Zermatt

Getting There

We are back with our second blog post! If you haven’t read our first post, I recommend you go back and read it, so you know how our European vacation started. Let’s pick up where we left off, shall we? We arrived in Paris around 1:15 pm local time. Our first train was scheduled to take off from Gare de Lyon (this is comparable to Grand Central Station in New York) around 4 p.m. CET. We made our way through customs fairly quickly, then found our luggage. Our next challenge was finding the best way to get to the train station. We found that the metro train system was very cheap, and it should get us to the station with ample time to spare. Indeed, we were correct in these assumptions; however, we did not realize how much we would stick out with two suitcases each riding the metro trains for an hour. We were packed in the train, and we felt very out of place with our bags that were taking up so much space!

We arrive at Gare De L’est, and this place is massive as well as freezing! It is a semi-enclosed area, but we could not get warm in this place. We were also hungry and needed to find some food before a 6 hour stint of train rides. We did what any American would do; we found the golden arches and settled into a train bench with our McDonald’s. It was a nice taste of home, but we were so cold (and getting over colds) that we could not enjoy the food the way we wanted to.

We found the platform our train was departing from and scanned our tickets. Our first train was a very nice high speed train to Strasbourg. These trains can travel up to 180 mph! I won’t burden you with too many of our other train details, but we jumped on three trains after this one. Around midnight we made it to our first destination: Zermatt, Switzerland! Zermatt is a car free city, so we had about a 10 minute trek (still with 2 large suitcases apiece) from the train station to our hotel. The town was dark and quiet when we arrived, so we got to our hotel to try to get some sleep.

Just to recap: at this point, we’ve had a two hour flight from Nashville to New York City, ten hour layover in NYC, seven hour flight from NYC to Paris, one hour metro ride, three different trains, bus ride to a different train station, one MORE train ride, and a ten minute walk to get to our very first hotel. An effective travel time of eighteen hours with a seven hour time difference. You might say we were a little bit tired!

Hotel

Have you ever woken up from a long sleep and felt like you were in a fairytale land? This is exactly how Rachel and I felt when we woke up in our Matterhorn view room. We were surrounded by snowy mountains with quaint Alpine lodges scattered all around us. We stayed at this cozy boutique hotel called Hotel Eden Wellness. Most of this trip consisted of long days and a ton of walking; however, our stay at Hotel Eden has been one of the most relaxed times we have ever had. Our room had a beautiful view, a large soaking tub, and a cozy walk-in shower. The room was modern, and everything in the room had a purpose. The spa inside the hotel made this trip incredibly relaxing. Upon arrival, we were given a basket with robes, pool and sauna towels, and spa slippers. There was an indoor pool on the bottom level of the hotel, and it was stunning! Also on the bottom level was a relaxation area with a glass ceiling where we watched the snow fall. Lastly, the spa had what the Europeans called a “thermen,” meaning public bath. This area consisted of two saunas, an aromatherapy room, a steam bath, and waterfall showers.

Our hotel stay also included breakfast. This is not your typical American breakfast, although some mornings we did have bacon and eggs. Most mornings were spent eating jam and bread, while drinking some of the best coffee I have ever had. I would stay at Hotel Eden again if we are ever back in Zermatt. The staff accommodated every need we had. They knew us by name, and they cared about our well-being. I could not recommend this place enough!

Food

Every meal we had in Zermatt was next level. Our first evening, dinner was spent at The Brown Cow. This was a burger pub that had such an American atmosphere that we forgot we were in Switzerland. The first American nod was that multiple Maroon 5 songs came across the stereo. Secondly, the burgers and fries each of us had were so delicious; we didn’t know such delectable burgers and fries could come out of another country.

We made a couple of stops at an Italian coffee shop called Cups. This was the first place I stopped in Zermatt while Rachel was sleeping off the jet lag, and it started the trip off on a high note. The coffee filled my soul, and the croissant filled my stomach. The store had a bar top facing the mountains, and I sat there soaking in the beauty for close to an hour. Later, we grabbed a pizza and a sandwich for lunch from Cups, and they were also delicious.

We found another coffee shop bakery called Zermatt Kitchen. It was a little more high end than Cups. Once again, I had another delicious coffee, and Rachel had a hot chocolate. This time, Rachel and I split a white chocolate cake that simply melted in your mouth. We found an empty table at this place and sat down, and we were lucky to get that table. If you ever attempt to go to this café in Zermatt, it is highly recommended to have reservations.

Luck was the name of the game for food in Zermatt, because another restaurant we went to asked if we had reservation. Once again we did not. We lucked out this time because the bar was empty, so we took the two empty seats here. This restaurant was The North Wall Bar & Pizzeria. At this restaurant you are given a piece of paper with pizza toppings, and you circle which toppings you would like. Each pizza is personalized for each customer. I ordered a spicy salami and mushroom pizza, while Rachel opted for an extra cheesy pizza. This place was an off the beaten path find that we were so happy to stumble upon.

The food scene in Zermatt is very unique. Very few restaurants are open after six in the evening, and most of them require a reservation. Several of the restaurants are higher end restaurants, including a larger variety of Michelin starred eateries. Keep that in mind when traveling to Zermatt. Expect a minimum of $25 a person when dining and much higher fees if you choose to eat at a Michelin starred restaurant.

Entertainment

We may have spent many hours at the spa, but that does not mean we stayed in the hotel all day. There are many things to do in Zermatt, and we made the most out of our time there. Our first day in Zermatt we saw a sign for paragliding around the city. Without hesitation, Rachel scanned the QR code and booked a reservation. I will link a video of her experience. She rode the high of paragliding throughout our entire Zermatt stay.

The same day Rachel was paragliding around the city, I was in the middle of a snowboard lesson. I have never skateboarded, wave-boarded, surfed, or anything similar. I booked a two hour lesson, and halfway through it I thought I was dying. By the end, I was sore from my shoulders, down my hips, and all the way in my ankles. You may think I had a horrible time, but it was just the opposite! I was on the slopes with a breathtaking view and one of the most iconic mountains within view.

One entertainment/hotel excursion we were looking forward to, we were unable to experience. Our last night in Zermatt was meant to be a stay at Iglu–Dorf. This is an ice hotel with jacuzzis and saunas that is supposed to be a once in a lifetime experience. Heavy wind and snow caused the lifts to close on the day of our expected stay. Iglu-Dorf was very accommodating and refunded us for our stay. Hotel Eden was also able to accommodate us for the extra night stay.

Instead of our stay in Iglu-Dorf, we chose to stay in and watch the incoming blizzard from the comfort of our balcony. Watching the snow fall across Zermatt was just as peaceful and beautiful as you see in the travel videos on social media. Whether you choose to venture around Zermatt or stay in your hotel and watch Zermatt from the warmth of your room, Zermatt has so much to offer travelers.

The last entertainment item I want to address is the train ride leaving Zermatt. It was dark outside on our arrival, so I missed the scenery. Therefore, I made sure to be awake and excited for the train ride out of the city. It did not disappoint! We spent almost an hour riding through snow covered mountains. The sun had just risen so the sky produced many beautiful colors. Once we were an hour out of the city, the snow became less prevalent, but the beauty was still there.

Final Thoughts

Zermatt was exactly what we needed. A few days to relax before we hustled all day and night through the big cities. A week in Zermatt is plenty of time to see and do what you want. I do wish we spent a little bit more time hiking and exploring the mountains, but cost and time did not allow that for this trip. Remember to have reservations made at restaurants before your stay. The winter time is their busy season, so during this time it is even more important to plan ahead with reservations. Below is a list of links of places we visited or what we recommend. If you have any questions about our stay, we would love to answer them. We soaked up the beauty of this place. It is amazing what the world holds, and we are incredibly blessed to be able to visit such an amazing city!