Via Valais

Arrive in Geneva or Zurich airport and travel to Arolla via train and then Swiss Postbus. This pretty village is high up at the end of the Hérens valley. We’ll stay in the historic Hotel Kurhaus where you can relax and enjoy the views from the lawn or shady terrace.

We’ll enjoy a day to settle into trail running in this region, perhaps running up to the Swiss Alpine Club’s Cabane des Aiguilles Rouges or the Pas de Chèvre. We’ll also have time to enjoy the rugged, traditional Swiss village of Arolla.

Today we’ll take a taxi through the valley, to the village of Les Haudères. We’ll start our running with a couple of miles alongside the river to warm up. On reaching the village of Evolène, we head uphill to the Becs de Bosson mountain hut. This hut is at 3000m with views stretching all the way across to the high point in Europe, France’s Mont Blanc. Bag delivery isn’t possible, so we’ll fastpack, bringing minimal gear for our night at this high hut, where we’ll sleep in dorm rooms.

The Cabane Becs de Bossons, where we stay after leaving Arolla (PatitucciPhoto).

Today starts with a descent down to the Lac de Lona. A short ascent brings us up to the Basset de Lona pass and then a long descent ends at Lake Moiry. The second ascent is bigger, up to a high point called Corne de Sorebois. From here we descend to our hotel in the small village of Zinal, at the bottom of the valley – we can either take a more direct route down, a tram, or a longer route via the Petit Mountet Cabane.

Today we pass into the German speaking region of Switzerland, and also get to experience a remote corner of the Alps. We head out of Zinal along the final section of the famous Sierre-Zinal race. This includes great running along a high-level traverse, before we head over into the next valley via the Col de la Forcletta. We arrive in the Turtmann valley and descend to Turtmannsee – the Turtmann lake. A final short ascent brings us to the Swiss Alpine Club’s Turtmann Hut, where we have dorm accommodation for the night. There will be no bag delivery tonight.

Trail running with the Dom in the distance, on the descent to the Mattertal valley (PatitucciPhoto).

We reach the Zermatt valley, or Mattertal, today by heading up and over the Augstbord pass then down to the valley village of St Niklaus. An optional cable car from the high mountain hamlet of Jungen saves thousands of feet of trail running downhill at the end of the day, if desired.

Today, we’ll take the valley train up to the village of Randa and have the option to cross the Charles Kuonen suspension bridge, the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge at 494 meters in length. From here we continue along the Europaweg, a high-level traverse with flowing running and our first views of the Matterhorn. We spend the night high on the valley side above Zermatt at a mountain hotel with dorm accommodation. There is no bag delivery available tonight.

Our last day of the tour takes in a lap high above Zermatt with great views of the Matterhorn (PatitucciPhoto).

Today is one of the best single days of trail running to be found anywhere in the Alps. We’ll cruise around the head of the Zermatt valley with incredible views the whole way – and several great options for coffee stops! The gradients are gentle overall, with a final descent right into Zermatt.

Enjoy some time exploring the car-free village of Zermatt, a historic climbing and ski town dotted with centuries-old wooden chalets. Or take a local trail run – you could even use the excellent trams and cog-railway trains to avoid too much up or down. At the end of the day, you can enjoy the spa at our hotel in Zermatt!

We’ll finish the trip with a final dinner, recounting highlights from the past week of trail running along the Via Valais, the newest and one of the best-designed trail running routes in the Swiss Alps.

Today we’ll enjoy a final breakfast together, then take our leave of Zermatt, heading home, elsewhere in the Alps for more trail running – or wherever your travels take you next!