Tour of Monte Rosa

The first day of our adventure is dedicated to arrivals. Rail transfers from Geneva Airport to Zermatt are included within the itinerary, provided your flight arrives before 5:30 pm. If your flight lands after that, please coordinate your arrival with the LHO Base Camp Team, as the mountain train to Zermatt stops operating. We’ll be able to help book a taxi for the Visp-Zermatt leg of the journey.

The meeting point is Zermatt Bahnhof (train station), where your LHO Team Leader will be waiting to welcome you. It’s a short walk to our hotel from there, where we’ll get you checked in, perform a gear check, and head out to rent any items you may be missing. Check-in starts at 3 pm, but we can store our bags at the hotel and roam around if we arrive early. We highly recommend arriving early if you need to rent or buy gear on arrival day. This makes things much easier for you on the following day. The gear stores close at 7 pm. Your LHO Team Leader will send you a list of stores, markets, restaurants, and cafes to visit if it’s closer to your arrival time.

The first scheduled event of our adventure is a team dinner hosted by Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide in town at 7:30 pm. This will be your first opportunity to meet everyone, receive a detailed briefing of the epic adventure ahead of us, and ask any questions you may have. First round of drinks is on us!

Distance: 9.3 KM – Ascent: 26 M – Descent: 1,481 M

We won’t need to pack our belongings on the first day since we’ll be returning to the hotel tonight. After breakfast, we’ll head to the world-famous Gornergrat train station to catch the panoramic mountain train up to the Gornergrat observatory high above the Monte Rosa glacier. The train ride takes about one hour and includes some of the most stunning views of the Swiss Alps, including the Matterhorn, Dent Blanche, Breithorn, and, of course, Monte Rosa. Once we reach the top station, we’ll have time to capture incredible pictures of the entire Monte Rosa massif and learn about the different summits that make up the second-highest collection of mountains in the Alps. We’ll also visit the observatory, where we can grab a quick coffee and explore the gift shop. When ready, we’ll start heading down along the trail towards Zermatt. The trail initially follows the train tracks used to ascend. Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide will brief you on the best ways to use your poles on descending trails to avoid putting too much pressure on the knees. Straight ahead, we can see all the 4000-meter summits of the Matterhorn-Weisshorn range. The descending trail is gradual, shifting between pebbles and soil as we descend from the higher altitude environment. We’ll reach a train station along the tracks called Rotenboden. Here, we veer off towards the Riffelsee lake, famous for the reflection of the Matterhorn, a spot where we’ll take our time to enjoy. Photography here is a given. We’ll also pause for our packed lunch to relish this stunning view. Once ready, we’ll follow a descending trail that gradually weaves its way down along the mountain path, entering the deep alpine forests. Small chalets and farms will come into view as we approach the outskirts of Zermatt before finally arriving at the paved road leading to the town center. The afternoon will be free to explore and enjoy the village. Your LHO Team Leader will be available to provide recommendations for market streets and cafes to visit, as well as details about the team dinner meeting point.

Distance: 6.4 KM – Ascent: 52 M – Descent: 847 M

Our second day on the trail amplifies the epicness of the previous day. We won’t need to pack up again, staying in Zermatt for one more night. After breakfast, we’ll head towards the Sunnegga underground tram and take it up the mountain. From there, a cable car to Blauherd will offer breathtaking views of the Zermatt valley. Once at the top, we’ll use the Rothorn cable car to ascend to the day’s high point and trail starting point. We’ll take our time to enjoy the views and capture many pictures before descending on a trail winding through a beautiful valley. Snow patches are common, and as we descend, the rocky trail transitions to short grass vegetation. A switchback loops us back towards Zermatt. The trail follows a ravine passing a remote cabin called Flualp, where we’ll stop for lunch. Depending on the season, the cabin may be closed, and we’ll picnic on the outdoor terrace. Continuing along the ravine, we descend towards the Leisse lake, a classic viewpoint of the more distant Matterhorn. After lunch and photos, the trail leads us into the alpine forests, with small farming houses and chalets marking our entrance to the Zermatt outskirts. The final stretch along a paved road brings us to the town center. The afternoon is free to explore Zermatt before the team dinner at a local restaurant. Your LHO Team Leader will provide details about the dinner meeting point and suggest places to visit. As we’ll be leaving Zermatt the next day, preparing our bags the night before is recommended, taking only backpacks, as the remaining bags will stay in the hotel’s storage room. Your LHO Team Leader will assist in packing light for the three nights away.

Distance: 8.0 KM – Ascent: 214 M – Descent: 991 M

Our trekking day marks a complete shift in scenery as we leave Zermatt and head to the adjacent Saas Valley on the northernmost part of the Monte Rosa Massif. After breakfast, we’ll depart for the Zermatt bus station, where we’ll take a ride to Saas Grund (about one hour). Depending on the season, we may need to take a train out of Zermatt and connect with a shuttle bus down the valley. Plans will be briefed by your LHO Team Leader closer to the time. In Saas Grund, we’ll store our bags at the hotel and take a local bus for a short ride to Saas Fee. Crossing the town on foot, we’ll board the Plattjen cable car for a brief climb to our trailhead at the high point. The summit views here differ significantly. The glaciers of Saas Fee feel much closer to the valley, offering views of Allalinhorn, Alphubel, Taeschorn, and Mischabel—the third-highest massif in the Alps. Our trail starts toward the Allalin glacier, with Mittaghorn on our left. The descending trail follows the glacier’s edge and the basin surrounding Saas Fee, initially on the East and gradually turning around the village to reach the west side. As we approach the center, we enter the alpine tree line—ideal for a picnic lunch. Saas Fee lies directly beneath us, and the towering glacier is a short distance above. After lunch, the trail continues, and depending on the team’s energy, we may complete the full semi-circle or take a shortcut trail back to town. On arrival, we’ll have free time to explore Saas Fee’s market streets, cafes, and bars. Your LHO Team Leader will set up a meeting point for our short bus ride back to the hotel in Saas Grund. Dinner will be at the hotel, where a briefing about the next epic day will be provided.

Distance: 14.0 KM – Ascent: 724 M – Descent: 1,618 M

After breakfast, we’ll take a local bus for a short ride to Mattmarksee lake. The dam of the lake gained fame as the location for the opening scene of James Bond’s Goldeneye in 1992. Our trek begins along the lakeside, with the lake on our left and its mesmerizing blue waters. As we reach the lake’s end, the trail ascends along the slopes of Monte Moro. This is our first ascending trail of the trip, and your LHO Team Leader will help set a sustainable pace. The path shifts from short grass vegetation to rockier terrain until we reach the southern pass just below the summit at 2,870 meters. Reaching the top offers an incredible view of the Italian Alps, dominated by the southern slopes of the Monte Rosa massif. We’ll stop for a picnic lunch at the pass before descending towards the town of Staffa. The descending trail follows a series of switchbacks, eventually entering the alpine forest before reaching the town roads leading to the center. We won’t stay overnight in the town, so depending on our arrival time, we may briefly explore before catching our shuttle bus to Alagna Valsesia, where warm showers and a fantastic Italian dinner await! The bus ride takes about two hours.

Distance: 8 KM – Ascent: 36 M – Descent: 1179 M

After breakfast, we’ll head to the Monte Rosa Paradise cable station to begin a series of cable cars that will take us on a tour of the southern slopes of Monte Rosa. These cables offer spectacular views, allowing us to cover a great distance. We’ll reach the Indren point before descending along a series of cable cars to the town of Staffal in the Gressoney Valley. Summits of the Monte Rosa, including Punta Gnifetti, Piramide Vincent, Lyskamm, and Naso, are visible. In Staffal, we’ll take a coffee break before climbing the last cable car of the day to Colle Bettaforca. From here, we’ll start our late walk towards the town of Champoluc in the Val d’Ayas. The trail, starting at high altitude, is dry and rocky. This is also the starting point for climbers attempting to traverse the Lyskamm, so mountaineering is common on this section of the trail. The path begins with a small ascent across the mountain pass, shifting from the Gressoney Valley to the Val d’Ayas. Once across, we’ll slowly descend, traversing ravines and meadows. The famous Gran Paradisso, the only 4000-meter mountain fully inside Italy, is visible. We’ll enter the alpine forest before the trail turns left in a southbound direction. At the trail’s bottom lies the town of Champoluc—the end of the walking portion of this epic journey. However, the adventure isn’t over yet! From there, we’ll hop onto our shuttle for the one-hour journey to Valtournenche for our last night in Italy.

After days of walking along challenging terrain, today is a day to sit back, relax, and enjoy the paradise that is the Matterhorn (Cervino) region. We’ll be dropped off by bus at the Glacier Paradise cable station in the purpose-built resort town of Cervinia. From there, we’ll board a series of three cable cars to Testa Grigia, the highest accessible area on the Italian side of the Matterhorn. From there, we’ll have our last coffee in Italy at the Refugio Guide del Cervino before boarding the Swiss cable to the Klein Matterhorn at 3,883 meters, our highest reachable altitude of the trip and the highest cable car station in the Alps. Weather permitting, we’ll be able to see the Matterhorn from the south, west, and north sides as we traverse the cable cars of the Glacier Paradise ski area. We’ll take a pause at the Klein Matterhorn to visit the glacier museum and see the Matterhorn from the deck of the highest cable station in Europe. Once the cold starts to bite, we’ll start descending via a series of cables that lead us back to where we started: Zermatt!

For the very motivated among us, it is possible to exit the cable car at Furi and do the last stretch through the forest on foot. It’s entirely optional, as the path here is well-marked, and individuals can choose to walk it alone if they want. For the rest of us, it’s cables all the way down and a straight line to the shower! We’ll be spending our last night together in Zermatt at our hotel. Your LHO Team Leader and local guide will be hosting a farewell team dinner at a restaurant in the town. The last round of drinks is on us!

Our final day together will be dedicated to airport transfers and farewells. Breakfast is included on this day. Please make sure that you provide us with the correct departure details when you fill out your Team Details Form prior to your adventure. If your itinerary has changed, please inform your Team Leader as early as possible for arrangements to be made.