In 2017, Switzerland and China plan to strengthen cooperation in tourism
Switzerland and China have declared 2017 the joint Year of Tourism. A brief meeting between President Doris Leuthard and Chinese President Xi Jinping is planned on the sidelines of the WEF in Davos to mark the launch.
A binational tourism year between Switzerland and China will provide important impetus for the entire industry and strengthen tourism in both countries, writes Switzerland Tourism in a press release on Monday.
Numerous joint activities are being planned to this end. What these will look like in detail is currently the subject of discussions between Switzerland Tourism and the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA). Among other things, the intention is to work together more intensively in the area of market research in order to be able to draw on an even better database for future tourism strategies. Numerous measures and events are also planned in China and Switzerland throughout the joint tourism year. For example, Switzerland will be prominently represented at the second edition of the World Winter Sports Expo in Beijing at the beginning of September.
According to current plans, the kick-off event for the Year of Tourism Switzerland - China 2017 will take place in China in spring, while Switzerland will host the closing ceremony in December. Details on the individual measures will be announced at a later date.
China is the fourth most important foreign market
In 2015, the number of overnight stays by Chinese guests (China & Hong Kong) in Switzerland amounted to more than 1.5 million (1,519,100*). In total, these Chinese tourists generated a turnover of CHF 501.3 million in Switzerland. According to Oxford Economics and estimates by Switzerland Tourism, two million overnight hotel stays by Chinese guests are expected in Switzerland every year until 2022. The Chinese market is therefore one of the four most important foreign markets for Swiss tourism (No. 1 Germany, No. 2 UK, No. 3 USA, No. 4 China together with Hong Kong, No. 5 France*).
In his first speech during his current visit to Switzerland, President Xi encouraged the Chinese population to travel to Switzerland. The Chinese mainly visit Switzerland in summer: over 60 percent of overnight stays are registered between June and October (source: FSO, accommodation statistics).
However, the desire for winter experiences abroad is growing: 35 percent of Chinese skiers intend to spend their ski vacations abroad in the next two years. As an original winter destination, Switzerland has the right offers for this. One example of this is the "One Day Ski Experiences": this package was launched in 2016 and is now available at 19 destinations. It includes a ski ticket, full equipment and taster lessons with a ski instructor. This enables Switzerland as a tourist destination to provide Chinese guests with easy access to the Alpine winter. And initial feedback has shown that the "One Day Ski Experiences" are very popular with Chinese guests. In addition, eight Swiss destinations offer regular ski lessons in Chinese (Arosa, Engelberg, Jungfrau Region, Laax, Saas-Fee, Verbier, Villars-sur-Ollon, Zermatt).China considers Switzerland's expertise in winter sports to be valuable: for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China will work more closely with Switzerland in the area of winter sports.
*Source: FSO, accommodation statistics (with Hong Kong) 2015.
