Holidays to Switzerland Travel Podcast Episode 174 Transcript

Things to Do in Zermatt: Local Tips for Hiking, Village Walks and the Best Matterhorn Views

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Hello everyone, welcome back to another of the Holidays to Switzerland live on location video podcasts. We’ve got a very special guest today in a very especiall location. Viviane, would you please introduce yourself to our audience?

Viviane Zellweger: Hi everyone and thank you for this great opportunity to be on this live podcast. My name is Viviane Zellweger. I’m head of product management and sales at Zermatt Tourism. And yeah, it’s a great pleasure to take you along a little walk this morning on this perfect Friday morning, winter morning. It is very cool. So I hope you’re nice and warm while you’re watching it. It’s minus three degrees currently. So stay with me.

Carolyn Schönafinger: So you’ll need to keep walking to keep warm. So  as you set off on the walk there, can you tell us firstly a bit about Zermatt, because I know it’s high on the list of places that many, many people that are heading to Switzerland want to visit. What are some of the facts about Zermatt that they might be interested in learning?

Viviane Zellweger: So Zermatt is a mountain village and we are located in the canton of Valais, which is one of the southern cantons. So we are right at the border to  Italy. And we are in the German speaking part of Switzerland. The mountain village lays at 1620 meters above sea level, so we are quite high above sea level. You can actually see a bit of the village just behind me.

We do have about 6,000 local residents, more than 100 hotels, and there’s everything from three to five star  hotels, lots of holiday apartments, and  also other unique opportunities on how to spend your holidays. Like you could stay overnight in an igloo or whatsoever in a mountain hut.  Yeah, saying that, tourism started in Zermatt, or maybe first, you can already see a glimpse through what Zermatt is most famous for, of course, the Matterhorn. So  tourism started right after the first ascent in 1865. And now it is a very important part for Zermatt. And it’s… all year round destination.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay yeah because I’m sure a lot of people know it as a very famous ski resort but there is plenty to do there all year round. How do people or how can they reach Zermatt?

Viviane Zellweger: So Zermatt is a car-free village, which means there’s no regular cars allowed in town. However, we do have electric cars and they look, they’re really small and there’s also an electric bus, so two lines that you can use free of charge. So getting up to Zermatt, so you’ll get into Visp and then most probably take the train up to Zermatt.

Once you get into Zermatt, once you’re at the train station, right next to the train station you have the tourist office. So if you need help with anything, with tickets or whatever you can think of, there’s always, they will always be more than happy to help you. And right across the street, there’s the Gornergrat station to go up to Gornergrat, which is one of our three main peaks.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay, all right, so let’s perhaps talk a little bit more about those peaks and some of the other must-sees for people visiting Zermatt.

Viviane Zellweger: So yeah, I’ve already said we have three main peaks. One of them is Gornergrat. You get fantastic views of the glacier, but also,  of course, of the Matterhorn, which we’ll see in a bit more. And then there’s Rothorn area, Sunnegga area. Also from there, you have spectacular view of the classical view of the Matterhorn. And then there’s Matterhorn Glacier Paradise which is the highest mountain station in Europe. And from there, since summer 2023, you have the opportunity to cross also in summer over to Italy. So it’s the highest Alps crossing.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Wonderful, so certainly plenty of options for people who are visiting and want to get up high in the mountains. So can you tell us exactly where you are?

Viviane Zellweger: Yes, so I’m standing on what we call our Pensioners Trail. I hope no one’s getting offended by that. It is a walking trail located a bit above the village. So once you get into Zermatt, you can walk for like 10 minutes down to Sunnegga station. You can take the elevator up and you will descend right in front of the Hotel Cervo.

And from there you can follow the signs to the walking path. And just behind me you see like a little path coming up and then you get to the starting point. Of course you can also do the trail from the other direction. It is about the 2.2 kilometers long walking path and we call it Pensioners Trail because it is really flat. So it’s doable for everyone.  And it’s also, at the same time it is a puzzle trail trail or a little scavanger hunt maybe, because you’ll see these little figures all along the way. You can see one right here. It’s Wolli. It’s our mascot. It’s our black-nosed sheep. They are locally bred in Zermatt. And yeah, it’s a family-friendly kids’ trail as well. The puzzle trail is only open in summer,  but otherwise the trail can be done  all year round.

And as you can see maybe behind me, the ground is, there’s some pebble stones on it, so it’s not slippery or anything. So also in winter, a very nice path. And I think if you walk, yeah, more or less, not too fast, it will probably take you about an hour to get to the end of the trail. And of course, as said, you can do it from both ways.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay well that’s great. So perhaps you’d like to just walk along a bit and maybe we can get another great view of the Matterhorn and you can tell us a bit more about some of the things that  people should include in their visit to Zermatt.

Viviane Zellweger: Sure.

Of course. So, yeah, as I’m walking along, what I think is most important, you get this spectacular view of the Matterhorn. And the closer we get, of course, the closer it gets. Now the sun is shining directly on it. So I think it reflects quite a bit on my camera. But I will be there in a second and I will show you the view. So if you walk in the direction,

so if you walk from the starting point that I started, of course you have the Matterhorn always in sight. If you walk from the other side, of course it’s always in the back. And now we turn to face it. I think you can already see.  Yeah, and you can see down there in the village, you can actually right now see the ice rink. There’s a curling tournament going on at the moment.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm, yeah, wow.

Viviane Zellweger: And also I think the whole year round there’s lots of events in Zermatt. Whatever you’re seeking to explore, there’s something going on. Yeah, I’ve already mentioned a must do of course is visit the three main peaks. But then of course also in the village,  also in the village there’s lots of things to explore.

 One thing I would really recommend is visit our  museum, so the Zermatlantis. Maybe now you get a better view.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Wow, look at it. We’re so privileged because I know a lot of folks go to Zermatt and there’s a cloud right across the top of the peak. So we’re very privileged today to see that view.

Viviane Zellweger: Yeah, and actually the weather forecast, yeah, it would be a bit cloudy, more than happy that there’s no clouds on the sky. Yeah, as I’ve said, the Matterhorn Museum, of course, one thing I highly recommend, because you can learn a lot about the history of the town.  And then at the same time also…

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah, fantastic.

Viviane Zellweger: pay a visit or walk through the old part of the village which we call Hinterdorf and there you can see some unique houses from the ancient times so you really get the feeling of how the village looked before it started to become more and more popular.

Carolyn Schönafinger: They’re quite unique those houses, aren’t they? So can you tell  everyone watching what’s so special about them? What makes them so different?

Viviane Zellweger: So yeah, these old stone houses  have like these stone roofs. These wooden houses with the stone roof and they are built a bit higher up. So standing on like little poles or little stones. This was made so the little animals so like mice and stuff would not get to the things that were stored in some of the houses.  They were used as storage opportunities for hay and different types. So to make sure that mice would not get into it, they built  a bit higher up. And that just gives,

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger: that just looks really unique. And also one really good  input. We do have some really nice walking tours through that, not just that part, but of course, this part is one of the main sites and they will tell you all about history and the different housing types.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay and can they be booked through the tourist office?

Viviane Zellweger: Yes, so there’s different types of walking tours.  Every week during high season there’s an English,  once a week there’s an English walking tour. They can be booked either on our website, on zermatt.swiss or also directly in our tourist office. You can just drop by. They can be booked on, we do have an application, it’s called the Matterhorn app app, and they can also be booked there, so there are lots of opportunities.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay, good. Now as well as the walking trail that you’re taking us on today, a little while ago we had Claudia from Zermatt Cableways and she took us on the part of the Five Lakes hike. Now I know they’re just two of the many hikes that are available around Zermatt, so are there a couple of others that you think are worth mentioning?

Viviane Zellweger: Yes, so our hiking network is quite well established. There’s more than 250 kilometers of established hiking trails.  There’s so many, there’s so many nice walking trails. So I think for me, it’s really hard to pick my favorite one. But if you’re looking for something that is a bit more,  yeah, maybe a bit, an easy walk, there’s this one hiking path going up to  this little, like a really little village called Zmutt, which is on the right side of the Matterhorn. And it’s a short hike or more like a walk. And there’s also some little restaurants there. You can stop for coffee, and you can extend it, can make the trail longer if you go then over to the other side and you can come back via Furi.  So I think this is one of the really nice walking trails. I mean, of course, there’s lots of others. And also the one that Claudia showed you, to Lake Stellisee, the Five Lakes hike, of course, is probably our most famous hiking trail in Zermatt.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah, well the views were stunning as well on that hike. So for people that are coming to visit during winter, if they’re not really into skiing, what other sort of snow activities are available and is there any opportunities for them to perhaps  go to a spa and just really get some luxury by soaking away all their troubles inone of the spas.

Viviane Zellweger: Yeah, so there’s heaps of hotels that also offer day passes for their spa. So if you’re not staying at a hotel that offers a spa or a holiday  an apartment location where there’s no spa included. Apart from skiing, there’s heaps of other winter activities. There’s lots of… So of course on this trail, you don’t need any snowshoes or…technically, yeah, as I said, there’s like pebble stones on it. But there’s also snow shoeing trails and winter, like proper winter hiking trails where it’s recommended or you’ll need like the proper gear and it’s also advisable to have like the walking poles.  There’s also a cross-country or there’s also part of Zermatt and also includes

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger: the destination Zermatt also includes the villages Täsch and Randa and in Täsch there’s a cross-country  slope so you can also go cross-country skiing. It’s quite a nice, I think I need to turn so you can see the view, and it’s quite a nice  cross-country area. It’s not so  not so steep or anything so also if you’re,

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay.

Viviane Zellweger: if you want to have a try on cross-country skiing, it’s a good opportunity. Apart from that, of course, lots of ski touring activities that you can also do in winter. And then we also have one  sledging run  from Rotenboten or from in Gornergrat. I think there’s always something to do  even during (winter). There’s a squirrel. I don’t know if you can see it. It’s going

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger: I just made it go away. Yeah, so lots of activities and what I highly recommend. There’s more than 120 different restaurants. Lots of them are located on the mountainside. So this is also why Zermatt is the region with the highest density of

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay.

Viviane Zellweger:
gourmet restaurants in the Alps. So I highly recommend checking out those places and checking out the sunny terraces. And there’s also a lot of  like you can do  a food tour where you stop at different  restaurants. So you’ll get a bit of everything because there’s so much  influence also from the Italian side, but you have a traditional Swiss cuisine. And then of course you have everything from Asian and whatever you can think of, so I highly recommend checking out the gourmet.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah. Okay. So what’s your favourite meal to have when you’re heading up to one of the mountain peaks?

Viviane Zellweger: So as a classical Swiss, I love cheese. So of course,

Carolyn Schönafinger: So it’s Fondue! No! Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger:  actually, no, it’s not fondue. No, it’s not fondue. I love Kaseschnitte. So just the bread with ham and cheese. And then the cheese on top is melted  and you get those little supplements like the… like you get some onion like the…small onions and yeah I think that is my favorite dish and then of course Rösti as well. I’m a big fan of Rösti and Alplermagronen, so everything that includes cheese I highly recommend.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Okay. Okay, sounds good. So what  tips do you have for our listeners and people watching who are thinking of  including Zermatt in their trip to Switzerland?

Viviane Zellweger: So I think, I highly recommend always booking in advance, because of course, during high season, it tends to get quite busy.  But then I think…

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger:  wherever you stay in Zermatt, because it’s quite a small town, everything is within walking distance, so if you walk from one end of town to the other, it takes maximum about 30 minutes. So I cannot really tell you where’s the best place to stay because all places are really convenient. You can reach everything within a couple of minutes.

And then of course also, really depending on if it’s high season you’re coming, I always recommend checking the restaurants beforehand, maybe also make some bookings in advance. I highly recommend downloading our Matterhorn app because you also have the opportunity to book everything in this app. So you can book your ski passes or your mountain tickets or you can book your village walk, whatever. But you can also  access like live maps. You get the information if something is not operating or whatever. And you can also…

make direct bookings. So for restaurants you can use it to make direct bookings and I think it just helps you get along  and you get a lot of inspiration. So if you’re looking for a hike or if you’re looking for a winter hiking trail, you have all those options listed in the app as well.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah, so it’s right at hand whenever you need it.

Viviane Zellweger:  Exactly.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah, great. Okay, look at that. Look at that view. It’s very, very special, isn’t it? Yeah, yeah. So  we’re obviously, we’re on our walk today in winter. Is winter your favourite season in Zermatt or is it one of the other seasons?

Viviane Zellweger:  We’re getting closer, yeah. Regarding skiing, of course winter is my favorite season. However, you can ski 365 days. So you can also ski during summer up on the glacier. However, I think the prettiest season now is autumn, as it is, we do have the larch trees, they turn golden in October.

Yeah, maybe end of September, October. And it’s probably the most amazing time to come visit. It’s also a bit less busier but there’s still lots of things to do. Usually, depending on the snow conditions, but usually it doesn’t snow  down to the village before November, so you can still access everything. And yeah, I think it has this special…

Autumn in Switzerland is quite special, but here I think it hits on a different level when everything is that golden, but you already have the snow covered Matterhorn. And now I am at the location I can properly show you.  Yeah, I think it’s very special.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah, it certainly is. just, yeah, it’s exactly what you see on a postcard, isn’t it? With the, yeah, that peak. We’re, we’re so lucky today.

So is there anything else that you wanted to tell us about Zermatt or about this hike for  anyone who’s coming to visit?

Viviane Zellweger:  I think from my side, I think I’ve mentioned all the things.  Of course, I could go on and on for hours, but I’m actually getting cold fingers now. But I think if you have any requests or any questions, visit our  website, zermatt.swiss. There’s everything you can find.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mm-hmm.

Viviane Zellweger:  everything from how to get here to what to explore, where to stay, etc. So I think most questions will also be answered there. And you can also see some details about this walking path on our website.

Carolyn Schönafinger: All right, and of course I’ll include a link to the information about the walking path in the show notes for this episode and to the zermatt.swiss website as well. Thanks Viviane, it’s been a wonderful walk with a spectacular view and yeah, I appreciate you coming out in the cold and getting your fingers all chilly for us. So thank you so much.

Viviane Zellweger:  Yeah.

Carolyn Schönafinger: For anyone, everyone watching, if you haven’t subscribed to the Holidays to Switzerland YouTube channel, go ahead and do that. We’ve got quite a lot of these  live on location videos, including that other one I mentioned with Claudia going along the Five Lakes Walk,  another spectacular hike in Zermatt. So thank you again for watching and thanks Viviane so much for  being with us today.

Viviane Zellweger:  Thank you so much.

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.