Which nationalities visit Switzerland the most?
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By Jan de Boer
Around 9 million people came to Switzerland on holiday or for work during the winter of 2024/2025, but which nationalities enjoy a trip to the alpine nation most? New data from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) provides the answer.
Swiss hotels break records in the winter of 2024/25
According to the data, between November 2024 and April 2025, 9,3 million people booked 18,5 million overnight stays in Switzerland. This is the highest number of visitors ever seen during the period, and a 2,8 percent increase compared to the previous winter.
FSO figures suggest that people from over 70 different countries arrived at Swiss airports, by road or rail during the period. Naturally, local visitors make up the biggest share of guests, with hotels registering 4.706.948 overnight stays by Swiss citizens.
Which nationalties like to visit Switzerland the most?
This winter, German travellers were the most common tourists in Switzerland. 708.738 hotel registrations were made by German citizens last winter, followed by travellers from the United States (522.134), France (382.705), the United Kingdom (323.748) and Italy (236.795).
In terms of people from outside of Europe and America, Chinese tourists were the most common at 155.223 hotel registrations. Visitors from the Netherlands (1114.095), Spain (112.232) and Brazil (90.877) completed the top 10. By contrast, Belarusian and Icelandic visitors were the rarest, with fewer than 2.000 hotel stays each.
What are the most common tourist nationalities in each canton?
In 17 of the 26 Swiss cantons, Germans are the most common visitors. Tourists from our northern neighbour make up the majority in most of central, northern and eastern Switzerland, and in the mountains of Graubünden.
However, there are some notable exceptions. In Canton Zurich, Lucerne and Valais, for example, Americans remain the most common visitors to hotels and resorts. Italians are the most popular visitors for Ticino, while Geneva, Vaud, Fribourg, Neuchâtel and Jura welcome mostly French visitors.
When it comes to other prominent nationalities, Dutch travellers tend to favour German-speaking Switzerland, while Belgian and Spanish tourists find their favourite destinations in the Romandie. Interestingly, Chinese visitors are the second most common visitors to Aargau, while Canton Bern - perhaps partly due to the hype caused by K-Drama Crash Landing on You - is the top region for Korean tourists.
For more information, check out the official FSO figures.
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Jan studied History at the University of York and Broadcast Journalism at the University of Sheffield. Though born in York, Jan has lived most of his life in Zurich and has worked as a journalist, writer and editor since 2016.
While he has plunged head-first back into life in Switzerland since returning to the country in 2020, he still enjoys a taste of home at pub quizzes and karaoke nights.Read more