View on alps, Zermatt, Switzerland

Zermatt is a tiny village in the Swiss Alps with approximately 6'000 inhabitants. It's also one of Europe's premier ski resorts and swells to some 20'000 guests during the winter high-season. Zermatt is found at the foot of the Matterhorn in the German-speaking canton of Valais in southern Switzerland. Located just 10 kilometers from the Italian border (Cervinia), you can go skiing in Switzerland in the morning, have lunch in Italy an hour later and be back in time for a tasty cheese fondue at Zermatt's oldest restaurant, the Café DuPont that evening.

The nearest airport is Zürich, 248kms (154 miles) away. Geneva airport is also close: 244kms (151 miles) away. Travel time by train from both airports to Zermatt is roughly 3 hours.

Zermatt is 'auto-free' to prevent air pollution so you can't drive into the village, but you can get here by cog railway train or taxi from the nearby village of Täsch, (7kms away). Trains also depart for Zermatt from further down the valley at Visp and Brig, which are connected to the Swiss rail network. Once in the village you will find numerous taxis and buses (all battery-powered) which will help you get you to your Zermatt hotel or to the ski-pistes.

Winter in Zermatt @ the Matterhorn Sport Resort

Zermatt is renowned as one of the best ski resorts in the Alps and is the favoured place to ski by many skiers who come here from all over the world. The village is surrounded by 3 major ski areas, with the world`s second biggest lift-served vertical drop and skiing 364 days a year. You can even ski Zermatt during the summer months on the glacier.

ZERMATT SKIING:

With great views of the ever-dominant, the most beautiful mountain in the world, the Matterhorn, you can ski at the Rothorn paradise (3103m), the Gornergrat (3089m), or up on the glacier area which is the Klein Matterhorn (3883m). Snow covered trails from November until April ensure that you will enjoy great skiing and long, long runs back to Zermatt - the longest being from Klein Matterhorn at 14 kilometers with a vertical drop of 2'200 metres! If you're looking for off-piste skiing you'll find lots of it here as well. There are plenty of large and rarely skied areas with blankets of white powder gold awaiting your challenge, but please be advised to ski off-piste only with a local ski guide - skiing in an avalanche is not a lot of fun...

BOARDING IN ZERMATT:

Snowboarding in Zermatt is the snow-surfer's paradise. Starting from the Klein Matterhorn (12'550ft), you glide down the mountain to the glacier where you'll get to show off your prowess at a number of snowboard parks and man-made half pipes. Seriously cool. Or you can just spend the day chilling out, surfing the slopes of Zermatt before you hit the clubs that night. You can rent your gear here too - the best equipment available and there's also a snowboard school too.

WINTER-WANDERING:

If you're a walker there are approximately 40km of winter footpaths which are regulary cleared of snow for you to enjoy.

Credit by : http://www.gozermatt.com/