Best way to get up to the matterhorn from Geneva is by train. We took the train to Visp, and from there took the train to zermatt. The train journey from Visp to Zermatt is also a beautiful scenic journey where you can catch glimpses of the perfect swiss landscape. :)
Once in Zermatt, you immediately see the beauty of this car free town. Stepping out of the train station, just to the right is the tourist office, and in front of you is the Gornergrat ticket office from where the Gornergrat bahn leaves. It takes you upto Gornergrat with breathtaking views of the matterhorn and zermatt along the way. (10000 feet).
Another option to get close to the matterhorn will be to take the cable car up there. The cable car station is at the end of the village at about a 1 km walk from the train station.
The cable car gets you really close to the peak and has couple of hiking stops also you can make in between. Its quite long, being about 50 mins to get up to the peak.
Besides the matterhorn, there are a couple of other things to do in Zermatt.. You can take the horse carriage ride through the whole town.. There are a couple of museums as well. All in all a great town to walk around and admire the typical swiss chalets with flowers at their windows :)
