Switzerland Sees 6.8% Rise in U.S. Tourists
by James Shillinglaw /Switzerland reported U.S. arrivals and overnights increased again in 2015 compared to the previous year. This marks the sixth consecutive year of increasing visitor numbers from the U.S. to Switzerland, with a total growth of more than 20% since 2009.
The latest numbers show an increase of 6.8% in U.S. arrivals in Switzerland, for a total of 802,503. According to final 2015 figures, the number of overnight stays was 1.74 million, an increase of 5.7% over 2014.
The most popular destinations were the Zurich region, with 450,368 overnights, the Geneva region (255,443), and the Lake Lucerne region (249,238). With 16.6% more overnights in 2015, the Bern Region recorded the biggest growth in U.S. visits.
Alex Herrmann, director-Americas for Switzerland Tourism, said the latest numbers support a positive trend that has been developing over the past five years. Since 2010, Switzerland has seen a continuous increase in overnights every year, from roughly 1.4 million to almost 1.7 million, he said.
Herrmann credited the positive numbers in part to the fact that the U.S. dollar is currently on parity with the Swiss franc, meaning that the dollar is 10% more valuable in Switzerland than it was three years ago, and 4% more valuable than five years ago.
Photo courtesy: Adrian Michael
