Guided climbs · The Breithorn, 4,164 m
Guided Breithorn and Zermatt 4,000 m climbs, compared
The Breithorn, Allalinhorn and Lagginhorn are where most people climb their first 4,000 m peak: a lift does most of the height and a guide does the rest in a morning. Day rates from Zermatt, Saas-Fee and Cervinia guides, the harder Breithorn traverses and Pollux, and the UK and Chamonix "4000er weeks" built around them.
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What kind of trip do you want?
Copied from each company’s own pages on Oct 22, 2026. Every “See dates” button opens the page we used. Where a page says which season a price is for, we show it. Prices are in each company’s own currency; sorting by price uses rough exchange rates. Prices change; the operator’s page wins if it disagrees with this one.
Free · no guide
Climb The Breithorn yourself
Everything above is for hiring a guide. If you have the skills, this is what you need to do it on your own, free. Facts come from the summit’s own page on PeakSeeker, with sources.
- Normal route
- South-southwest flank from the Klein Matterhorn (Breithorn Plateau route)
- Grade
- PD (glacier walk, ~35° final snow slope)
- How long
- 3-4 hours round trip
- Best season
- Late spring through early autumn (roughly May-September), when the Klein Matterhorn lift is running and the plateau is in stable condition
- Permits
- No climbing permit is required; access is via a paid Klein Matterhorn cable car ticket from Zermatt or Breuil-Cervinia.
- Start from
- Klein Matterhorn / Matterhorn Glacier Paradise cable car station, 12,740 ft (3,883 m)
- Climb from there
- 921 ft (281 m) of ascent over 3.1 mi one way
- Getting there
- Most climbers ride the Klein Matterhorn cable car from Zermatt to roughly 3,820-3,883 m, putting them within a few hours of the summit without an overnight hut stay. Nearest airport: Geneva Airport (GVA) or Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP).
- Hazards
- Crevasses on the plateau (rope and glacier travel skills required), altitude effects for those coming straight up from Zermatt, and rapidly changing high-alpine weather.
- Gear
- Standard glacier travel kit: crampons, ice axe, harness and rope for crevasse rescue; despite the easy grade, this is still real glaciated terrain and should not be treated as a simple walk.
Sources: guidezone.co ↗matterhornparadise.ch ↗activedreams.ch ↗saas-fee.ch ↗
Read this before you pay a deposit
The lift is the cost nobody puts in the price. Zermatt–Matterhorn Glacier Paradise is CHF 138 return in summer, every guide fee we found excludes it, and on Guidezone you also buy your guide's ticket. Active Dreams' Allalin package covers Saas valley lifts except the Metro Alpin, which is the one you need.
The cheapest way up is a group day: ZERMATTERS CHF 240 with crampons and harness included, or Jules Pession from €150 on the Italian side. A private ZERMATTERS guide is CHF 660 for up to six, so three friends pay about the same per head as the group and get their own guide.
The Allalinhorn is the Saas-Fee equivalent and costs about the same. Saas-Fee Guides charge CHF 310 each for three privately, Active Dreams CHF 360 each for two. Saas-Fee Guides only put people with crampon experience in their groups.
Traverses and Pollux are a different product: UIAA IV rock, 1–2 clients per guide, CHF 800–1,200 for one person. Don't book them as a "first 4000er".
UK 4000er weeks (Jagged Globe £2,695–2,895, Adventure Peaks from £3,195) buy 6 guided days with huts, hotels and a planned acclimatisation sequence, but still exclude lifts. Chamex's 6-day Saas-Fee course is €3,690. Booking local day guides gets you the summits for much less, but you plan the week and book the beds yourself.
- Breithorn normal route starts from the Klein Matterhorn lift station (3,883 m). Guides list it at about 3–4 hours for the round trip. The traverses start from the same lift and need climbing up to UIAA grade IV. guidezone.co ↗
- Zermatt–Matterhorn Glacier Paradise adult return: CHF 138 in summer (1 May–31 Oct) and CHF 104 in winter on the official price table. Operators quote less ("from CHF 95", "from approx. CHF 57") because they assume a GA, Half-Fare Card or Swiss Travel Pass discount. matterhornparadise.ch ↗
- Allalinhorn: the Metro Alpin takes you to Mittelallalin (about 3,500 m), leaving roughly 550 m of glacier to the 4,027 m summit, about 2.5 hours up and 1.25 hours down. Season mid-June to late October. activedreams.ch ↗
- Saas-Fee–Mittelallalin adult return is listed at CHF 79 on the Saas-Fee lift tariff page (the page is for the sunrise ride, so check the fare for your date). saas-fee.ch ↗
- ZERMATTERS extras on its Breithorn traverse, Pollux and Castor pages: rental gear CHF 50–70 from a Zermatt sports shop on top of the guide fee and lift. zermatters.ch ↗
The companies
ZERMATTERS
- Based
- Zermatt, Switzerland
- Programs
- 7
- Deposit
- Deposits are deducted from the total price; kept if the tour cannot run because of weather.
- Refunds
- No extra charge for a guide's weather cancellation (decided 24–48 h ahead), but the deposit is retained. Refunds go to the original payment method.
- Private
- Private Breithorn guides take 1–6 people depending on conditions; recommended minimum age 12 for private tours, 18 for group tours. Half traverse 1–2 per guide.
Policy from: zermatters.ch, zermatt.swiss, zermatters.ch
Guidezone
- Based
- Booking platform for IFMGA guides (Zermatt listings)
- Programs
- 3
- Private
- Breithorn priced per guide: CHF 690 for 1–2 people, +CHF 50 per extra person up to 6. You pay the Klein Matterhorn lift for yourself and the guide.
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Guidezone ↗Policy from: guidezone.co
Jules Pession Guida Alpina
- Based
- Cervinia, Italy
- Programs
- 3
- Private
- Breithorn normal route max 5 people per guide.
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Jules Pession ↗Policy from: julespession.guide, julespession.guide, julespession.guide
Saas-Fee Guides
- Based
- Saas-Fee, Switzerland
- Programs
- 2
- Private
- Allalinhorn private rates fall per head from 1 to 3 people. Group tours only for people with crampon experience; private tours possible with none.
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Saas-Fee Guides ↗Policy from: saasfeeguides.com, saasfeeguides.ch
Active Dreams
- Based
- Saas-Fee, Switzerland
- Programs
- 3
- Private
- Priced per person by how many share a guide (1–4).
- Contact
- info@activedreams.ch
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Active Dreams ↗Policy from: activedreams.ch, activedreams.ch, activedreams.ch
Chamonix Experience
- Based
- Chamonix, France
- Programs
- 1
- Deposit
- 30% deposit confirms the booking; balance due 90 days before the trip. Full payment if booking within 90 days.
- Refunds
- Cancel more than 90 days out: 30% of total price (the deposit). Within 90 days: 100%. No refund for leaving early, and no reschedule or refund when weather prevents the summit attempt.
- Private
- Guiding ratio 1:2; groups max 6.
Policy from: chamex.com, chamex.com
Jagged Globe
- Based
- UK
- Programs
- 2
- Deposit
- £200 deposit on the Zermatt 4000ers and Saas 4000ers pages (the Matterhorn page says £300 non-refundable).
- Refunds
- Courses: 42+ days out lose deposit; 21–42 days 50% of course cost; under 21 days 100%.
- Private
- Private Alps summer guiding offered; scheduled 4000er courses run for 2–6 people.
Policy from: jagged-globe.co.uk, jagged-globe.co.uk, jagged-globe.co.uk
Adventure Peaks
- Based
- UK
- Programs
- 1
- Deposit
- £800 deposit at booking; £800 interim deposit 4 months before departure; balance 10 weeks before.
- Private
- Guide ratio 1:2 on the Saas Fee 4000m course.
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Adventure Peaks ↗Policy from: adventurepeaks.com
Mountain Tracks
- Based
- UK
- Programs
- 1
- Private
- Guide ratio 1:2. Matterhorn extension £1,250 per person (2 days guiding, hut + hotel night).
Cancellation terms not published where we looked. Get them in writing before you pay.
Visit Mountain Tracks ↗Policy from: mountaintracks.co.uk
Get an email when bookings open
Get an email when 2027 Zermatt and Saas-Fee group dates and the UK 4000er-week prices are posted, plus any price changes.
Before and after the trip
Most programs start in Zermatt, Switzerland. Lodging is extra on nearly all of them.
The Breithorn on PeakSeeker → routes, live summit weather and permits.
More comparisons
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Sources
- guidezone.co/climbing-breithorn-4165m
- matterhornparadise.ch/en/information/tickets-prices/sightseeing-tickets
- activedreams.ch/en/angebote/allalin-4027m-your-first-4000m-peak/
- saas-fee.ch/en/services-informationen/tarife-fahrplaene-bergbahnen/fahrplaene-bergbahnen/tarife-bergbahnen/saas-fee
- zermatters.ch/en/activities/climb/summit-tour/article/pollux/
- zermatters.ch/en/activities/climb/summit-tour/article/breithorn/
- zermatt.swiss/en/p/breithorn-ascent-4164m-zermatters-01tVj000004sJoFIAU
- zermatters.ch/en/general-terms-business/
- julespession.guide/en/mountaineering/breithorn-guided-ascent/
- julespession.guide/en/mountaineering/breithorn-traverse-mountain-guide/
- julespession.guide/en/mountaineering/
- saasfeeguides.com/en_GB/activity/70725/allalinhorn-4027m
- saasfeeguides.ch/en/lagginhorn-4010m-from-weissmies-hut/
- activedreams.ch/en/angebote/mein-1-viertausender-allalin-plus/
- activedreams.ch/en/angebote/weissmies-suedgrat-4023m-lagginhorn-4010m/
- chamex.com/trip_courses/saas-fee-4000ers-mountaineering-course/
- chamex.com/pages/terms-and-conditions
- jagged-globe.co.uk/climb/course/i/alps+zermatt+4000.html
- jagged-globe.co.uk/climb/course/i/alps+saas+4000.html
- jagged-globe.co.uk/jg/terms.html
- adventurepeaks.com/shop/saas-fee-4000m-peaks/
- mountaintracks.co.uk/holidays/monterosa-climber
- Each climb’s own page, linked from its “See dates” button.