Roger Federer, the Swiss legend
Born in Basel to a Swiss father and a South African mother, the famous tennis player made his debut on the professional circuit in 1998. He became a legend on the small yellow ball, retiring in 2022 at the age of 41 with twenty Grand Slam titles won (a record since surpassed by Djoković and Nadal). A breathtaking career for the man who is one of the best players in history and who added to his personal palmarès a Davis Cup won for his country in 2014 with his sidekick Stan Wawrinka, another great Swiss player who himself won three Grand Slam titles (Australian Open 2014, Roland-Garros 2015 and US Open 2016). A golden generation!
Hiking, the most important activity
Switzerland offers unique natural panoramas, such as the Entlebuch region in central Switzerland between Bern and Lucerne, the first biosphere reserve to be classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. But everywhere, enigmatic marshes, wild waterfalls, jagged rocks and flower-covered mountain meadows form a natural backdrop that is particularly suitable for hiking. This is one of Switzerland's most popular activities. The country's geography lends itself perfectly to hiking, which is why there are so many possibilities. There are no fewer than 60,000 km of signposted footpaths throughout the country, as well as educational trails, punctuated by explanatory panels on the hiker's immediate environment.
Trekking - Haute Route. Switzerland also offers an infinite number of trekking possibilities, so the choice will depend on your goals, your experience and the time of year you plan your stay. The most emblematic of Swiss treks is undoubtedly the Haute Route. Whether in winter on skis or in summer with hiking boots, it is a monument to hiking. This extraordinary and difficult traverse from Chamonix in France to Zermatt in Switzerland (usually in five to seven days) passes below ten of the twelve highest peaks in the Alps. We sleep either in tents or in mountain refuges (open from mid-June to mid-September, booking strongly advised in July and August). Other treks include the famous, physical Matterhorn tour (one week between Switzerland and Italy), the Monte Rosa tour (also one week), the Oberland Haute Route and the Vaud Jura traverse.
A paradise for skiing and snowboarding
There are so many things to do in winter. Skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, relaxing in a hot tub in a natural pool, all set in a magical snow-covered landscape - that's Switzerland in winter. High-quality resorts, some of them very prestigious, await visitors. St. Moritz, for example, is known the world over as the birthplace of winter tourism and has twice hosted the Winter Olympics. Gstaad is a favorite haunt of the international jet-set, and at the foot of the slopes are countless 5-star hotels, haute couture boutiques and luxury jewelers. At the foot of the mythical Matterhorn, Zermatt is a delight for the most demanding skiers. Its snowpark has a great reputation among riders and its summer ski area, the largest and highest in Europe, is frequented by many professionals. What's more, it's a great place to party! To top it all off, the village has retained its authentic character. Davos, on the other hand, is a winter sports resort but above all a real town, the highest in the Alps (1,560 m). Known for its congress center, which hosts the annual World Economic Forum, Davos is also a sportsman's paradise, summer and winter alike. In Valais, Crans-Montana offers breathtaking views of peaks from the Matterhorn to Mont Blanc. In winter, you can ski here, but there's no shortage of other activities in summer: hiking, swimming in the five lakes, golf, tennis, canyoning, climbing, paragliding and more. Verbier also offers a panoramic view, and is a winter favorite for riders and a summer favorite for mountain bikers (with over 800 km of trails and a bike park). Other popular destinations include the charming village of Grindelwald, with its majestic glacier views and winter and summer activities, as well as the glacier village of Saas-Fee, the central Swiss village of Engelberg, the traditional and romantic village of Arosa and the spa village of Leukerbad. Take your pick!
A country of cyclists
Many Swiss people living in large cities travel by bike. There is often a real circuit of cycle paths. Bicycles are available for hire at all railway stations and in some towns, similar to the Velib' system in Paris. Mountain biking is also very popular: most ski resorts' tourist offices have detailed itineraries for you to enjoy as soon as the snow melts.
The lakes, prime spots for water sports activities
Swimming, windsurfing, catamaraning, rowing or pedal-boating - all water sports can be enjoyed on the lakes, where you can rent all the necessary equipment. Numerous rivers also flow through the towns, such as the Aare, which flows through the capital and is particularly popular with the Bernese in summer.
Sensations and adventure sports
For thrill-seekers, Switzerland also offers some great opportunities: bungee jumping, canyoning and rafting in the mountains, or hang-gliding or paragliding over spectacular landscapes are all within easy reach.
A wellness destination
Almost all 5-star hotels have relaxation areas, with pools, hammams, fitness centers, massages and beauty treatments available to all, hotel guests or not. Lovers of spa treatments will find plenty to pamper them. Clinics are also springing up like mushrooms in Switzerland: revitalization cures, anti-aging or stress treatments, cosmetic surgery, fitness courses and more. And their prices can be sky-high..
One hundred and fifty years of winter sports
Summer tourism was already flourishing in Switzerland when, on a fine September evening in 1864, Johannes Badrutt, a hotelier in the Engadine, sat down in front of his fireplace with four British visitors and began to remake the world. They were leaving the next day, and Badrutt suggested that they come back in the winter to enjoy the sunshine. They didn't hesitate, and in December arrived in the Engadine via the Julier Pass by horse-drawn carriage. The sun was out and the tourists stayed until Easter. Tanned and rested, they enjoyed their stay in the snow. They had just invented winter vacations in the Alps. Or so the legend goes.
In any case, it was at this time that the tourist attractions of winter in the Swiss Alps were discovered. St. Moritz, then a small, rustic village in the Upper Engadine, led the way by preparing ice fields, laying out toboggan runs and improving the surroundings. In 1880, the very first curling match in continental Europe was held here, followed two years later by the first European skating championship and, in 1888, the first ice hockey match in Switzerland. Long before the democratization of skiing, English high society was happy to forsake the Côte d'Azur or Egypt to spend the winter in Graubünden. As early as 1870, the British founded Switzerland's first skating club, in Davos. Europe's largest skating rink was inaugurated in 1877, making the resort the ice sports capital of the Old Continent.
Swiss winter... so British! The British played a key role in the development of winter tourism in Switzerland. Fascinated by the wild world of the mountains and exotic customs, they came up with a number of eccentric pastimes: rolling a wooden wheel on the ice, snow shovel fights, banana hanging, egg blowing, stilt walking and ski-jöring, which involves being pulled by a horse across a frozen lake. But the number-one winter sport has long been the luge, which itself originated in Davos. After the first international race to the nearby village of Klosters in 1883, Davos and its mythical "Davosienne" became the absolute benchmark for this discipline.
The canton of Graubünden was thus the pioneer of winter sports. It wasn't until 1889 that the first hotel in the Oberland (the Baer), in Grindelwald, opened in winter. In 1904, the world's first bobsleigh run was inaugurated between St. Moritz and Celerina. On the eve of the First World War, Switzerland had three major winter sports regions: the Bernese Oberland, the Vaud Alps and Graubünden. At the time, the English were the most numerous tourists.
The Olympic Games. Winter sports retained their elitist character well into the 1920s. It was through skiing that the democratization movement began. The holding of the 1928 Olympic Games in St. Moritz, with the first ski race, made a major contribution to this. But it was not until after the Second World War that tourism in Switzerland really took off, and winter became the main tourist season in the Alps. Gstaad, Zermatt, St. Moritz and Davos became world-renowned quality brands. St. Moritz was undoubtedly the most adept at capitalizing on this development, so much so that some people abroad began referring to Switzerland as "the pretty little country around St. Moritz". Neighboring countries followed suit, catching up at lightning speed, but none was as efficient and inventive as little Switzerland. Resorts were equipped with mountain trains to facilitate the arrival of visitors. The Chur-Davos line came into being in 1890, while the Rhaetian Railway was created in 1904 (through a site that is now a World Heritage Site). One hundred years ago, the Arosa line was inaugurated with great fanfare. It soon became apparent that, for visitors, the unique setting of the Swiss mountains was no longer a backdrop to be admired, but a playground to be explored. The mountains therefore had to be made compatible with winter sports: in 1912, the first funicular railways built specifically for winter sports linked Murren to Allmendhubel and St. Moritz to Chantarella.
The world's first bow lift, invented by Swiss duo Ernst Constam and Jack Ettinger, opened in 1934 on the Bolgen in Davos.
Comfort at the top. Today, Switzerland has almost 1,800 cable cars, gondolas and surface lifts in operation, employing over 9,000 people and generating sales of almost one billion Swiss francs. The main beneficiaries are outlying regions, where these installations are often a driving force behind tourism. But it's not unusual for these modes of transport to provide a decisive boost to other, more renowned destinations. Zermatt, for example, has invested more than 300 million over the last twelve years to propel tourists to a comfortable 4,000 m altitude. With its "rocksresort", the Weisse Arena group in Flims-Laax has given shape to its vision of tomorrow's winter tourism. The investment in this forward-looking vacation paradise cost 80 million, but will set an example. In turn, Andermatt, in the heart of Switzerland, is creating an exceptional resort at a cost of over one billion Swiss francs.
The innovations continued: in 2001, Joe Steiner launched air-boarding, which involves sliding down a specially designed slope on your stomach. Since 2011, the village of Tenna in Graubünden's Safiental region has been operating the world's first solar-powered ski lift. In 2012, Laax inaugurated the world's first 45-degree swivel chairlift, designed by Porsche. In 2015, the Diablerets glacier opened a suspension bridge between two peaks, and Mount Pilatus inaugurated its new ropeway. All resorts invest in events, infrastructure for activities and attractions that work in both summer and winter. But Switzerland's main winter - and summer! - of Switzerland remains its nature, its mountain world, unique in the world, with its "4,000", its glaciers and its lakes, and this has been going on for over a hundred and fifty years... not counting the millennia before that!
