“It’s only a matter of time”: Swiss tourism officials and the federal government are preparing for overtourism

No reports of blond children being harassed . No threatened ban on rolling suitcases . And far fewer coaches at Lucerne's Schwanenplatz.

The summer season is drawing to a close, and things are currently quiet on the tourism front. The spiteful debate about last year's overwhelming tourist crowds has largely been absent in Switzerland in 2025. Was it all not so bad, and have we calmed down again?

On the contrary: research shows that the Swiss tourism industry expects to soon be criticized again.

The thirteen Swiss tourism regions, the marketing organization Switzerland Tourism, and the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts are currently developing a "toolbox for tourism awareness," as Martin Nydegger, Managing Director of Switzerland Tourism, confirms. This is a "practical tool that offers tourism professionals concrete assistance."

As examples, Martin Nydegger cites community involvement, dealing with criticism, and communication of tourism projects. The catalogue of measures is scheduled to be published in spring 2026. The goal is harmonious coexistence between the population and tourism.

While Switzerland is far removed from the situation in Barcelona, ​​Venice, or Edinburgh, where protests due to too many tourists regularly occur, one thing is also clear: people are traveling more and more around the world, including to Switzerland.

Switzerland doesn't have overtourism, says Jürg Schmid, President of Graubünden Tourism and head of Switzerland Tourism until 2017. "There are essentially only three regions where overseas tourists travel in critical numbers: the Jungfrau region with Interlaken and Grindelwald, Lucerne-Titlis, and Zermatt."

There's a strong barrier against tourist crowds: the strong Swiss franc. "Given the beauty of our country, we should actually be overrun by tourists," says Schmid.

But let's not fool ourselves. "Overtourism will come to us too. It's only a matter of time," says Schmid. Because not only are people traveling more – people are also willing to invest ever-larger portions of their budget in travel.

Indeed, according to official forecasts, tourism in Switzerland is growing. New records are being set year after year. According to the BAK Economics Institute, the number of hotel overnight stays will rise from 42.8 million today to over 44 million by 2027.

In addition, there are also growing numbers in the supplementary hotel sector, i.e., holiday apartments, youth hostels, and campsites, which recorded over 17 million overnight stays last year.

This has also drawn the attention of the federal government. The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs is currently developing a new tourism strategy. The Federal Council is scheduled to vote on it next summer. The last one, from 2021, is no longer up to date.

Because something crucial has changed since then: The issue of overtourism has become significantly more intense, the Seco writes in response to an inquiry. "This issue should be addressed substantively in the federal government's future tourism strategy. It should contribute to balanced tourism development."

It's a paradigm shift in Switzerland as a tourist destination. For the first time, the highest levels of government are asking not only how to attract more tourists to the country, but also how the Swiss feel about sharing train compartments, hiking trails, and beach resorts with so many tourists.

"Until now, tourism policy in Switzerland has been primarily driven by economic considerations. Tourists represent jobs and growth," says Adrian Müller of the University of Bern's Tourism Research Center. However, in the wake of the overtourism debate, the social dimension of tourism has gained importance.

Müller emphasizes that tourists have many positive social aspects: thanks to them, there are good transport connections to more remote regions, and they help finance cultural events.

However, the scientist says: "Tourism also has negative consequences, such as traffic jams, less available housing, or crowds in public spaces. This is becoming increasingly apparent." This is especially true in other countries, but also increasingly in Switzerland.

But what can actually be done about it? Adrian Müller drafted an input paper for the Federal Council this spring entitled "Tourism Acceptance and Local Visitor Management."

"We've examined over fifty measures to deal with increasing tourism. And there are several more," says Müller.

For example, so-called de-marketing. This means no longer advertising attractions that are already well-visited, such as the Matterhorn. While this measure is easy to implement, it has a poor effect, the report states.

Because, says Müller, tourists can't simply be manipulated. "You can try to advertise the Matterhorn less, but if you know the Matterhorn from the Toblerone packaging, you still want to see it."

A similar approach applies to another measure: visitor management. Tourists should explore lesser-known regions instead of popular destinations – for example, with special tours and new offers. However, the report concludes that this is difficult to implement. After all, how do you make the Jura, for example, attractive to foreign visitors who have never been to Switzerland?

So there are no easy solutions. Nevertheless, the industry maintains that tourists must be guided much more closely. "In the future, it will no longer be about attracting tourists, but about distributing them wisely. Because they'll come anyway," says Graubünden Tourism President Jürg Schmid.

And the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs writes: "Overtourism has much to do with locals' perceptions of tourism and less with indicators or numbers." In other words: Instead of targeting tourists, we must target our own population.

Lucerne is already one step further. The city has been trying to combat the undesirable side effects of tourism for years.

The discontent among the population is particularly palpable there. This led, for example, to the adoption of the so-called Airbnb initiative in 2023, which limits the rental of apartments to tourists to ninety days per year.

Politicians are trying to relieve pressure on the system. Since April 1, for example, tourist buses have had to pay high fees if they want to stop in the city center.

"This had an immediate, visible effect. There are now far fewer day tourists stopping over in Lucerne. I live in the city myself and notice the difference," says Lucerne Tourism Director Marcel Perren.

This is certainly not ideal for some boutiques and souvenir sellers, says Perren. But cooperation from all sides is needed to ease the situation.

The goal is to ensure the smoothest possible coexistence between the population and tourism, says Perren. But: "Overtourism is becoming a permanent issue. It can happen quickly that the debate flares up again."

However, the example of Lucerne shows that it's not enough to simply promote tourism acceptance. Only when the population feels that not only they, but also the tourism industry, are making concessions will they truly welcome tourists.

An article from the « NZZ am Sonntag »

An article from the « NZZ am Sonntag »