Simplonpass (day 1)
I did this hike together with a friend on the 13th of June, 2026. It was the first of two days hiking on the Alpine Passes Trail with an overnight stay at Simplon Hospiz. This hike is stage 18, which goes from Gspon to Simplonpass, and on day 2, we did stage 17 from Simplonpass to Rosswald.
Full route: Swisstopo
I travelled by train from Zürich to Visp, where I met my friend. Together, we continued to Stalden-Saas and the cable car taking us up to Gspon and the start of the hike. Walking out of Gspon, we already had amazing views to the surrounding mountains and this continued throughout the hike, as only shorter parts were through forest.
The first part to Gibidumpass is relatively easy, although a bit steep at times. We had constant views to the distinct pointy peak of Bietschhorn and the further we walked, the more snow covered mountains we could see back in direction Gspon, where we had started the hike.
As we passed over Gibidumpass, the landscape changed. We followed the trail taking us into Nanztal, towards partly snow covered mountains and Gamsagletscher. This part was really nice with a gently inclining hiking trail right alongside a stream, which made it feel like a walking meditation.
When hiking, I try to remind myself to look back once in a while, cause the views are often stunning, as this was no exception. At one point walking into Nanztal, we could see the whole Aletsch Arena, with Aletschhorn in the back and even a small part of the Aletschgletscher where it bends just in front of Eggishorn.
The further we went into Nanztal, the more narrow the trail got. We did not find it uncomfortable, but I would not recommend this hike to people with vertigo. There were parts with quite steep sides and narrow passages, but it was really beautiful and we enjoyed it a lot.
About an hour after crossing over Gibidumpass, we were almost at the bottom of the trail in the valley. After a longer relatively flat part, the trail got steeper at the end with a few rocky sections, just before we made it to the end, where we decided to have our lunch break. From here, there were great views both to the mountains above us and back out of the valley.
After a good rest and filled with new energy, we continued on the trail in direction Bristinepass. Walking over the plateau, we came by lakes, rivers and waterfalls, and it was a very beautiful and diverse part of the trail. On this part, we also had to cross a couple of areas with snow, but nothing we found too problematic.
The trail on the other side of the valley towards Bristinepass was steeper, but constantly changing between uphill and downhill parts so it was not too demanding, and we enjoyed the surroundings and constantly changing views. We made it to Bristinepass and continued on the other side in direction Simplonpass.
The views coming over Bristinepass were great, both to the surrounding mountains but also further away to the mountains on the border between Switzerland and Italy. The trail on the last part of the hike was easy and not too steep, and half way down, we decided to take an afternoon break.
After our break, the trail went up for a short while, and as we came up to the top, we could for the first time see down to Simplonpass and Simplon Hospiz, where we would spend the night. This surroundings here are really beautiful, and I can definitely see myself coming back to this area for more hiking.
The weather had for the whole day been very pleasant, not too warm and with some wind, but for the very last part up to Simplonpass it felt like walking in a sauna, so we were very happy when we reached Simplonpass and made our way to Simplon Hospiz, where we spend the night.
