Getting There
Overview
Zermatt is not as far as it may seem and has come closer this year. From the UK, it typically takes a good half day to get there, which is comparable to many other resorts. There isn’t usually time to ski on the day of arrival, but if you book a late flight back then you can often get a full day’s skiing on departure day. For the coming season, train transfers have improved dramatically, with much shorter travel times from Zurich and Basel airports, combined with much later evening transfer connections in Visp, which means that you can book later flights. You will find detailed timetable information below.
There are many ways of getting to Zermatt, including by private jet to Sion airport followed by a helicopter transfer.
A car is not really useful because Zermatt is entirely car-free – all cars must be parked in Täsch, the last village before Zermatt – from where there is a shuttle train or taxi into Zermatt (12 minutes).
New this year: a long train tunnel under the Bernese Alps will open on December 14th. This will reduce journey times from Zurich, Basel and Bern to Zermatt by one hour, making them faster gateways than Geneva. The main railway hub in the valley is now Visp, where you change from the mainline train to the narrow-gauge red mountain train. The last train departing from Visp to Zermatt is much later this year: it leaves at 22:40 Mon-Sat; and at 23:22 on Sundays.
Because Geneva is a major gateway for skiers, it is often very busy and flights can become expensive at peak times. In addition to Zurich, the Milan airports are well worth considering, especially Milan Malpensa, which is geographically the closest airport to Zermatt.
Note that many of our properties run from Sunday to Sunday in order to avoid the Saturday ski travel crowds and costs.
Our recommended method of reaching Zermatt is to fly to Zurich or Geneva and take the train. It’s convenient, relaxing, reasonably fast, and scenic. Zermatt is one of the few ski resorts which has its own dedicated train line, and we prefer trains to either coaches or cars. Especially Swiss trains. The journey usually takes around 3 1/2 hours with one change in Visp. If you are arriving late or you are in a hurry, then the last, slower part of the train journey from Visp to Zermatt can be replaced with a taxi transfer which gives a total journey time of around 3 hours. The luxury alternative for a cost that is not excessive is to take the train to Sion, then fly to Zermatt by helicopter. Mountain Exposure will be glad to advise upon and arrange your transfer, be it by helicopter, minibus, train or indeed paddle-steamer!
Because Geneva is a major gateway for skiers, it is often unpleasantly crowded and flights can become expensive at peak times. In addition to Zurich and Basel, the Milan airports are well worth considering, especially Milan Malpensa, which is geographically the closest airport to Zermatt.
Here is an overview of average train times and driving times from surrounding airports to Zermatt.
| Transfer: | by train | by car |
| Zurich | 3:35 | 3:45 |
| Geneva | 3:45 | 2:45 |
| Basel | 4:13 | 3:45 |
| Milan Malpensa | 3:45 | 2:45 |
| Milan Linate | 4:00 | 3:20 |
| Sion | 2:00 | 1:15 |
| Bern | 3:15 | 2:45 |
Geneva and Zurich have very convenient train stations at the airports, which enable you to take your baggage cart directly from arrivals to the train. The other destinations require a transfer from the airport to the nearest train station by either bus or taxi. This takes 10 minutes at Milan Malpensa and up to 60 minutes at Milan Bergamo. We give you more details below under each airport heading.
The two essential tools which we use when travelling ourselves are:
Skyscanner simultaneously searches all flights by all carriers, both low-cost and regular, between any two points in Europe, and gives you total prices including all fees and surcharges, thus making comparisons very easy.
All train times including to/from Italy are taken from the Swiss Railways website:
http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en
Top Tip: Swiss railways offer visiting tourists the opportunity to buy a greatly discounted return transfer rail ticket from any airport in Switzerland to their final destination for a flat rate of GBP 51 per adult in second class and GBP 79 per adult in first class (further discounts and free tickets for children). Because these must be purchased outside Switzerland, please visit http://www.swisspasses.com to buy yours online.
Geneva Airport
Easyjet, BA, Swiss and bmibaby all have numerous flights from a total of 23 UK airports. New routes from the UK this year include Bournemouth, Belfast and Edinburgh (Easyjet); Exeter (FlyBe); Leeds (Jet2com); Cardiff (bmibaby); and Jersey (FlyBe and Blue Islands).
In our experience the best deals are either with Easyjet or Swiss – the latter can be surprisingly useful, especially from London City Airport, which can now be accessed by the DLR. If you can’t find a good price, then it’s worth looking at Milan Malpensa or Linate. There are also charter flights, especially on Saturdays, so it can be worth having a look at charter broking websites such as www.charterflights.co.uk.
The train station is in the airport building and you can take baggage trolleys on the escalators – they have specially designed rubber teeth! Take the mainline train toward Brig and change at Visp for the small-gauge red train which winds its way up the valley to Zermatt. Trains usually leave at 27 min past the hour.
If you are arriving at the airport late in the evening, it will be necessary to do the final leg, between Visp and Zermatt, by taxi. This costs around CHF50 per person if there are 4 or more traveling together. Taxis need to be pre-booked and we would be glad to do so for you.
Last train with connection to Zermatt:
Geneva Airport dep: 19:47
Zermatt arrive: 23:44
Last direct train to Visp:
Geneva Airport dep: 22:27
Visp arrive: 00:57, then Taxi.
First Train from Zermatt to Geneva:
Zermatt depart: 05:39
Geneva Airport arrive: 09:33
Zurich Airport
Like Geneva, it is equally convenient in having a train station under the airport building and escalator friendly trolleys; although there are more intercontinental flights to Zurich than to Geneva, there are fewer flights from the UK. Swiss flies from Heathrow, London City, Manchester, Birmingham and Dublin to Zurich; BA fly from Heathrow, Gatwick and City; Easyjet from Luton and BMI from Edinburgh.
Last train with connection to Zermatt:
Zurich airport depart: 20:13
Zermatt arrive: 23:44
First train from Zermatt to Zurich:
Zermatt depart: 05:39
Zurich Airport arrive: 09:16
Basel EuroAirport
Journey time to Zermatt is shorter by 20 minutes than from Zurich, but the train station is not in the airport, so you need to transfer by bus or taxi. The bus from the airport to the main train station, Basel SBB, leaves every 10 minutes, and takes 20 minutes. Swiss, BA and Easyjet fly to Basel from London City, Heathrow, Luton, Stansted, Liverpool and Manchester. Ryanair has a Dublin flight. The last train leaves Basel SBB at 20:30, arriving in Zermatt at 23:44.
Milan Malpensa Airport
This airport is the closest to Zermatt as the crow flies, however the transfer to the train station and the connections are slightly less convenient. On the other hand, flights can be very low cost. It lies to the North-West of Milan, toward the Swiss Alps. The nearest train station is a 10 minute, 10 euro taxi ride away at Gallarate. From there mainline express ‘Pendolino’ tilting trains go to Visp in Switzerland where you change onto the little red mountain train. Total train journey time is usually 3:45 hours.
In addition to BA and Alitalia; Easyjet flies from London Gatwick, Bristol and Edinburgh to Malpensa, while Flybe goes from Birmingham and Manchester. Prices can be very advantageous compared to Swiss airports, particularly at peak dates such as school holidays. It is of course perfectly feasible with Easyjet to fly out to Geneva or Zurich and back from Malpensa, or vice-versa, for instance.
Last connecting train from Gallarate to Zermatt (change in Visp):
Gallarate depart: 20:58
Zermatt arrive: 23:44
First connection from Zermatt to Gallarate:
Zermatt depart: 06.13
Gallarate arrive: 10:02
Milan Linate Airport
This is slightly less convenient than Malpensa because you need to go around or through Milan to head toward the mountains. On the other hand, the transfer to Milano Centrale train station is quite fast (20-30 minutes by taxi or direct bus) and the shopping is divine!
Last train from Milano Centrale:
Main station depart: 20.25
Zermatt arrive: 23:44
Milan Bergamo Airport
The attraction of this airport is that it is served by Ryanair which means cheap flights. This airport is 1/2 hour farther than Linate, also requiring you to go around or through Milan to head toward the mountains. The transfer to Milano Centrale train station is by shuttle-bus and takes 50min. The last connecting train to Zermatt is at 20:25.
Bern Airport
This is a small provincial airport; however Flybe flies there from Southampton and Birmingham. BA flies to Bern from Brussels. There are also charters.
Sion Airport
The closest airport to Zermatt. However, there are currently only three international flights per week, Charters operated by Flybe out of London Gatwick, Stansted and Edinburgh on Saturdays. Tickets can be bought from http://www.ski-flights.com/sionflights.html.
| Helicopter Transfers with Air Zermatt (only during daylight hours) | |||
| From/to: | Single engine: max 5 Pers. | Twin engine: max 6 Pers. | Flight time - one way |
| Zürich: | CHF. 5'790.- | CHF. 9’100.- | c. 60 Minutes |
| Geneva: | CHF. 4'780.- | CHF. 7'890.- | c. 45 Minutes |
| Basel: | CHF. 6’210.- | CHF. 10’250.- | c. 70 Minutes |
| Milano Malpensa: | CHF. 3'270.- | CHF. 5’410.- | c. 35 Minutes |
| Milano Linate: | CHF. 4’470.- | CHF. 7’380.- | c. 40 Minutes |
| Bern: | CHF. 3’410.- | CHF. 5'630.- | c. 35 Minutes |
| Sion: | CHF. 1'540.- | CHF. 2’550.- | c. 15 Minutes |