We've been to Zermatt and the Matterhorn half a dozen times over the past forty years. But we've always driven. This time we decided to take the train. Next time you go, you might also consider the train. You'll have more time to consider the beauty of the lake and the alps without having to keep you eye on the road. And we got there much quicker than by car so we had more time to enjoy the shops and museums of the village and the high meadows surrounding the Matterhorn.
The train leaves Cornavin at 8:40 am. One . at Visp on the Zermatt train (about fifteen minutes between trains). It's cog rail all the way to Zermatt. Total trip time, just two hours.
Be sure to use one of the small electric mini-busses from the train station to the cable car. It's quite a walk otherwise (you can visit the shops on your way downhill after returning from the cable car ride).
The cable car has five or six stops. People in the queue who had made the trip before convinced us that the best stop was Schwarzsee -- about three quarters of the way up, at the foot of the Matterhorn. We'd only previously viewed the peak from village level -- impressive enough! But the view from Schwarzsee was magnificent. Those who've already visited Pilatus, Mont Blanc, or the Jungfrau will have an idea of the panorama. The next time we visit Zermatt we plan to take the cog rail to Gornergrat, which is said to have a breathtaking view over the glacier. Our friends from England who accompanied us thought this trip even better than Annecy or Bern.
We'd given ourselves five hours in Zermatt, planning to return on the 4:30 train. But we got down from the hill a bit early and found that the Geneva train leaves every hour. So we headed home at just abut pm. an hour early. While we took a lunch (there are benches in the high meadow from which to enjoy the view while eating), there is also a nice restaurant at the Schwarzsee stop. We have Swiss annual railpasses. Our friends more than saved the cost of their month pass on this trip alone since the fifty per cent price reduction also applies to cable cars.
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