GRF General Assembly: sustainable growth for Graubünden tourism
At its general meeting in Chur, Graubünden Ferien identified two key developments for tourism in Graubünden: the return of demand from long-haul markets and the need for a more sustainable approach to tourism. According to the tourism organization, these two trends are not mutually exclusive.
President Jürg Schmid spoke about the successful tourism year 2023 at the GRF General Assembly on Wednesday at the Somedia media center in Chur. With around 5.4 million overnight stays in the hotel industry in Graubünden, demand exceeded 2019 as the last tourism year before the pandemic. Better results are also expected in the medium term. "We can now say with certainty that Graubünden tourism has emerged stronger from a time of immense challenge," says Schmid.
In his welcome message from the government, Cantonal Councillor Peter Peyer referred to the value creation study on tourism in Graubünden published at the beginning of the year. According to the study, the tourism industry generates a gross value added of around four billion francs, and tourism provides employment for over 30 percent of the population of Graubünden. Peyer also mentioned the government's new tourism strategy. "The tourism strategy is intended to provide an orientation framework for all players in Graubünden tourism." It is a starting point for the further development of tourism so that its great importance does not suddenly become a cluster risk or even a business model that is no longer sustainable, said Peyer.
Far markets on the rise
Long-distance markets are expected to become increasingly important in the future development of tourism. By 2023, demand from Asia, measured in terms of hotel overnight stays in Graubünden, will have doubled compared to the previous year. The number of guests from the USA was higher than at any time since 2000. And more guests arrived from the Gulf States than ever before. Graubünden Tourism is present in these long-distance markets together with HotellerieSuisse Graubünden and over 20 partners. "In 2023, we were able to draw on the full potential for the first time and carry out a total of 20 trade campaigns," says Graubünden-Ferien CEO Martin Vincenz.
At the meeting, Corinne Genoud, Head of Switzerland Tourism, showed how the western markets - from America to Western Europe - are developing. Looking at guest arrivals since 2019, Switzerland has recovered faster than the European average from the pandemic years. According to Corinne Genoud, this is due in particular to customer care. Today, the outlook is very positive and "things are really taking off in the long-distance markets".
Sustainability as a commitment
Graubünden Ferien's long-distance markets initiative will open up growth markets for the tourism canton. The initiative is only partially in conflict with the joint commitment to more sustainable tourism, said CEO Vincenz. Rather, the aim is to attract these European travelers to stay in Graubünden. The focus is on individual tourists. They also travel outside the peak vacation periods, they stay longer and they are comparatively willing to spend money.
As Head of Sustainability at Graubünden Ferien, Martina Hollenstein Stadler named the following areas of responsibility of the project office: networking, knowledge transfer and coordination, projects and services with and for tourism partners, communication and marketing as well as measuring sustainable development. "We live sustainability in an opportunity-oriented way and tackle the challenges proactively with our partners." To this end, a network day will be held on June 18, 2024. The event is aimed at those responsible for sustainability in destinations and tourism businesses as well as people who are regularly confronted with sustainability issues in their work in tourism.
