Boutique hotels
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Cervo
- Style
- Minimalist mountaineer
- Setting
- By the mighty Matterhorn
Zermatt Overview
Switzerland
- Countryside
- Ice, ice, baby
- Country life
- To ski, or not to ski...
It took the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865 to put Zermatt on the map: ever since then, adventurers have flocked to the dinky ski resort, drawn to its mysterious mountains, Alpine meadows, and cheese-championing restaurants.
Boy, this pocket of Visp in the canton of Valais sure is pretty. Zermatt’s scattering of chalets crouch low in a picturesque valley watched over by Switzerland’s highest mountains, with green forests breaking up the wintry palette of white and blue. A few centuries ago, the village’s main reason for being was agricultural; these days, it has walkers, skiers, hikers and gourmands flocking here year round. The three main ski slopes – Gornergrat, Rothorn and the Matterhorn – rival any of Europe’s top runs. There’s more to Zermatt than the Matterhorn, mind: picture winding, pretty, car-free streets, horses tossing their heads as they wait to draw their carriage, snug little restaurants, sheep-graced fields and, come winter, an off-piste scene that, although not as famous as Verbier’s, will certainly keep you up late into Zermatt's starry, starry night.
Typically Zermatt
Just a few words on the craggy, snow-topped mountain range that lords it over Zermatt: the Matterhorn, the last of the great Alpine peaks to be conquered. Like all flint-hearted temptresses, the Matterhorn has ruined men. Only three out of seven people survived the first ascent in 1865; since then, more than 500 adventurers have lost their lives on its slopes. On a more positive note, it really is an awe-inspiring sight, with a face for every compass point. Admire it the safe and lazy way, with a trip up on the mountain train, the Gornergrat Bahn (www.gornergrat.ch).
Local Knowledge
- Taxis
- Try Alphubel Taxi & Parking (+41 (0)27 967 15 50; www.alphubel.ch), based in Täsch. They do airport transfers as well as pick-ups. Most hotels in Zermatt have their own little electric taxis.
- Tipping culture
- Service tends to be added to hotel and restaurant receipts, but if your waitress/waiter is particularly smiley, a few extra francs won’t go amiss.
- Siesta and fiesta
- At first glance, Zermatt seems more sleepy than nocturnal (unsurprisingly, given that skiing and eating cheese the preferred local activities). However, there’s a lively off-piste scene there for the enjoying, particularly during the winter months. Restaurants get busy around 7pm and 8pm; bars become noisy from 10pm.
- Packing tips
- Hiking attire and hipsters’ threads: you’ll need the former for Zermatt, the latter for its nightlife. Leave space in your suitcase for gifts: we recommend ribbon-wrapped, peel-strewn chocolate from Boîte à Chocolat (www.boiteachocolat.ch) at 7a Bahnofstrasse.
- Recommended reads
- In Scrambles Amongst the Alps, written in 1871, Edward Whymper remembers his party’s doomed ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865.
- Cuisine
- Granted, the food is hearty, but Zermatt is renowned for its top-notch cuisine, so expect to encounter chefs with sophistication – menus advertising sweetbreads, white truffles, ceps, air-dried beef and other delicacies.
- Regional specialities
- Don’t leave without stabbing bits of crusty bread into the oozy, boozy (white wine- and kirsch-splashed) fondue, served in Zermatt’s stublis (traditional fondue restaurants). Stick with the bread-and-cheese formula for raclette, and temper the cheese’s richness with gherkins, pickled onions and dried meat on the side; sweet-tooths should save room for apple strudel with vanilla sauce, a fruit-laden torte, or a cream-capped hot chocolate.
- Currency
- Swiss franc (CHF).
- Time zone
- GMT +1.
- Dialling codes
- Country code for Switzerland: +41; Zermatt: 27.
- Do go/don't go
- Summer is for hikers; winter is for skiers.
Don't go home without...
Eating some melted cheese, whether in raclette, tartiflette, or fondue form.
