Tourism spending in Switzerland hit record levels in 2023
Switzerland brought in an unprecedented amount of tourism revenue last year.
Keystone/Urs Flueeler
Revenue from foreign guests in Switzerland rose again last year. The Swiss also spent more money travelling abroad. In both cases, previous records from the pre-Covid period were surpassed.
This content was published on
3 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Do you want to read our weekly top stories? Subscribe here.
Visitors to Switzerland generated income totalling CHF18.4 billion ($20.5 billion) in 2023, according to the tourism balance sheet published by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) on Friday. This corresponds to an increase of 12% on the previous year. The Swiss resident population, in turn, spent CHF20.2 billion on travelling abroad. This figure also increased by 12%.
With these new figures, both tourism expenditure in Switzerland and that of Swiss nationals travelling abroad have climbed to new records. The previous records were CHF18 billion and CHF18.8 billion, respectively.
According to initial FSO estimates, the tourism balance in 2023 totalled minus CHF1.8 billion. In the previous year, the loss was CHF1.7 billion. This means the Swiss spent significantly more money travelling abroad than foreign visitors did in Switzerland.
More foreign guests
According to the FSO, the number of foreign guests in Switzerland continued to grow in 2023. They generated more overnight stays, particularly in hotels in higher price categories. This is also reflected in the increase in income from overnight stays in hotels and parahotels as well as private holiday accommodation.
The FSO also observed increases in hospital stays and study accommodation. The latter rose due to the higher number of university enrolments by people living abroad. Overall, income from trips with overnight stays increased by 19%.
According to the figures, however, income from trips without overnight stays fell by 3.8%. While consumer spending from day trips and transit travel fell by 13%, spending by foreign nationals with cross-border commuter or short-stay status increased again by 5.4%.
The Swiss population also proved to be keen travellers last year. According to the FSO, their spending on overnight trips increased by almost 17%. The Swiss spent CHF15.1 billion on trips abroad with overnight stays. This corresponded to around three-quarters of total expenditure on tourism.
Meanwhile, shopping tourism remained stable. In 2023, expenditure on trips without overnight stays totalled CHF5.1 billion.
Adapted from German by DeepL/kc/ts
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Popular Stories
More
Workplace Switzerland
‘Swatch has no competition’ in its Swiss-made watch segment
What do you think Switzerland’s Alain Berset can bring to the Council of Europe?
The former interior minister is to become the first Swiss Secretary General of the Council of Europe – which issues should his five-year term focus on?
Norway holds Swiss investments worth over CHF35 billion
This content was published on
The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund holds investments in Switzerland worth CHF 35.5 billion ($39 billion), says Norges Bank CEO Nicolai Tangen.
Flooding of Rhone River causes severe road and rail traffic disruptions
This content was published on
Due to flooding in canton Valais, southern Switzerland, the A9 motorway between Sierre and Sion is closed. Traffic was also severely disrupted on the Simplon railway line.
Two dead after landslide hits southern Switzerland
This content was published on
After a landslide hit the Maggia Valley in canton Ticino, rescuers from Swiss Air-Rescue recovered two bodies on Sunday. One person is still missing.
Swiss beat Italians 2-0 to reach Euro football quarter-finals
This content was published on
Switzerland beat defending champions Italy in Berlin on Saturday night, justifying their status as the tournament's "secret" favourites.
Switzerland must urgently improve electricity distribution, says new sector boss
This content was published on
Switzerland needs to develop its electricity transmission and distribution network, says the new president of the Association of Swiss Electricity Companies, Martin Schwab.
Dutch mountaineer dies in Silvretta Alps on Swiss-Austrian border
This content was published on
A Dutch alpinist died in a fall on the Silvrettahorn in eastern Switzerland on Friday while descending the peak, cantonal police announced.
Many Swiss unenthusiastic about Eurovision song contest hosting duties
This content was published on
Less than half of the Swiss population are looking forward to the Eurovision Song Contest being held in Switzerland, says a new survey.
Béjart Ballet: Julien Favreau confirmed as Artistic Director
This content was published on
Julien Favreau has been confirmed as Artistic Director of Béjart Ballet Lausanne. The Frenchman had been acting in this role since February.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.