Mysterious Rainy summer leads to lower visitor numbers at outdoor pools

The wet and cold weather at the beginning of the summer had an impact on this year's admission figures for Swiss outdoor pools. Despite the late midsummer in August, the operators of the swimming pools recorded lower figures than a year ago.

The outdoor pools in the city of Berne had five percent fewer guests this season than last year. The early cooling off in September also had a negative impact on the figures, as the city reported. In total, Bern's outdoor pools counted around 1.6 million admissions up to the official end of the season on September 15. The Marzilibad alone recorded almost 800,000 admissions.

According to the city, the record day of the season was the last day of the school vacations, Sunday, August 11. A total of over 40,000 people spent this day in an outdoor pool, 20,477 of them in the Marzili.

Up to 30 percent fewer guests

The outdoor pools in the city of St. Gallen were hit much harder. Just under 155,000 guests were counted this summer, as the city reported at the request of the Keystone-SDA news agency. In the 2023 season, there were almost 30 percent more visitors, with not quite 202,000 admissions.

Christian Marchi, Director of the Genève-Plage outdoor pool, also looks back on a complicated season. Lake Geneva only had optimal conditions between mid-July and the beginning of September. In a good May, up to 15,000 people can be attracted, but this year there were only 4,000. Last year, the pool recorded 213,000 visitors, and one week before the end of the season, the figure is 190,000.

Zurich cracks the 2 million mark

This summer, the city of Zurich's swimming pools recorded significantly lower admission figures than in the previous year. Back then, 400,000 more people visited the city's pools. Nevertheless, the city is satisfied. Zurich's swimming pools broke the 2 million mark for only the fourth time after 2018, 2022 and 2023. The rainy summer of 2024 thus also joins the ranks of the record-breaking series.

The hot August in particular made up for the rainy early summer. Over 50% more admissions were recorded in this month than the average of the last ten years. The season in Zurich is not over yet. Four pools are still open until September 29. The bathing season lasts even longer at two other outdoor pools. Seebad Utoquai and the Seebach open-air pool do not close until the end of October.

Basel and Locarno with similar figures

After a difficult start, the Lido Locarno benefited from a strong July. On average, there were over 2300 guests per day, said director Filippo Thomann. From May to July, the Lido recorded 185,000 visitors. Including August, the figures are roughly the same as last year.

The three pools in the city of Basel have so far recorded 420,000 admissions. According to Peter Portmann, Head of Swimming Pools, Artificial Ice Rinks and Gastronomy, the 2024 season ranks fifth in terms of admission figures over the last ten years. The sports pool is open until October 7.

SDA