat at this restaurant, please let me know at the time of booking, so that I can check availability for our tour date.

    + For restaurants marked with a plus (+), reservations are recommended. I'm happy to reserve a table for you.

    Disclaimer

    Restaurant menus, prices, and options are subject to change.

    The restaurant menus are hosted as a PDF file on the restaurants' websites.

  • Activity level

    The activity level is moderate: frequent changes of trains (the changes are easy but require some walking and steps to get in and out of the trains), a walk through Zermatt at your discretion, a walk at the Gornergrat at your discretion

  • Pick-up area

    I can meet you at any centrally located hotel in Zurich.

    Click here to see a map of the pick-up area

    If you're staying outside of the pick-up area, I can meet you at the central train station of Zurich.

  • Weather

    Weather forecast

    Once a reliable weather forecast is available (usually one to three days before departure), I will send you a link to the forecast.

    If there is bad weather forecasted, I will include my recommendations for our tour day.

    I use the weather forecasts provided by the Federal Office of Meteorology and SRF (Swiss Radio and Television).

    With the link below, you can check the weather forecast at any time by yourself. The forecast is available for the next five days.

    Click here to see the current weather forecast for Zermatt

    Operability

    This tour can run in any weather condition except during a storm. During a storm, the Gornergrat railway has often to halt operations or run only on parts of the route for safety reasons. If there is a storm with gale-force winds in the forecast, I need to cancel the tour. On rare occasions, there may be a cancellation due to landslides, avalanches, and other natural forces or the risk thereof. I will fully refund the deposit in this case.

    Your options in case of bad weather

    You can choose a different tour/mountain peak in an area with better weather (if available, the price of the newly selected tour will apply).

    We can do the tour as planned despite the weather.

    I also have a few full-day train tours. For example, the Glacier Express route on local trains tour. These tours are ideal on rainy days as we are for most of the day inside and not exposed to the weather, and as on rainy days the views are usually better at lower altitudes. Further, this tour has a lower tour price as it doesn't require any expensive mountain railway tickets.

    If not having perfect weather is a dealbreaker, you can cancel by forfeiting the deposit.

Map of the Gornergrat area and the travel route from Zermatt

Travel route from Zurich to Zermatt & Gornergrat by train.

Source (maps): Swiss Federal Office of Topography swisstopo


Prices

As the Gornergrat railway has different ticket prices depending on the time of year, this tour has seasonal prices.

Summer season: May 1 - October 13

 

Winter season: December 1 - April 30