Life on the Piste - The Swiss Traveller's Guide.

The Best Places to Explore in Switzerland this Summer The Swiss Alps are a haven for outdoor enthusiasts, offering breathtaking landscapes, crisp mountain air, and a multitude of hiking trails. This summer, if you're looking to embark on an unforgettable hiking adventure but you can’t quite decide where to go, then look no further. In this blog po st, we'll explore the top five destinations for hiking in Switzerland, alongside some of the best trails and routes in each. Get ready to lace up your hiking boots and immerse yourself in the awe-inspiring beauty of these alpine wonderlands . Photograph: © Pascal Gertschen Zermatt: Nestled at the base of the iconic Matterhorn, Zermatt is a paradise for hikers. This charming mountain village boasts an array of well-marked trails that cater to all levels of experience. At OTP, one of our favourite hiking routes is the Gornergrat Ridge Walk, which rewards hikers with panoramic views of glaciers, snow-capped peaks, and sparkling mounta

  Experience. Wonder. Marvel. What could be more obvious than to build a railway on the famous and popular viewing mountain? Completed in 1898, the Gornergrat was the first electric rack railway in Switzerland, and third in the world. Having said that, the Chemin de fer de Salève (France 1892) and the Barmer Bergbahn (Germany 1894) were both dismantled in 1937 & 1959, making the Gornergrat the oldest existing electric rack railway in the world Gornergrat Railway – 125 years of fascination The walk from Zermatt to Hotel Riffelhaus (built in 1854) took around 1½ hours - although it took Mark Twain much longer in his amusing book of his ascent! Palanquin bearers estimated about 4 hours and other options were by horse or mule. The opening of the Gornergrat Railway meant that people could travel by train to over 3000m² in altitude for the first time in Europe, replacing the Brienzer Rothorn Railway which previously held the record in Switzerland at 2252m². From 20th August 1898 to today