One day in Zermatt

Posted by David (Baltimore, MD, USA) on 03/03/23 10:01 PM

My wife and I are doing three nights Lausanne, three Montreux, one week Murren in late July/august. We are interested in heading to Zermatt for one of our full days in Montreux.

We love Rick’s walks, so definitely want to do the walk around town, as well as the museum. We also don’t need to go up every mountain, as we will be in Murren later.

We’ve never seen the Matterhorn before. We are also into moderate hiking. What should a full day itinerary be in Zermatt for us, starting at 9:30am, ending as late as can be?

Thanks in advance!

Posted by balso

Paris

03/03/23 10:18 PM

7300 posts

Is there any way you could spend 4 nights in Montreux and 2 in Zermatt, instead of 3 in Lausanne plus 3 in Montreux?
Lausanne and Montreux are 20 miles and 20-30 minutes apart, so you can easily visit one from the other, and I do not think you need 5 full days in that area.

Posted by David OP

Baltimore, MD, USA

03/03/23 10:29 PM

66 posts

We are doing it in part because of hotel points in Montreux. One full day will be spent in murten from Lausanne. The other two doing Lausanne stuff. One day in Montreux doing castle/chaplins world, another hiking in the area, and so we are looking to get to Zermatt for the remaining day. If I were to rearrange the trip, I’d probably take your suggestion, though.

Posted by Carrie

Chicago

03/03/23 10:51 PM

3125 posts

You must be staying at the Grand hotel swiss. 😊 I was there in June. I did a day trip to Zermatt and it was fabulous. Make sure you check the weather when you get to Montreux and pick the best weather day for Zermatt. The matterhorn is nothing like any of the mountains you’ll see in murren, so I suggest a train ride to the Gornergrat.

Here’s my trip report if you’d like to read it for some ideas:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/solo-in-switzerland-my-trip-report

Posted by David OP

Baltimore, MD, USA

03/04/23 12:22 AM

66 posts

Carrie: yup, that’s where we are staying! Anything in particular you loved in Zermatt? I did read your travel recap and it was great!

Posted by balso

Paris

03/04/23 07:39 AM

7300 posts

Thanks for your feedback!
In that case, my priority in Zermatt would be the Gornergrat railway to the top, with the short hike to Riffelsee and down to Riffelberg.
And don't overlook spending some time exploring the town, there are some very pretty corners and good views of the Matterhorn too.

Posted by Carrie

Chicago

03/05/23 12:27 PM

3125 posts

Anything in particular you loved in Zermatt?

I just walked from the train station through town towards the matterhorn and then back to the train station to catch the train up to the Gornergrat. Like balso mentioned, the town itself is a nice place to just wander.

I had such low expectations for Zermatt because a lot of what I had read here was negative. Things like, there’s nothing to do in zermamatt except look at the matterhorn, and you won’t see the matterhorn because it’s always in the clouds. So, I was very pleasantly surprised. I’m planning another trip to Switzerland for next year and I’m going to spend 3 nights in Zermatt, just so I can spend some more time wandering around.

So, I don't think it's necessary to have a set plan. Just wander. 😊