The Matterhorn, Switzerland

Tuesday, March 29


If there was a single favorite day on our European Christmas trip, it's a toss up between this day at the Matterhorn, and our day in Colmar, France {which you'll read about soon!}.

Seeing the Matterhorn has been on my bucket list since I was a child. It's always been my favorite ride at Disneyland, not because it's the most fun, but because of the adorable Swiss ambiance. The ride attendants wear leiderhosens for pete's sake! So charming:)

The real Matterhorn was a million times better! We had heard stories of people who had tried to visit the town of Zermatt, where the Matterhorn is located, and were never able to see the mountain because of the bad weather. When we saw a single sunny day in the forecast, we immediately made plans to travel to the famous mountain town.

You cannot drive into the village of Zermatt, so we drove as far as Täsch where we parked, and then hopped on the shuttle to Zermatt. The shuttle will take you right into downtown Zermatt which is absolutely idyllic. When we arrived, we went to the information desk to figure out what we wanted to do. It would have been a beautiful day for skiing, but we didn't arrive until midday and weren't sure if that would give us enough time.

We settled on taking one of the many cable cars up to a scene look-out point, and then took a hike to a beautiful mountain chalet/restaurant in Fluhalp. If you are looking to copy our exact route (which was amazing, and I'd totally recommend it) here is what we did:

-Purchase a ticket up to Blauherd
-From the bottom, ride the funicular to Sunnegga.
- From Sunnegga, you will then get on one of the eight-person gondolas up to Blauherd
- When you arrive at Blauherd, you can hike up to Fluhalp
- Enjoy a drink and food and the most AMAZING view ever from the Fluhalp restaurant

Hiking up to Fluhaulp was breathtaking. I couldn't even fathom the majesty of being so high up in the snowy mountains with the sun beating on my face, and scenic peaks from all angles. It was a dream. Our family will remember it forever. The day was so beautiful, we actually got hot on the hike and shed some layers!

That evening, after riding back down the mountain, we took a jaunt through the charming town of Zermatt. I wish we could have stayed longer. Kevin and I already have it on our list to return to! If you go to Swizterland, make sure the Matterhorn and Zermatt are on your list!

PS- I found this really neat site online that has all sorts of historical and current information on the Matterhorn and Zermatt. I couldn't pull myself away from the stories!!