Gornergrat Railway
Gornergrat Railway is one of the narrated stops on the self-guided Zermatt audio walking tour in Gingerguide. Plan about ~90 min here. Press play at the spot for its two to three minute story, or ask the AI guide anything about it.
- Type landmark
- Suggested visit ~90 min
- Zermatt Zermatt guide
About Gornergrat Railway
A cog railway, the highest open-air railway in Europe, that climbs from Zermatt to the Gornergrat ridge at 3,089 metres, opening a panorama of twenty-nine 4,000-metre peaks and the Gorner Glacier.
The Gornergrat Railway, the Gornergratbahn, is a rack railway that climbs from Zermatt at 1,604 metres to the Gornergrat ridge at 3,089 metres, a gain of nearly 1,500 metres over about nine kilometres of line. Opened on 20 August 1898, it was the first electric rack railway in Switzerland, and it is described as the highest open-air railway in Europe. The ride takes about half an hour, calling at Riffelalp, Riffelberg and Rotenboden, the stop for the Riffelsee.
The reward at the top is one of the great mountain panoramas of the Alps. From the ridge, between the Gorner and Findel glaciers, you look out over a wall of twenty-nine peaks above 4,000 metres, among them the Matterhorn, Monte Rosa with the Dufourspitze (the highest point in Switzerland), the Liskamm and the Weisshorn, above the great sweep of the Gorner Glacier. Beside the terminus stand the Kulm Hotel and its observatory domes.
Did you know? Opened in 1898, the Gornergratbahn was the first electric rack railway in Switzerland and is still the highest open-air railway in Europe, climbing to 3,089 metres.
How long should you spend at Gornergrat Railway?
Plan about ~90 min at Gornergrat Railway. That is enough to take it in and hear its narrated story; stay longer if it grabs you. The tour is self-guided, so there is no rush.
Is Gornergrat Railway worth visiting?
Gornergrat Railway is one of the 13 sights the Gingerguide team researched and narrated in Zermatt, so it earns a place on a self-guided walk. Its story explains why it matters, and you can ask the AI guide anything the story leaves open.
Nearby stops in Zermatt
Sources and further reading
Where to check the facts about Gornergrat Railway and read more:
Day 2 of the Zermatt in 2 days itinerary →
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Hear the story of Gornergrat Railway
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