Zermatt Favorites

Favorite thing: The most common European emergency number 112 (following Directive 2002/22/EC: Universal Service Directive) and also standard on GSM mobile phones. 112 is used in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Republic of Macedonia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom in addition to their other emergency numbers.

Here are some useful phone numbers that you might need while in Switzerland:

Police: 117
Ambulance: 144
Fire: 118
Poison: 145
Road emergency: 140
Psychological support (free and anonymous): 143
Psychological support for teens and children (free and anonymous): 147
Helicopter air-rescue (Rega): 1414 or by radio on 161.300 MHz
Air rescue (Air Glaciers) (in Valais only): 1415

Favorite thing: Below few words in Swiss German that you can use while visiting Switzerland.

Hello - Grüezi
Hello (to more than one person) - Grüezi mitenand
Good evening - Gueten Abig
Hi (more informal than "grüezi") - Hoi/Salü/Sali
Hi (to more than one person) - Hoi zäme
Good bye - (Uf) Widerluege/Ciao/Tschüss
Thanks a lot - Merci vilmal
See you later - Bis spöter
Monday - Määntig
Tuesday - Ziischtig
Wednesday - Mittwuch
Thursday - Dunschtig
Friday - Friitig
Saturday - Samschtig
Sunday - Sunntig
One - Eis
Two - Zwei
Three - Drüü
Four - Vier
Five - Feuf
Six - Sächs
Seven - Sibe
Eight - Acht
Nine - Nüün
Ten - Zää
Eleven - Elf
Twelve - Zwölf
Thirteen - Driizä
Fourteen - Vierzä
Fifteen - Füfzä
Sixteen - Sächzä
Seventeen - Sibezä
Eighteen - Achzä
Nineteen - Nünzä
Twenty - Zwänzk
Twenty-four - Vierezwänzk

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Favorite thing: Actually we wanted to take the Gornergrat train to Riffelberg and then walk up to Rotenboden but this meant walking on the ski piste were skiiers would flit by and make it a dangerous endeavour so we decided to continue on to Rotenboden walk down to the Igloo village then walk back up back to the station.

It was really worth the visit to see an igloo village built 2727 meters above sea level. We didnt try the Champagne or the whirlpool which was only for guests but we did enjoy the atmosphere of a nice sunny day in a village made out of snow and ice.

The music is low key, smells of fondue cooking, and the skiing crowd drop in to enjoy a warm drink and soak up the sun.

Fondest memory: The Matterhorn followed me around wherever I was in Zermatt from the moment I woke up and looked through my window or relaxed in the pool or walked or travelled up to the Gornergrat.

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Favorite thing: I have a crush on the Matterhorn. Ever since my Grandmother visited Switzerland 30 years ago and bought me back a small music box with a picture of the Matterhorn on top I have been smitten. So I was pretty excited to finally be seeing her 'in the flesh'.

The mountain is 4478 metres high, and while not the highest peak in the Alps, it is the most distinctive and well known. It is located on the border of Switzerland and Italy. It has four faces, and these are so steep that only small patches of snow and ice can cling to them. There is a glacier at the base of each face.

The first successful ascent of the mountain was in 1865, and people have been climbing it every since, some more successfully than others. Each year several climbers will die in their attempt to conquer the Matterhorn. You can read about them in Zermatt's cemetery.

Fondest memory: Not sure what happened to that music box my Grandmother bought me, but while I was in Zermatt I saw the exact same one! Of course I had to buy it, and now I can once more listen to the tune of Edelweiss and admire the mighty Matterhorn.

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Favorite thing: A marmot is a furry rodent that you may be lucky to spot whilst exploring the mountains around Zermatt. Wikipedia describes a marmot as a "large ground squirrel", and I thought they looked like a cross between a beaver and a groundhog. Marmots usually live in burrows, and hibernate during the winter months.

One good place to try some marmot spotting is at Sunnegga Paradise, where they have a 'Marmot observation post'. When we visited we were lucky to see one of these cute fellows sitting on a rock in the sun, munching on his lunch - some sort of green vegetation.

For more information on marmots you can take a 5 minute cable car ride from Sunnegga Paradise to Blauherd. Once there you can then follow the 'Marmot Trail' back to Sunnegga and learn about the marmot and its habits along the way.

Fondest memory: Our best marmot spotting was when we were on the cogwheel train to Gornergrat, and we were lucky to see a few of these critters enjoying the sunny day in the meadows.

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Favorite thing: As the weather was fine on our second day we decided for a longer hike. At first we took the funicular from Zermatt to Sunnegga Paradise (2288 m).

This was the starting point for a hike along the lakes Leisee and Grindjisee to the lake Grünsee (2300 m).

From there we went via Riffelboden (2348 m) to the Riffelalp (2200 m) where we took a rest in the Restaurant Alphitta.

During this walk the Matterhorn and the surrounding mountains are almost always visible. Apart from that, the Gornergrat railway and the famous Riffelalp tram can be seen on this walk.

This part of the hike took us about 3,5 h, including many photo stops. Please read "Hike: Riffelalp to Zermatt (Winkelmatten)" about how to get back to Zermatt

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Favorite thing: Of course most people come to Zermatt to see the famous Matterhorn mountain. Interesting enough with 4478 m in height it isn't Switzerland's highest mountain, which is the Monte Rosa (4634 m). Both mountains belong to the Pennine Alps.

The fascinating fact about the Matterhorn is that it doesn't belong to a mountain massif and is therefore clearly identifiable. The first ascent of the Matterhorn took place on the 14th July 1865 by a group led by Edward Whymper.

On clear days the Matterhorn can already be seen from Zermatt. Most hikes in the region offer panoramic views of the Matterhorn.

For more details please read my "Hike: Sunnegga Paradise to Riffelalp" tip.

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Favorite thing: After our arrival in Zermatt around late midday we wanted to head off for a first hike to explore our immediate surroundings.

We decided to walk to Z'Mutt which is a pretty little hamlet with two restaurants for hikers. It is located at 1936 m south of Zermatt (1620 m).

Depending on your level of fitness you can choose between at least 3 possibilities to get to Z'Mutt.

The quickest and most direct way follows the valley and takes only about one hour (upwards), whereas longer versions lead on smaller paths along the mountains and offer panoramic views of Zermatt and the valley.

All possibilities are well signposted and you almost can't get lost. Upwards we chose a way along the smaller paths and downwards we went along the valley.

To find the start of the paths just go to the district Oberdorf at the southwestern end of Zermatt. Look for signs directing to Z'Mutt.