Zurich, St. Moritz, Zermatt, Geneva and Lucerne, the Matterhorn, Chapel Bridge, a panoramic trip with the Glacier Express: this is not just a random assortment of tourist highlights in Switzerland. No, these are points from the “Contrasts of Switzerland” travel programme. What makes this particularly special is that all hotels, activities, meals and transport are included in the Swisstainable programme. The first entirely sustainable tour in Switzerland was developed by international travel company The Travel Corporation (TTC) and national tourism marketing organisation Switzerland Tourism (ST).

TTC is one of the largest tour operators worldwide and is active in many of ST’s markets, such as North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The travel company boasts a potential of around 1.9 million guests and owns and operates 40 travel brands. Initial figures show just how popular sustainable travel is among TTC customers: in the first nine months alone since its launch, “Contrasts of Switzerland” has proven itself as one of TTC’s fastest growing travel programmes. Guests opt for a trip to Switzerland thanks to the Swisstainable criterion, among other things. TTC sold a total of over 250,000 hotel overnight stays in Switzerland in 2023. This was helped along by the presentation of the Grand Train Tour of Switzerland train journey with Roger Federer and Trevor Noah on all TTC channels.

34 tourism professionals on a research trip

“Contrasts of Switzerland”, the Grand Train Tour of Switzerland and the Swisstainable movement or the associated programme were another focus of the international research trip undertaken in July 2023. Thirty-four top travel consultants from the USA, Canada, Australia, South East Asia and South Africa visited Switzerland to get to know and experience Swisstainable in person. The TTC group was accompanied by four media representatives. In total, TTC generated around 21.5 million media contacts (paid) for Switzerland. In March 2023, TTC’s top management also visited Saas-Fee as part of a Swisstainable research trip.

TTC and ST were able to rely on the support of their partners Engadin St. Moritz Tourism, Lucerne Tourism, Saas Valley Tourism, the Valais Matterhorn Region, Visit Geneva and Zermatt Tourism.

New trip for 2024: “Magical Switzerland”

ST has been working closely with TTC since 2022. Thanks to this partnership, Swisstainable offers are visible and bookable worldwide. “By working with such an important and established global player as TTC, we can reach thousands of potential guests in numerous key markets with our sustainable travel options in one fell swoop,” says Simon Bosshart, ST’s Head of Markets East and a member of the Executive Board.

The main aims of the collaboration are to sell Swisstainable trips, to extend the length of stay among guests and to promote holidays in Switzerland during the autumn months. At the same time, TTC wants to use the partnership to achieve its self-imposed net-zero target for greenhouse gas emissions in 2050. Already, 57% of all Swiss products are included in the TTC programme Swisstainable. The target of 40% by the end of 2023 was therefore clearly exceeded.

Incidentally, in 2024, TTC will launch a new Swisstainable trip by the name of “Magical Switzerland”.