Swiss tourism on the verge of new records according to BAK
Published: Tuesday, Oct 29th 2024, 13:30
Back to Live Feed
The Swiss tourism industry remains on course for growth. Following the record summer of 2024, experts from the economic research institute BAK Economics expect a further increase in overnight stays for the 2024/25 winter season, mainly thanks to guests from North America.
"The number of overnight stays in Switzerland will continue to increase after a record summer in winter 2024/25," according to the forecast by the BAK, which was commissioned by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). Specifically, a total of 18.1 million overnight stays are expected for the period from November 2024 to April 2025. Compared to the 2023/24 winter season, this would represent an increase of 0.8% or 149,000 overnight stays.
A record summer despite the weather
The summer season does not officially end until the end of October. However, it is already clear that it will be a record summer for the Swiss tourism industry.
And this despite the fact that the summer could have been even better, according to the BAK experts. The unfavorable weather conditions, high levels of precipitation and severe storms not only dampened the vacation mood, but also caused considerable damage to the infrastructure.
"Domestic demand in particular suffered as a result," said project manager Simon Flury from the BAK at a media conference. It has now fallen for the third summer in a row. Nevertheless, the number of domestic guests and thus the demand for vacations in Switzerland "remained at a very high level".
Growth through US tourists
The BAK also expects demand to continue to rise in the coming winter season. Tourists from the USA are likely to be primarily responsible for the growing number of overnight stays. They are now also playing an "increasingly important role" for the local ski resorts in winter: "For many US citizens, it is now cheaper to go skiing in Switzerland than in their own country," said Flury.
Last summer, for example, the Swiss tourism industry hosted more guests from the USA than from Germany for the first time. However, this trend has been evident for some time: "Germany is increasingly becoming the problem child of the local tourism sector," says Flury.
According to BAK, the positive momentum is also likely to continue in summer 2025. The BAK experts then expect an increase in overnight stays of 1.8% to a total of 24.8 million overnight stays. The improved forecast is based on major events such as the ESC in Basel and the European Women's Football Championship.
©Keystone/SDA
English 
German 
French 
Spanish 
Arabic