Matterhorn and Monte Rosa hiking tour, Swiss & Italian Alps

Dates: Middle of June – End of September

Experience hiking trough the Swiss and Italian Alps.

Hike two days in exquisite Zermatt, the mountain capital of the Swiss Alps before moving to Italie’s Aosta valley on the foot of Matterhorn and Monte Rosa.
We hike some of the finest trails out of Zermatt before following the ancient trails of the Walser people in the Aosta valley.

Thanks to the brand new lift Alpine-crossing, we can board the cable car in Zermatt up to Klein Matterhorn and continue all the way down to Cervinia on the Italian side of the now called Cervino. This is one of the most heavily-glaciated areas in the Alps, with Matterhorn and Monte Rosa as the highest peaks.

Our route dips into the Aosta and Piedmont regions of northern Italy, winding over isolated mountain passes and down into quiet villages.
See alpine fauna in their natural habitat and enjoy the fabulous hospitality and delicious cuisine. This tour starts in Zermatt, Switzerland and finishes at Orto Lake. Nestled in the North-Eastern corner of Piedmont, next to Lake Maggiore, is Lake Orta, one of Italy’s best-kept secrets. Lake Orta is highly underrated yet equally as compelling compared to its larger neighbour (and only an hour’s drive from Milan airport). There are plenty of cultural sites, gardens in bloom and experiences to live and breathe in this little corner of paradise to finish our hiking tour.

Matterhorn with mountain lake in Zermatt

Itinerary Hiking Matterhorn and Monte Rosa hiking

Zermatt and the famous Matterhorn
5 hiking days in the Swiss and Italian Alps
Cultural walks
Hotel nights and luggage support
Lake Orta and San Giulio island

Day 1: Arrival at Zermatt

The group meets at 6pm at the Hotel to go out for a welcome dinner in town. The guide will give you all the information for the tour.

• Night at Hotel in Zermatt

Day 2: Mountain lakes and Matterhorn view

The 5 Lakes Walk is in a class of its own among hikes in the Zermatt mountains. The views of the mountain lakes are superb (with the Matterhorn reflected in three of them), and the trail is full of variety.

Hike: 9.8km, +165m, – 454m
Night at Hotel Zermatt

Day 3: Zermatt hiking and Alpine crossing by cable car into Italy

Cultural and history walk to discover old villages and deep pots in the rock formed by the glacier. We cross a suspension footbridge that soars 90 vertical metres above the Gornerschlucht gorge. The view down to the foaming water of the Gornera river reveals the tremendous natural forces at work.After a picnic we start our cable car adventure from Switzerland over the Klein Matterhorn down into Italy. Beginning at 1,620m in Zermatt, it climbs to the incredible views of Klein Matterhorn at 3,883m. From the peak, it descends to Breuil – Cervinia at 2,050m.
With over 4,000m of ascent and descent, the Matterhorn Alpine Crossing has the largest elevation change of any cable car link in the Alps.

Hike: Can be adapted depending on weather and group conditions
Night at Hotel in Valtournenche

Day 4: Valtournenche – Rifugio Gran Tournalin – Saint Jaques

Our day begins with a short transfer to Cheneil, a small hamlet of stone farmhouses. From here we climb through open pastures to the Colle di Nina at nearly 9,200’ with its impressive views of the range of peaks between the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa. Our long descent to St. Jacques is a classic high alpine experience: amazing views, open meadows, craggy outcroppings.

Hike: 11.8km, +860m, – 1200m
Hotel in Champoluc

Day 5: Rest day Champoluc

Enjoy a day to yourself in the beautiful area where our historic Hotel stands. Enjoy a relaxing Spa afternoon or take „a little walk „ to discover all the ancient Walser houses in the hamlet.
Close your eyes and imagine sleeping in an authentic, age-old Alpine location, enjoying the tasty local food and the silence of a stone village overlooking Monte Rosa, at an altitude of 2,000 meters. Now open your eyes and you’ll discover that the reality exceeds your imagination.Life in the Mascognez hamlet is the real attraction for visitors, who become temporary inhabitants, discovering the way of life of our ancestors, with their everyday objects, their rural, pastoral life and the silent nature of the Alps.

Optional short hike
Night at same Hotel as last night in Champoluc

Day 6: Mascognez – Colle Rothorn 2689m – St.Ana lift – Stafal

A wild and timeless feeling accents today’s hike.
We first take a funicular lift up to Ciarcerio before ascending the Rothorn pass. If the weather permits we should have wonderful views to Matterhorn and Monte Rosa.
On our way down we pass a little mountain lake. This hike ends with a chair ride down into Stafal in the Gressoney valley.

Hike: 11km, + 1050m, – 1080m
Night at Hotel in Gressonay

Day 7: Gressoney – lift to Passo dei Salati and Alagna followed by a hike to Val Otro

We embarque on an other great cable car ride over Salati pass and take the easy way down to Alagna with an other chair. Once in the beautiful Valsesia and Alagna valley we start our hike to Otro valley. This trail is one of the classic and most beloved hiking trails in Valsesia. We reach the alpine landscape of Otro, of great cultural and naturalistic value, and enjoy the scenic beauty that this beautiful Valley can offer.

Hike: 11km, +650m, – 650m
Night at Hotel in Alagna

Day 8: Alagna to Orto lake

We leave the mountains today and move on down to Northern Italies lake area.
A shuttle (1,5hrs), brings us to the lake from where we take a boat to San Giulio island. A local guide will show us around. We enjoy a lunch on the island before continuing to Orto. We will have time to explore the small historic town before our check-in at the beautiful Hotel.
Tonight we celebrate the end of our hiking tour in the historic town next to the lake.

Hike: Walk
Night at Hotel at Orto lake

Map for Matterhorn and Monte Rosa hiking tour:

Change of program:

This program might be adapted by the guide depending on weather and conditions.

Costs:

6 hikers: 5’320.00€ per hiker

8 hikers: 4655.00€ per hiker

Included in the costs:

Organisation, UIMLA-mountain leader guide for all days, all nights in standard double rooms with ensuite bathrooms, all ground transportations from Zermatt, Switzerland to Lago Orto, Italy, all cable cars/lifts mentioned above, all breakfasts, dinners as mentioned above, luggage transfers (bags must weigh less than 15 kilos or 33 lbs)

Not included in the costs:

Personal insurance, lunches & snacks, beverages, tipps

Arrival and Departure for Matterhorn and Monte Rosa hiking tour

Zürich or Geneva airport in Switzerland are the closest ones to Zermatt. Zermatt can be reached by train.
A shuttle to Domodossola train station can be organised at the end of the tour from where you can take the train back to Zürich/Geneva or also to the Italian lakes area. Milano Malpensa airport would be an other good option to get in and out.

Weather

Summer hiking weather is generally very pleasant; and while you may walk in short sleeves under sunny skies on some days, we can almost guarantee that there will also be some days that are cool and wet, especially at higher elevations.
Temperatures can range from the low 40s at night to 80 °F during the day.

Along our hiking route, hikers can expect daytime temperatures in the 70s in the valleys and in the 50s or 60s above 8000 feet—although it’s not uncommon to have freezing rain or snow on the high trail one day, and T-shirt weather at the 9500-foot pass the next.