Wet and cold weather spoils summer vacation balance 2024
Published: Thursday, Aug 15th 2024, 16:30
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The summer of 2024 brought mixed results for the Swiss tourism industry. The cold and wet weather in early summer meant that the summer holiday season got off to a slow start, as Switzerland Tourism wrote in a press release.
Ticino, parts of Graubünden and Valais, where severe storms hit in June, were particularly hard hit. Numerous cancellations and a lack of spontaneous bookings led to considerable losses in these regions, according to the press release issued on Thursday.
The decline was particularly noticeable in regions with a large proportion of day trippers from Switzerland and neighboring countries. However, according to Switzerland Tourism, the mood improved noticeably with the change in the weather in July. In destinations such as Zermatt, tourism also recovered quickly from the effects of the storm.
Guests from overseas, particularly from North America, proved to be an important source of support, as their trips took place regardless of the weather. Despite good figures, Martin Nydegger, Director of Switzerland Tourism, warned of a possible decline, as the financial resources of many travelers from the USA are slowly being exhausted. In Asia, particularly in China, demand remained subdued.
Only city tourism was unaffected by the weather conditions, as Switzerland Tourism noted in its 2024 report. This was thanks in part to major events such as Art Basel and the Taylor Swift concerts in Zurich.
©Keystone/SDA
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