St. Niklaus local museum and alpine guide museum with mineral exhibition

The Mountain Guide Museum in the Mayor’s tower, the oldest preserved building in the Nikolai valley, tells the story of the Alps and in particular the Zaniglas mountain guide pioneers who have been at the forefront since 1850 and significantly influenced mountain guiding worldwide in a whole range of different areas. The Zaniglas mountaineering pioneers attracted attention all over the world with their first ascents. The worldwide unique Mountain Guide Museum in the Mayor’s tower in the middle of St. Niklaus whisks you away to the time of these alpine pioneers. You experience the life and work of a mountain guide up-close back then and now.
The Regional Museum in St. Niklaus is attached to the Mayor’s tower. It was created under the direction of the Pro Nikolai foundation and accommodates old craft, agricultural and household objects from the Zaniglas ancestors.
Visitors can admire a selection of the most beautiful mineral discovered in the Nikolai valley in modern all-glass display cases. The minerals mainly include granite, vesuvianite, diopside, epidote and quartz, besides more unusual types like perovskite, natrolite, precious serpentine, clinochlore. The wider area around Zermatt is an internationally famous mineral extraction area and the new St. Niklaus mineral museum provides the unique opportunity to familiarise yourself with the fruits of intensive and long collecting activities.