Zermatt is a classic ski location in Southern Switzerland on the border with Italy. It is the home of the Matterhorn, which is one of the most iconic mountain peaks in the world. You may recognize the Matterhorn peak as the logo for Toblerone Swiss chocolate.
Matterhorn, Switzerland ski map
Accomodation: The Matterhown Hostel Zermatt
Bars:
Gee’s
The Brown Cow Pub
Pro Tip: The Ikon pass gives you access to ski Zermatt. Also, you can ski in both Switzerland and Italy when you visit Zermatt.
Website:
Personal Experience
When I lived in Germany, Zermatt was a popular ski destination for my group of friends because you could reach this iconic location by car.
the fastest auto route to Zermatt from Germany requires loading your car on a train that goes through the mountains.
We left after work on a Friday afternoon around 4 pm and we caught the very last train at 11 pm! We got lucky. After getting our car through the mountains you also have to leave your car in a parking garage and take another train into the actual town. There are no gas engine vehicles in Zermatt, only small electric vehicles to get people around. This makes for a beautiful mountain atmosphere with the clearest air!
Taking a break at one of the most iconic mountain peaks in the world.
One bonus to Zermatt is that you can ski both Switzerland and Italy in one day! Just make sure to give yourself enough time to ride the gondolas back to your accommodations. If you don’t, you might be stuck in the other country for the night…
In fact, my friend and I almost ended up in that vary situation. It was our last day skiing on the mountain. We already explored all that the Swiss side of the mountain had to offer. Excitedly, we made our way up the Theodulpass and down into the Plan Maison in Italy. It was around 11 am when we made this trek to the other side of the mountain. Fortunately, we had ample time to tour the Italian side before the last gondola ride would take its final passengers up to the neutral summit between Italy and Switzerland at 3:30 pm.
Now this is important to note. If we didn’t catch this final gondola up to the summit, we would have no opportunity to ski back over to Zermatt, where we were staying. As we skied our way around the Italian side we started to lose track of time. After we finished our half-day skiing the Italian side we took a pit stop to grab a bite before heading back up and over to the Swiss side. We had a solid plan. We knew we had to do a short traverse over to the gondola by 3:30 pm and it was only 2:50. We had plenty of time! Or so we thought…Piste maps can get pretty confusing. In reality, we were below the gondola we needed and had to ski to a different gondola, ride that up, and then ski from there to the to the final gondola that would transport us to Switzerland. When we left the restaurant and got to the first gondola our hearts dropped. it was 3:10.
The first gondola ride was one of the quietest rides I’ve had. The ride dropped us off at 3:25, we hauled over to the final gondola and made it right as they were loading up the last box. We made it! After making the trek back to the neutral zone we were stress free! For a minute we thought we wouldn’t make it. So my friend looked up the drive from the Italian side to Zermatt in case we could catch a cab. It would have taken 8 hours to get from the Italian side to Zermatt. So suffice it to say, we would have been spending the night in Italy. When you ski Zermatt, definitely enjoy both sides of the peak. But, give yourself plenty of time to get back to the Swiss side at the end of the day.