Domestic sightseers prop up Swiss tourism industry

Swiss residents made the most of their own country in record numbers in 2021. Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller

The number of Swiss residents taking a holiday in their own country surged last year to help the tourism industry partially recover from the catastrophic effects of the pandemic.

The number of overnight stays at hotels by locals hit a record 21 million in 2021, a rise of 27.9% from the first year of the pandemic. This boosted the total number of overnight stays by a quarter from 2020, but this was still 25% below 2019 levels.

Although the early summer months saw a rapid increase in the number of foreign tourists, hotels, restaurants and other tourist amenities were mainly kept afloat by home-based sightseers, according to the Federal Statistical OfficeExternal link.

Domestic wanderlust mainly focused on rural regions, particularly in the southern canton of Ticino, which saw a 54.9% increase in overnight stays.

Predictably, numbers of both domestic and foreign guests waned during the lockdown months of January and February. But the last three months of the year saw significant growth compared to the same period in 2020 when restricted were reimposed on the country.

In total, Swiss hotels recorded 29.6 million overnight stays for the whole of 2021.

Almost all pandemic restrictions were lifted in Switzerland on February 17, including the need to present Covid-19 certificates in restaurants and bars, mask wearing in all places barring public transport and measures affecting many incoming foreign visitors.