Zurich to Milan with stop over in Zermatt

The bad news is you will not be able to get a cable car to the top of the Matterhorn. The good news is you can get the cable cars or even a train high up in the mountains for great views. I might add that this will be weather dependent, so I hope you have good weather during your short stay. Zermatt is a rather small town that is chock full of hotels. The hotel Gornergrat Dorf is right next to the train station and also the Gornergrat train station for trains up to Gornergrat and views of the Matterhorn and other mountains. The Hotel Ambassador is also next to the station. You can easily walk to the cable car station on the other end of town, or take the electric bus.
Depending on how you feel after your flight, you may want to go straight to Zermatt. It is 3 1/2 hour journey. there are trains from the airport train station at 40 past the hour that require only one change at Visp. The train from Visp to Zermatt takes about 1 hour. So if you left at 4:40 pm you could be in Zermatt at 8:15 pm, still daylight if you are going during the summer.
I agree that the Glacier Express train is overkill. If you just stay in Zermatt just Saturday and Sunday, you will have spectacular views the whole time. You can leave Monday afternoon to go to Milan, a 3 1/2 to 4 hour journey. You could leave as late as 6:13 pm and be in Milan by 9:35 pm. An alternative is to take a regional train that follows the Glacier Express route to Goeschenen, then changes to the "William Tell" route through the Gothard Tunnel and then down the valley to Italy using 4 spiral tunnel/switchbacks. There is a train change in Bellinzona, then on to Milan. This route takes 7 hours and 11 minutes with hourly departures from Zermatt at 39 past the hour.
Enjoy!

Thank you Sam.

Do I need reservations for any of these mentioned routes?
Would it be advantageous to purchase rail pass - considering taking advantage of cable / cog trains as well.
If I choose the latter mentioned option - is it fairly simple to determine the correct train and travel route to purchase tickets.

Thanks

Thank you Sam.

Do I need reservations for any of these mentioned routes?
Would it be advantageous to purchase rail pass - considering taking advantage of cable / cog trains as well.
If I choose the latter mentioned option - is it fairly simple to determine the correct train and travel route to purchase tickets.

Thanks

You do not need reservations, but they might come in handy if you are traveling together with other people and want to be guaranteed seating together, and do not want to be bothered changing seats if someone happens to board the train at say, in Bern, and you are sitting in their seat(s). The only train that requires a reservation is the actual Glacier Express train. If you go with a pass, the manned stations will be happy to print you a detailed schedule for your route. The pass will only give you a 50% discount on the Gornergratbahn or the Klein Matterhorn cable cars. You can check the value of getting a pass by looking up the individual routes on www.sbb.ch. The first price you see on the schedule is the "half fare" price, which assumes you have a half fare card, so you need to double the price for the what you would pay with out it. Compare the costs with the pass cost, and also look at buying the 30-day half fare card for 120 chf per person. This will still get you the 50% discount on the mountain rail and cable cars.

There are two alternatives for travelling to Zermatt from Zurich that are more scenic than the regular route via Bern.

1) Travel via the Gotthard route, changing for the MGB trains in Göeschenen. You can even ride the Glacier Express route between Andermatt or Zermatt or travel on regional trains. Total travel time on trains is around 6 hours, you can make it a whole day trip by stopping for couple hours on interesting places along the route.

2) Tavel via Luzern, Giswil and Interlaken, a route that will take you through part of the "Gold Pass" route. Total travel time is around 5 hours, you can add stops in the way if you want to.

Stay at least two nights in Zermatt. That way, you increase the chances of at least one day of fair weather.