‘30% growth in Indian arrivals during winters’

Switzerland is solidifying its position as a year-round destination for Indian travellers, with a 30% surge in winter visits complementing the traditional peak season. In an exclusive interview with TRAVTALK, Christian Schoch, Director India, Switzerland Tourism, shares details.

Hazel Jain

Switzerland has been receiving a robust response from Indian travellers this year. “We had a really promising start to 2025. We have seen a growth from January to March 2025, indicating that wintertime is picking up in Switzerland among Indian visitors,” said Christian Schoch, Director India, Switzerland Tourism.

The positive trend continued through the first half of the year. “Overall, from January to June 2025 we had a growth of over 10 per cent of hotel overnights in Switzerland from Indian guests, which is quite a good number for us, and we are definitely in tune with our goal of 10 per cent hotel overnights throughout the whole year,” he added.

This follows a strong performance in 2024, which saw 11 per cent growth in hotel overnights from Indian guests. “That means we counted more than 660,000 hotel overnights from guests from India, which is really good compared to the year before. Now we are looking forward to 2025, where we expect another growth of around 10 per cent of hotel overnights,” Schoch explained.

A key insight is the evolving travel pattern. “We see that Switzerland turns into a 365-day destination as well for Indian guests. Peak season is still from April to June. But we did see a growth in wintertime of about plus 30 per cent, which shows that people are travelling throughout the year,” he noted. “Autumn is picking up, which is a beautiful season in Switzerland. So, when we talk to the travel agents, we hear that Switzerland is becoming an all-year destination.”

Engagements in tier II & III cities

A core part of Switzerland Tourism’s strategy involves intensive engagement with the travel trade across India, with a special focus on emerging cities. “In the first half of 2025, we conducted around 10 training sessions in several cities across India, especially tier II and tier III cities. For example, we were in Jaipur, Coimbatore, Goa, Chandigarh, and Lucknow because we really want to engage with the travel trade in the smaller cities in India and transfer our knowledge to these parts of India,” Schoch said.

He highlighted the different needs of travellers from metros versus non-metros. “We see a lot of repeat travellers from the metros. That means they are coming a second time, or a third time, and they want to go beyond the highlights of Switzerland. They want to explore hidden gems, stay longer in Switzerland, which is definitely in tune with our strategy, where we want to focus on sustainability by public transport and longer stays.”

“In contrast, when we go beyond the metro — to tier II and tier III cities — we still see that people are travelling, for example, the first time to Switzerland. So, they really want to see the highlights of Switzerland. There, we try to create mono Switzerland tours,” he elaborates. More initiatives are planned for the latter part of the year.

Symbiotic role of trade and OTAs

When asked about the balance between OTAs and traditional trade partners, Schoch emphasises that both are crucial.

“For us, both the consumer and the trade are equally important. That is why we do the awareness with consumer activities and then go deep when we do the trade activities. Both complement each other.”