Zermatt, Switzerland’s best-known ski resort, was the base for the famous first assaults on the Matterhorn in the 1860s (prior to that villagers only climbed as high as their cattle).

Finally, in 1865, a Brit named Edward Whymper conquered the “Mother Horn” but lost four of his party on the descent. Winter sports enthusiasts started skiing under the shadow of the killer mountain in 1933, and now the storybook village has become one of Europe’s premier winter playgrounds.

Here is the Zermatt resort map in pdf format.

Thanks to strict town zoning, almost every structure in town is a quaint Swiss chalet less than four stories high. This fairy-tale setting is augmented by a babbling stream running through the middle of town. And, as if that is not enough, transportation is by horse drawn sleighs or electric taxis. Only the doctor is allowed to have a car in Zermatt! Everyone else, since 1891, arrives by train. Un-fortunately, the horse-drawn sleighs that used to carry tourists and townsfolk through the village, along with bags of groceries or ski equipment, have been largely replaced with speeding electric trucks and carts; when you hear a ringing bell, get to the side of the street.

But Zermatt is no small Alpine town. It is home to 5,500 permanent residents and swells to more than 20,000 on busy holidays. Fortunately, Zermatt is a destination resort; that is, the village is difficult enough for weekend skiers to reach to keep most of them away, and the vast terrain — more than 195 miles of marked ski trails (including Breuil-Cervinia) and a resort lift capacity over 78,700 people per hour — easily absorbs this many people. Even in the busiest seasons lift lines are not impossibly long and uncrowded slopes can be found.

Despite constant development, new hotels and apartments, Zermatt remains the world’s most quintessential ski resort. No matter how many times you come here you are always charmed and amazed that the village remains part of the real world.

Zermatt Tourism, CH-3920 Zermatt, Switzerland
Country code: 0041
Telephone prefix: 027
Telephone: (027) 966-8100
Fax: (027) 9666-8101
Email: zermatt@wallis.ch
Internet: www.zermatt.ch

Note: All prices are in Euros unless otherwise noted.

For more information on skiing and staying in the country of Switzerland, click the map.