HOW MUCH TIME IT WILL TAKE YOU:
Train journey: Around 3h20 from Lausanne Gare to Zermatt.
As Zermatt is relatively far from Lausanne and has so much to offer in winter as well as in summer, we advise you to spend at least one night in Zermatt to make the most of your stay. Zermatt remains an expensive destination but there are affordable ways to spend several days in the resort and its surroundings. It would be better for you to organise your trip over several days so that you can enjoy it to the full !
WHAT IT IS:
Zermatt is one of the best starting points for hikes in Switzerland as it is surrounded by 38 4000m-peaks in the immediate area. The domain offers you a hiking network of up to 400km of trails! Not to mention that it is dominated by one of the most famous mountains of the Alps. At 4,478m of altitude, the Matterhorn is a symbol of Switzerland and offers an incredible and unforgettable scenery. Of course, the trails are made for everyone and for all degrees of difficulty. There is a large selection of both challenging hiking routes as well as easier ones for beginners.
All the trails are described on this Website, where you can find the trail network map, but we will here focus on the winter hikes and snowshoe trails for your Easter break.
Note that the different routes are numbered to make it easier for you to find them on the map.
Winter hikes
We will start with the winter hikes, first giving a short one, towards Sunnegga, also reachable with a funicular and then a longer one towards Schwarzsee:
- Nr. 115 : Zermatt (1620 m.) - Sunnegga (2288 m.), via Tiefenmatten
- Distance: 7.1 km
- Duration: 2h45
- Difficulty: medium
- For more information on this route, check here.
- Nr. 118 + 122 + 123 : Zermatt (1620 m.) - Schwarzsee (2583 m.), via Furi then Stafel
Note that we suggested two hikes starting directly from the village of Zermatt but there are quite a lot of other possibilities for shorter or longer hikes as there are different public transports like trains, funiculars or cable cars to take you further up in the area, for example directly to Schwarzsee or Sunnegga. Of course these transports involve a higher cost but with a half-fare or general abonnement, you get a 50% discount.
You can check here for more information about the train to the Gornergrat where you can find Europe’s highest-altitude hotel, peaking at the 3100 m. as well as an astronomical observatory. Also, check here for the funicular to Sunnegga.
Do not forget to read the information regarding the current situation due to covid-19!
Snowshoe trails
There are less snowshoe trails than hikes but we will give you one of the most iconic paths toward the Gornergrat. To do so, you will first have to take a train to Riffelberg, one of the stop stations.
- Nr. 141 + 142 : Riffelberg (1582 m.) - Gornergrat (3089 m.), via Rotenboden
The departure through the Gornergrat Bahn is near the Zermatt train station and lasts 28-35min. For one way, the price varies between 16.- with a half-fare/general abonnement to 40.- without, if you go up to the final station. If you are not down for going up to the Gornergrat (the climb can be quite scary), we suggest you to take the train directly to the final stop at Gornergrat and then go back down by foot to Riffelberg or Rotenboden as it is also a train stop and enjoy even more the magnificent view over the surroundings and specially the Matterhorn.
There are so many things to do in winter as in summer, you can take the time to read more on the different other trails available in the area here to enjoy at best your journey in Zermatt.
Your beloved ESN Committee ♥
This event can be made sustainable if you take the train to get there and consider using only your feet once you’re there! Cars are not allowed into the village. Zermatt is small, you can do everything on foot or using the small electric buses. #ESNaware
HOW TO GET THERE:
Zermatt can be reached only by train as the cars are forbidden in the village. It will take you about 3h20 to reach the village starting from Lausanne Gare. You can plan your trip using the CFF website or their mobile app.
Most of the trails presented above are starting from Zermatt to avoid you taking more transports. Obviously, all of them are also reachable with transports in case you encounter an issue during the hike or you want to shorten it. All information regarding departure position and precise itineraries are explained in details on the specific website pages.
WHAT YOU NEED:
You will need:
- Good snow boots or snowshoes with sticks.
- Clothes adapted to mountain weather like ski pants and jackets with warm underpant as well as gloves and sunglasses. (Do not forget you are possibly going up to 3000m during your trip and the resort is located at an altitude of 1620m).
- Stuff for several days and nights in the resort.
HOW MUCH IT WILL COST YOU:
The organization of this event will cost :
Transport
- Lausanne - Zermatt, via Viège : 1-way for 81.- (½ fare : 40.50.-)
- Zermatt - Sunnegga : 1-way for 15.- (½ fare/General Abonnement : 7/7.50 .-)
- Zermatt - Riffelberg : 1-way for 32.- (½ fare/General Abonnement : 16.-)
- Zermatt - Gornergrat : 1-way for 40.- (½ fare/General Abonnement : 20.-)
Important : One option if you plan your trip well in advance, is to look at discounts for train tickets for the specific routes and times on Travel at the lowest fares with supersaver tickets. They are marked with a % symbol next to the usual price and can go up to 70% on rides.
Another good way to save money is to take the seven25 Travelcard before your 25th birthday for CHF 39/month. It allows you to take unlimited travel from 7p.m. to 5a.m. (during weekdays) or to 7a.m. (during weekends) on SBB trains and on most other railways, as well as on many public transport services in Switzerland. Note that as you’ll need to arrive quite late, you will have to spend at least a night in Zermatt.
Accommodation
In order to stay there several days, you’ll need an accommodation and the best and cheapest way is to use the Zermatt youth hostel where nights are between 45.- and 53.- for a night during the Easter break (breakfast included).
But if you are planning your trip as a small group (respecting the federal recommendations regarding Covid-19 of course), it still could be a good solution to check the Airbnb’s around Zermatt in order to have a better overview of the prices. Booking several weeks before could lead to a cheaper price than the youth hostel, depending on the number of persons.
WHO TO CONTACT FOR MORE INFO:
Maxime Zufferey, maxime.zufferey@epfl.ch or on Telegram at @MaximeZuff
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