As predicted, jet lag hit me like a truck the moment I got into an actual bed in 48 hours. Not even the au naturale alarm of next door’s rooster roused me earlier than 11:00 so I had to hustle down to base camp ASAP (luckily I already paid for my lift ticket and ski rental ahead of time). Zermatt is a ski town through and through, but I’m surprised by the variety of restaurants, bars, and shops to choose from.
Undoubtedly the coolest part is Hinterdorfstrasse, where centuries-old buildings still serve as rental properties for the über-rich to feel cultured (I’m not jealous YOU’RE jealous). Horse-drawn carriages and square taxis take folks wherever they need to go in this auto-less village, yet it remains extremely walkable. As far as personal recommendations go, you can’t miss with the Lego Bar, the Brown Cow (an Irish pub with live shanties every Thursday), or the upscale cocktail lounge Papa Caesars.
With the late start, I decided to choose carefully the slopes I’d ski (and hopefully not pieste-off the locals). The Klein Matterhorn, aka Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, offers a chance to cross the southern border into Italy and experience their Alps for a modest additional fee (though be warned: their routes are for the experienced skier). I had a cappuccino at 3000m and terrific views of the signature summit the entire time, though the rust on my talent for slalom showed (or the Swiss idea of a blue is skewed).
Nightlife in Zermatt is great on a Friday night, and the Eurobeat energized my tired legs as much as the lager at the bottom. I can wholeheartedly suggest Schmuggler’s Höhle for a quick drink before the Greenline bus takes you back from the ski lift, though I’ve heard some other stops quite literally off-pieste on the way down also have drinks a-plenty for sore muscles (just don’t forget you still need to finish going downhill and not just metaphorically).
I’ll spare you the details on my uneventful last night in Zermatt, but once again I can’t recommend this place strongly enough within your budget and timeframe. Though maybe it’s better to stay in a place not as far off the beaten path that I took; at least brush up on that Duolingo before departure!
Ice's Travels 