The best seats on the Gornergrat Bahn
Right-hand side going up, and why it is not close
This is the one piece of advice I gave across the counter more often than any other, and it is free. Facing the direction of travel out of Zermatt, the Matterhorn sits on the right. For 33 minutes the mountain is on that side of the carriage, and everyone on the left spends the ride leaning across the aisle or standing in the vestibule. On the lower part of the climb, before the line swings up towards Riffelalp, the rear-facing seats keep Zermatt and the valley in view longest as you gain height above the village.
Coming down, the geometry reverses: the Matterhorn is on the left of a descending train. That is worth knowing if you are only riding one direction, which is more common than people expect. A single up and a walk down from Rotenboden or Riffelberg is the plan I recommend most often, and it means the ascent is the only seat that matters. The costings for that are on the hiking ticket.
What Priority Boarding actually buys
Priority Boarding costs CHF 7 per person, applies to the Zermatt → Gornergrat direction only, and is free for accompanied children under 6. What you get for the money is precise and limited: you board three minutes before everyone else, and then you choose any free seat you like. That is the whole product. It is not a reservation, no specific seat is attached to it, and the right-hand side is not guaranteed — if twenty other people also bought it, the right-hand window seats go to the quickest of the twenty.
What works
- Three minutes of empty carriage to choose a seat in
- Free for accompanied children under 6
- Useful in July and August, when the platform is at its busiest
- Cheap enough not to distort the cost of the day at CHF 7
Worth knowing
- It is not a seat reservation and buys no specific seat
- The right-hand side is not guaranteed
- Zermatt to Gornergrat only, so it does nothing for the descent
- The priority waiting area closes 10 minutes before departure
- On a quiet mid-morning train it buys you nothing at all
The priority waiting area closes 10 minutes before departure. Arrive later than that and the CHF 7 is spent for nothing, which is the most common way people waste it.
You cannot reserve a seat, and nobody can sell you one
There is no seat reservation on this line, on any ticket, at any price. If a listing implies otherwise, read it again. That is also why buying ahead does not improve your seat: an online ticket and a counter ticket board the same train through the same doors. Booking ahead buys you the queue, not the window. The wider version of that argument is on do you need to book.
How boarding really works on a busy morning
The carriages fill from the doors inward, so the seats that survive longest are the ones furthest from where the crowd enters. In practice: get onto the platform early, walk down the train rather than boarding at the first door you meet, and take the right-hand side even if it means a middle seat rather than a left-hand window. The line carries about 2,400 people an hour at capacity, and the busiest departures are the mid-morning ones once the day trippers have arrived from the valley.
If you end up on the wrong side, do not spend the ride resenting it. Get off at Rotenboden or Riffelberg on the way down and walk a section — the Matterhorn is unavoidable on foot, and the walk is the part most people remember. See what to do at the top.
Is the seat worth planning around at all?
Yes, because the view is the entire product. At CHF 132 for a summer return you are buying 33 minutes of ascent and a ridge at 3,089 m, and the difference between the two sides of the carriage is the difference between watching the Matterhorn and watching a rock cutting. I would put more effort into standing in the right place on the platform than into any upgrade on offer. Whether the ticket itself earns its price is a separate question, and I answer it on is Gornergrat worth it.
Book the return, then pick your side
The ticket is a mobile voucher for a return valid one day, with no seat attached. Book it below, then arrive on the platform in good time and take the right-hand side going up.
Frequently asked questions
Which side of the Gornergrat train is best?
The right-hand side going up from Zermatt: that is the side the Matterhorn is on. Coming down it is the left. On the lower section, rear-facing seats hold the view of the valley longest.
Can you reserve a seat on the Gornergrat Bahn?
No. Seat reservations do not exist on this line. Priority Boarding at CHF 7 lets you board three minutes early and then choose any free seat, which is not the same thing — and booking ahead does not help either, as explained on do you need to book.
Is Priority Boarding worth CHF 7?
In July and August on a busy morning departure, probably. Outside that, rarely. It buys a three-minute head start in the Zermatt to Gornergrat direction only, it is free for accompanied children under 6, and the priority waiting area closes 10 minutes before departure.
Do I need a window seat to see the Matterhorn?
It helps, but the side matters far more than the window. A middle seat on the right beats a window on the left. If you miss out, walk a section on the way down instead — the options are on the seven stations.