How to Get to Zermatt by Train
A car-free village below the Matterhorn. There is no road you can drive into Zermatt, so the train is not an alternative: it is the way in. The last stretch, up the valley on the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn, is a scenic ride in its own right.
What is the route to Zermatt?
Take a train to Visp, then change to the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn to Zermatt. From Zürich the whole journey takes roughly 3h 30m–3h 45m; from Geneva roughly 3h 15m–3h 30m; from Lucerne about four hours via Bern. Trains from Visp to Zermatt run about every half hour, and the connections are timed, so a single change is usually painless.
How to make the connection?
- 1. Board a long-distance train toward Brig and get off at Visp.
- 2. Change to the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn on the platform provided; the connection is usually short.
- 3. Ride up the valley to Zermatt; the station is in the village centre.
When is the best time to go?
- July to September is the main hiking season, with the best chance of clear Matterhorn views.
- December to April is the ski season; book trains and rooms early around holidays.
- Mornings are usually clearer; the mountain is often in cloud by afternoon.
What to do once you are there?
- The Gornergrat railway — a cogwheel train of roughly 30–35 minutes to a viewpoint opposite the Matterhorn.
- Matterhorn Glacier Paradise — a cable car to one of the highest viewpoints in Europe.
- The Riffelsee — the lake where the Matterhorn reflects in the water, reached on foot from the Gornergrat line.
- The Glacier Express — leaves from Zermatt for St. Moritz, a famously slow and scenic ride of about eight hours.
You have seen it. Now go. The key is the change at Visp: book your train there and the rest is up the valley. Every operator, one secure checkout.
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