Interim summary of the winter season Where tourists can enjoy themselves, Rega has to work hard
Perfect snow and weather conditions brought strong growth in Swiss tourism over Christmas and New Year. As a result, Rega recorded more missions than last year.
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- Swiss tourism recorded growth of 2.5 percent in overnight stays over Christmas and New Year.
- There was even a 3 percent increase in day trips, thanks to ideal snow and weather conditions and foreign visitors.
- Rega was also very busy with over 240 missions, 30 percent more than in the previous year.
Swiss tourism recorded strong growth over Christmas and New Year - driven by perfect snow and weather conditions as well as the clever timing of the holidays.
As a survey by Switzerland Tourism shows, overnight stays across the country rose by an average of 2.5 percent compared to the previous year, while day trips increased by 3 percent. Winter sports regions in particular are benefiting from this boom.
Perfect conditions in the mountains
Winter sports resorts, from classic ski resorts to destinations at medium and lower altitudes, reported strong figures. Thanks to snow down to the lowlands from as early as November and prolonged sunshine, demand was high. Many accommodations in the mountains were almost or fully booked over the holidays.
Martin Nydegger, Director of Switzerland Tourism, is delighted: "That's how it should be: The holidays ensure a brilliant start to the winter season with lots of guests and great weather."
Cities maintain level, day trips boom
While the cities were only able to maintain the previous year's figures for overnight stays, day trips also increased slightly. Christmas markets and art exhibitions proved to be visitor magnets and attracted numerous guests.
Foreign tourists in particular contributed to the strong result. The Swiss Travel Pass (STP), a popular offer for public transport, recorded a 22% increase in sales compared to the same period last year. The tour operator Switzerland Travel Centre (STC) also reported impressive growth: hotel bookings over the holidays rose by a whopping 20 percent.
Rega is working at full speed
The fantastic mountain weather not only meant a lot of work for the mountain railroads, hoteliers and excursion destinations, but also for Swiss Air-Rescue (Rega). Rega has announced this.
From December 31, 2024 to January 2, 2025, Rega crews flew more than 240 missions - an increase of 30 percent compared to the previous year. At that time, bad weather had curtailed many potential leisure activities.
Winter sports accidents are the main cause
Over half of the missions were flown for winter sports accidents. Skiing and snowboarding accidents dominated the list of emergencies, followed by medical emergencies such as strokes or cardiovascular diseases. Road accidents, evacuations and patient transfers from regional to central hospitals were also part of Rega's wide range of missions over the festive period.
Rega's mission figures show a clear pattern: they reflect the weather conditions, the leisure activities and travel patterns of the population and foreign tourists. The sunny days on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, for example, were significantly busier than the rather cloudy Berchtold Day.
