The Riffelsee lake is the perfect place for a photo with the Matterhorn. If you’re lucky enough to have no wind, the peak will be reflected in the water giving you the classic shot.

You can easily reach this lake by riding the Gornergrat cogwheel train from Zermatt to the Rotenboden stop. Then a 5 min walk down to the lake, no strenuous hiking involved. It’s a popular spot for tourists, so you might have to wait a minute to get a pic without a bunch of random people in it.

Many people stop here after visiting the Gornergrat viewpoint, one train stop higher. You can get on and off the train with a round trip ticket.

If you like hiking, you might enjoy hiking down from the Gornergrat to the Riffelsee, instead of taking the train. It's about 1 hour, descending 270m of elevation on a rocky trail.

You can also hike from Riffelsee down the mountain to either the Riffelalp or Riffelberg train stops. We highly recommend it as it allows you to escape most of the tourist crowds and enjoy the Matterhorn view longer. See trail info.

Book Gornergrat tickets here.