Guide · Skiing

Matterhorn Glacier Paradise skiing, summer and winter

The glacier under the summit station is one of the few places in the Alps where people ski in July. Here is what Matterhorn Glacier Paradise skiing really involves, and what changed in 2026.

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Editorial team, matterhornglacierride.comUpdated October 22, 2026Reading time 7 min30 sources

Bookable here: the tour Matterhorn Glacier Paradise cable car ticket 4.8 (1,294 reviews) Return ride, valid 1 dayGlacier Palace included from$129per person Check availabilityFree cancellation until 24 hrs before your date

On the snow, in brief

01Summer pistes: Zermatt Bergbahnen gives up to 21 km of summer pistes on the glacier.¹
02Time of day: In summer the snow is skiable until midday.²
03Summer 2026: Summer skiing for guests was suspended on 31.07.2026 because of the weather.³
04Beginners: SnowXperience at Testa Grigia has a beginners' park and a snow-tubing hill.⁴
05Winter: The linked area with Cervinia and Valtournenche counts 352 km of pistes.⁵

Snow at the top of the lift, all year

The Theodul Glacier sits between the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise and the Italian border, high enough that it holds snow when the valley below is green. Zermatt Bergbahnen calls it Europe's highest and biggest summer ski resort, with up to 21 km of pistes.¹ The Italian lift company Cervino counts the same summer terrain as 25 km of slopes reaching up to 3883 m at the Small Matterhorn.⁶ The two figures measure one glacier from two sides of the border, so treat either as the order of size rather than a precise count.

Zermatt Bergbahnen goes further and says skiing and snowboarding are possible 365 days a year in Zermatt-Matterhorn.⁷ In practice summer skiing is a morning affair: the operator says that on the glacier, conditions stay wintry and suitable for skiing, snowboarding and freestyling up to midday.⁸ After that the sun softens the surface, and the slopes are left to the people walking out to look at them from the platforms.

This makes summer skiing at Matterhorn Glacier Paradise a very different day from a winter holiday. You ride up early in ski boots, share the cabins with sightseers in sneakers, ski a few hours on a glacier with the Matterhorn beside you, and are back in the village for a late lunch. It suits people who already ski and want a day on snow, and families who want a first taste of it in the middle of summer.

A summer lesson

From the village to the beginners' park

Early morning

Board in Zermatt

At least 1 hour before the lesson, as the listing asks.
21 minutes

To Trockener Steg

The Matterhorn Express runs via Furi and Schwarzsee.⁹
Next leg

Up and over to Testa Grigia

9 min to the summit station, then 4 min to the border.⁹
10:00

Meet at the shop

Equipment is fitted at the Zermatters shop on Testa Grigia.
Lesson

First turns

Lessons begin 30 minutes after the meeting time and last 1.5 hours.
Midday

Snow softens

In summer the glacier is skiable until midday.²

What happened to the summer season in 2026

Plans and reality parted ways this year. The Aosta Valley tourism site listed summer skiing on the Italian side as open from 4 May 2026 to 6 September 2026.¹⁰ Then, on 31.07.2026, Zermatt Bergbahnen temporarily suspended summer skiing for guests on the Theodul Glacier because of exceptional weather conditions; the notice was still there when we read it on 22 October 2026.³

The Italian side posted the same date. A notice of 31/07/2026 on the Aosta Valley tourism site says summer skiing is suspended until further notice because of unfavorable snow conditions.¹¹ A year earlier the picture was different: at the end of the Italian 2025 ski season, Cervino reported that summer skiing continued as usual on the Plateau Rosà glacier, over 3,500 meters up and linked to Zermatt.¹²

The lesson for anyone planning a future summer trip is simple. A summer ski day depends on the state of the glacier that year, and a suspension can come in the middle of the season. Keep the ski part of the day flexible, check the operator's news page in the week before you travel, and book anything you cannot move with free cancellation. The ride and the summit itself are a separate matter: the cable car ticket on this site covers the return ride, the viewing platform and the Glacier Palace, not skiing.

Pistes in kilometres

How the ski terrain adds up

Winter pistes of the international area by side, from the Aosta Valley tourism site; summer glacier pistes as Cervino and Zermatt Bergbahnen give them.⁵ ⁶ ¹

Ski listings

Lessons and tours bookable near the glacier

Listing	Where it meets	From	Length
First summer ski lesson	Testa Grigia	from $222	1.5 hours
Private family lesson	Sunnegga station	from $358	3 hours
Private ski tour	Hotel pickup	from $426	3.5 hours to 1 day

Starting prices from each GetYourGuide listing as recorded, not exact quotes; the length is the listing's own.

Three ways to ski

Glacier lesson, family lesson or ski tour

Zermatt skiing: your first SnowXperience on Testa Grigia

On the glacier

Summer glacier lesson

SnowXperience, Testa Grigia

Season: May to October
Length: 1.5 hours
Price: from $222

See the lesson

Zermatt: Family Skiing - private ski lessons and guiding

Most reviewed

Family lesson

Private, from Sunnegga

Rating: 4.86 from 19 reviews
Length: 3 hours
Price: from $358

See the lesson

Pickup included

Private ski tour

With après ski

Rating: 4.76 from 3 reviews
Length: 3.5 hours to 1 day
Price: from $426

See the lesson

Decision helper

Which snow day fits you?

Match the season and your level

I have never skied I ski and come in summer I travel with small children I want a full winter day I only want to look

SnowXperience at Testa Grigia

A beginners' park with hire equipment beside the Matterhorn Glacier Ride II station.⁴ ¹³

The glacier in the morning

Skiable until midday, if the season is running that year.² ³

Stay below Trockener Steg

Children under 3 may not ride the last section to the summit.¹⁴

The linked area to Italy

352 km of pistes across Zermatt, Cervinia and Valtournenche.⁵

The cable car ticket

Return ride, viewing platform and Glacier Palace, from $129.

up on the Theodul Glacier above Zermatt the conditions are wintry and still suitable for skiing, snowboarding and freestyling up to midday.

Zermatt Bergbahnen AGSource 8

Riding up with skis from Zermatt

Skiers take the same lift chain as sightseers. Zermatt Bergbahnen's crossing flyer gives 21 min from Zermatt via Furi and Schwarzsee to Trockener Steg, 9 min from there to the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, and 4 min on to Testa Grigia.⁹ The summer glacier lies around those upper stations, so most of a ski morning starts with that ride.

If you book the first ski lesson at Testa Grigia, its listing asks you to board the cable car in Zermatt at least 1 hour before the lesson starts; the meeting time is 10:00 and lessons begin 30 minutes after it. That means an early start on the first part of the ride, with skis or without, since the shop at the meeting point fits the equipment. Treat these as the listing's times for the lesson, not as the lift's opening hours.

Two rules matter for families. Children under three are not allowed on the section from Trockener Steg to the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, for health reasons linked to altitude sickness.¹⁴ And in parts of the year the 3S line is serviced: in 2026 the Matterhorn Glacier Ride I has maintenance from 27.04. to 22.05.2026 and from 28.09. to 30.10.2026, with the older cable car running instead.¹⁵

Checklist

Packing for a glacier morning

On you

Goggles or dark glasses and strong sunscreen
Warm layers, even in July
A water bottle for the altitude

Before you go

Check that summer skiing is running
Plan to be on snow early, before midday
Toddlers stay below Trockener Steg

Hire on site

Skis, boards and clothing at Testa Grigia
A lesson in the beginners' park

Calculator

Add up a snow day for your group

Pick a lesson or the ride and enter how many people

Glacier lessonTesta Grigiafrom $222 Family lessonPrivatefrom $358 Private ski tourWith après skifrom $426 Cable car onlyReturn ridefrom $129

People 2

Total from$444

per person from $222

Check availabilityfree cancellation

Each sum multiplies the listing's GetYourGuide from-price by the number of riders and converts it at the euro reference rate of the day; the checkout shows the real amount for your date.

Video

Summer skiing - July conditions in Zermatt and Cervinia

The video starts loading once you tap play.

SnowXperience at Testa Grigia for first-timers

At the border, beside the valley station of the Matterhorn Glacier Ride II, Zermatt Bergbahnen runs SnowXperience Plateau Rosa at 3,480 meters above sea level.¹⁶ It has a beginners' park for first attempts on snow, and since 2024 a snow-tubing hill.⁴ The summer 2026 timetable lists it as open 02.05.2026 - 31.10.2026.¹⁷

You do not need to bring anything to try it. Snow sports equipment and suitable clothing can be hired from the SnowXperience Plateau Rosa shop inside the Matterhorn Glacier Ride II valley station.¹³ Zermatt Bergbahnen also says the Matterhorn Alpine Crossing ticket includes entry to the SnowXperience park and the snow tubing, open from May to October.¹⁸

For a guided start, one GetYourGuide listing sells a first ski lesson in that park, from $222. Its record gives daily lessons from the beginning of May to the end of October, 1.5 hours long, with instructors who speak English and German, and a group limited to 7. The listing has no reviews yet, so you book it on its description alone.

Winter: one ski area across two countries

From late autumn the glacier becomes the top of a much larger area. The Aosta Valley tourism site gives the international ski area of Breuil-Cervinia, Valtournenche and Zermatt as 352 km of pistes, with 157 km on the Cervinia and Valtournenche side and 195 km on the Zermatt side.⁵ Its page on Breuil-Cervinia gives the linked total as 360 km instead.¹⁹

The same site counts 148 downhill runs, 73 at Cervinia and Valtournenche and 75 at Zermatt.²⁰ The best known of them on the Italian side, the Ventina, drops 11 km from 3480 m at Plateau Rosà to 2050 m in Cervinia.²¹ On a winter day with a passport in your pocket you can therefore ski from Switzerland into Italy and ride back the same way.

The two companies start their seasons on different dates. Cervino lists the Breuil-Cervinia winter season 2026/27 from 24 October 2026 to 2 May 2027.²² Zermatt Bergbahnen's winter 2026/27 timetable runs from 01.11.2026 to 02.05.2027.²³ Check both if your plan crosses the border in the first weeks of the season.

Lessons and guides on GetYourGuide

Beyond the summer glacier lesson, the listings in Zermatt are winter ones. A private family lesson starts from $358, lasts 3 hours and is rated 4.86 from 19 reviews. Its instructor meets you at the Sunnegga funicular station and helps you rent equipment and buy the ski pass at the shop next door.

For confident skiers, a private ski tour with après ski starts from $426, lasts from 3.5 hours to a full day, includes pickup and is rated 4.76 from 3 reviews.

None of these lessons is on the Theodul Glacier in summer, except the SnowXperience one. Read where each meets before you book: Sunnegga is a different lift from the Matterhorn Express, and a ski morning that starts on the wrong side of the village loses time. Every one of the three lesson and tour listings on this page carries free cancellation, ending 24 hours before the start.

Sun, cold and thin air on a summer glacier

A July morning in the village can be mild: the average July high at the MeteoSwiss station in Zermatt is 20 °C.²⁴ The glacier is another climate. MeteoSwiss says temperature falls by an average of 0.65°C for every 100 metres of height.²⁵ It also notes that in summer the average zero degree line moves between 3,000 m in June and almost 4,000 m in July.²⁶

The sun is the bigger risk. MeteoSwiss says UV radiation grows stronger by 10 to 12% for every 1,000 metres of altitude.²⁷ The Federal Office of Public Health adds that at 3000 metres the UV index can exceed 12 in early July, and that snow reflects 40 to 90 percent of UV radiation.²⁸ ²⁹ Goggles or dark glasses, sunscreen and a layer that covers the neck belong in every summer ski bag.

The height itself can also be felt. The NHS says altitude sickness can occur at high altitude, usually more than 2,500 metres above sea level, and is more likely if you go up quickly.³⁰ A morning that starts in the village and ends on the glacier is exactly that kind of fast climb, so go slowly on the first runs and drink water.

Above the clouds

The glacier is quiet early in the day.

Pick your date, swap the voucher in Zermatt and ride up while the sky is clear.

See datesfrom $129 · free to cancel 4.8 · 1,294 reviews, verified

You ask,we answer.

Can you ski at the top in summer?

Usually, until midday. Zermatt Bergbahnen says the glacier stays skiable until midday in summer, but it suspended summer skiing for guests on 31.07.2026.² ³

How big is the summer ski area?

Up to 21 km, or 25 km. Zermatt Bergbahnen gives up to 21 km of pistes; Cervino counts 25 km of slopes.¹ ⁶

Is skiing included in the cable car ticket?

No. The ticket covers the return ride, the viewing platform, the Glacier Palace and entrance fees.

Can a beginner try snow sports up there?

Yes, at Testa Grigia. SnowXperience Plateau Rosa has a beginners' park and hires out equipment and clothing.⁴ ¹³

Can young children ride up with us?

Not under three. Children under 3 may not ride from Trockener Steg to the summit station, for health reasons.¹⁴

When does the winter season start?

Late October or November. Cervino lists 24 October 2026; Zermatt Bergbahnen's winter timetable starts on 01.11.2026.²² ²³

Can you ski from Zermatt to Italy?

Yes, in the linked area. The international area of Zermatt, Cervinia and Valtournenche counts 352 km of pistes.⁵