Family of 7 takes care of Blick’s bill

The Bosshard family lives in the idyllic Pfäffikon ZH, directly on Lake Pfäffikon. He answered a phone call from Blick about ski vacation budgets. Bruno Bosshard (51) is self-employed and works as a carpenter, plumber and tiler. Preparations for the ski holiday continue. The first boxes of ski socks and ski jackets are already piling up in the living room. “The most important thing is spare clothes. Something always goes wrong with five children,” says the family man and offers coffee to his guests.

The family includes mother Veronika Bosshard (42) and children Thereza (7), Ondrej (9), Michal (12), Nicola (15) and Marek (16), who are apprentices in Basel.

“Every year we go on ski holidays at the end of December and then again in February,” says Bruno Bosshard. The family would traditionally visit the ski area in Airolo TI. However, the snow conditions there have been very bad in recent years. That’s why the extended family is moving to the profitable Davos GR this year.

Here’s what the Bosshard family spent for a 10-day ski vacation:

“It’s a privilege that we can go skiing with the family every year,” says Bruno Bosshard. It is clear that for him it is not the same for others. A ski vacation with five children is particularly expensive, but it also has its advantages: “We buy the equipment once and can pass it on to the younger children.” Bosses don’t have to rent anything. This applies to ski clothing as well as snowboards and skis. Costs to and from Davos are not included in the invoice.

Transportation is a challenge

Ski holidays in Switzerland have always been expensive. They will do more damage to your wallet this winter due to inflation. Some will probably cross over to Austria for this reason.

However, it seems that the majority are not deterred by the high prices. “Inflation has almost no impact on Swiss winter tourism,” says Switzerland Tourism. Switzerland has a slight price advantage as inflation is significantly higher in its neighboring countries.

According to the marketing organization, price increases of up to five percent are expected in the mountain railways and hotel industry, and up to 10 percent in the hospitality industry. Second, he’s belligerent when asked by Blick.

“The Swiss hotel industry has a variety of offers for a wide variety of needs, from cheap family accommodation in a youth hostel to a luxury five-star hotel,” says Vinzenz van den Berg, spokesperson for the Hotelleriesuisse industry association. «Hotel prices in Switzerland are based on international prices.» Depending on the region, there are also inexpensive ski areas with daily ticket prices starting at 18 francs.

The Bosshard family preferred guaranteed profits and therefore accepted higher prices. Seven of them share two rooms. And do without a daily dinner at the restaurant, which is not included. Instead, a simple soup is sometimes prepared with a kettle in the hotel room.

Good luck

Apart from the prices, the Bosshard family has great holiday expectations. “What we look forward to most is the time we can spend as a family,” says Father Bosshard. It’s nice to do something with the family, especially on New Year’s Eve.

Seven-year-old Thereza already has a ski helmet on her head. Bruno Bosshard hopes that everything will be fine and that no one will have to go to the ambulance.

But how do you get from Zurich Oberland to Davos with five kids and seven pairs of skis, snowboards, clothes, helmets and ski boots? “We have a VW bus. It’s cramped, but it works,” says Bruno Bosshard.