“We are now ahead of other tourism cantons”

Swiss people love Graubünden: While tourism professionals in low-winter destinations are optimistic, the good weather in Graubünden is real. Things are booming, booking numbers are correct, ski ticket sales are going well.

Despite the lack of snow across Switzerland, the canton of Graubünden maintains its strong position last year, when the hotel industry recorded a record-breaking 5.45 million overnight stays. This puts the canton first in Switzerland. This may be due to friendly dialect, guaranteed profits and good accessibility. Graubünden can be reached in a few hours from the German states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, the Po Valley in Italy, or northern Switzerland. However, this is not a sufficient justification for tourism success.

Do the people of Graubünden work better together?

Those in charge in the canton of Graubünden have done a lot in the last 15 years. Probably a little more than other places. Canton became the first country to focus on mountain bike tourism on a large scale. In the Valais and Bernese Oberland, various interest groups have argued for years over whether mountain bike guests are welcome. In Graubünden, those involved sat down at a table and decided in favor of the coexistence of walkers and cyclists. “For things to work in a canton, many people have to go in the same direction. This has been successful in Graubünden for years. In contrast, for example, I see the people of the Valais more as lone warriors,” says Ernst “Aschi” Wyrsch, President of the Hotelleriesuisse Graubünden (61).

Lenzerheide GR took the lead with its bike park. “We were able to triple summer sales in ten years,” says Bruno Fläcklin (50). All in all, this is a zero-sum game for mountain railways because the effort spent on maintaining mountain bike tracks has been tripled. However, as the head of destination development in the Lenzerheide resort region emphasized, the area “has gained a great deal of attractiveness”. “We have a lot more guests at the facility during the summer months. Everyone benefits from this: demand for hotels, sports shops, restaurants and holiday apartments has also increased.”

“Less and less dependent on white gold”

In other destinations, things come to life in the snowless season thanks to mountain biking and hiking. “We now make money in nine to ten months,” says Wyrsch, head of hotel management. Two months for construction, one month for vacation. “We are making big strides towards our goal of being less dependent on white gold,” he says. Hotels now make 40 percent of their sales in the summer. Twenty years ago, summer provided only one-fifth of the income.

Today’s success had a price. The people of Graubünden have invested more than a billion in hotels, mountain railways and other tourism infrastructure over the past 15 years. “More than any other canton,” Wyrsch was convinced. A wide range of offers have emerged in the hospitality industry, from youth hostels to internationally renowned 5-star establishments. “This results in an ideal mix of two-thirds Swiss guests and one-third from abroad.”

“Concepts can be copied …”

Other tourism regions are growing. More and more mountain bikers are also rolling on the trails in Valais. “We are currently the leader in mountain bikes and our reputation is ahead of other tourism cantons. But concepts can be copied, and you always make the biggest mistakes when things are going well,” Wyrsch warns.

Despite strong numbers, there are also losers in Graubünden this winter: Chur’s local mountain Brambrüesch and Bergbahnen Hochwang had to stop skiing due to lack of snow.

Source :Blick