The old Gant-Blauherd gondola at Zermatt, installed back in 1971, will be replaced by a new, high-performance Garaventa chairlift this winter.
The new six-seat chairlift can carry up to 1,800 skiers each hour (almost double the old lift’s capacity) from the Gornergrat ski area to the Rothorn ski area in just 3.6 minutes.
Once the Swiss Federal Office of Transport granted the concession and planning permission on 2 May earlier this year, work on the new 6-seater got under way within weeks. The new lift is due to go into test operation on 15th November, around two weeks before the winter season begins.
This season Zermatt will also reduce the minimum duration of its ‘Peak Pass’ from three to just one day – good news for parties with non-skiers in their group.
The ticket includes all of the peaks surrounding Zermatt that can be reached by mountain lifts along with train travel from Randa to Zermatt and return.
Added to this are the admission to the glacier palace and use of the local buses in Zermatt. The number of days for which the year round Peak Pass can be purchased now ranges from 1 to 30 days.
