Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, the highest cable car in Europe.

If you have a Swiss Travel Pass, the return trip costs you half.

What is at the top

The Matterhorn Glacier Paradise is the Klein Matterhorn station, at 3,883 m, the highest in Europe that you can reach by cable car. Up here there are four things, all included in the ticket:

• The panoramic platform, the highest in Europe, at 3,883 m. From it you can see 38 peaks above 4,000 metres and 14 glaciers in three countries: Switzerland, Italy and France.
• The Glacier Palace, an ice palace carved about 15 m below the surface of the glacier, between the Klein Matterhorn and the Breithorn, with sculptures, an ice slide and centuries-old ice formations.
• The Cinema Lounge, in the Breithorn tunnel, the highest cinema in Europe, with short films about mountaineering, flora and fauna, ice, and mountain lifts and trains. It is the place to acclimatise for a few minutes and a good plan if it is foggy outside.
• The restaurant, also at 3,883 m.

What's more, in summer there is snow to walk on all year round, and from here the Matterhorn Alpine Crossing sets off, crossing into Italy by cable car.

How you get up

From the Matterhorn Express station, south of the village, you go up via Furi to Trockener Steg. There you change to the Matterhorn Glacier Ride, which crosses above the Théodule Glacier to the Klein Matterhorn. If you come by car, remember that Zermatt does not allow petrol or diesel cars: leave them in Täsch and take the shuttle train.

Allow half a day: the journey in both directions, an hour or two at the top and the waits at the changes, which can stretch out in July and August.

Prices

Zermatt Bergbahnen charges CHF 138 return in summer (1 May to 31 October) and CHF 104 in winter (1 November to 30 April); a single costs CHF 69 and CHF 64. With a Swiss Travel Pass, Half Fare Card or GA travelcard you pay half.

The afternoon ticket, from 13:30, costs CHF 110 in summer and CHF 84 in winter, but it is only sold on the same day at the ticket office and cannot be combined with those discounts. If you have a Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card, the normal ticket at half price works out cheaper.

Children, dogs and accessibility

Under-9s do not pay and 9 to 15-year-olds pay half; the company asks for an official document showing the date of birth. Children under 3 cannot go up from Trockener Steg to the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, because of the altitude. Dogs travel free. Bicycles cannot go on the last stretch, from Trockener Steg to the summit.

The altitude

In a very short time you go from Zermatt's 1,600 m to almost 3,900 m. It is normal to feel short of breath, get a headache or feel a little dizzy. Move slowly, drink water and, if you feel unwell, go down: it passes as you lose height. It is not a good idea for anyone with heart or breathing problems without checking first.

When to go

It runs all year. Go up when the sky is clear, ideally first thing: if the summit is in cloud you will see nothing, and the high cable cars stop in strong wind. Check the weather and the state of the lifts on the Zermatt Bergbahnen website the same morning.

This or the Gornergrat

The Gornergrat faces the Matterhorn head-on, is reached by train and is cheaper. The Glacier Paradise is higher, colder and has a glacier, an ice palace and snow in summer. If you only do one, make it the Gornergrat; if you are going with children who want snow in August, this one.