Travelers to Switzerland find hidden benefits of euro

Thanks to the Euro, foreign tourists are discovering that Switzerland is not as expensive as they thought Keystone Archive

Switzerland has apparently taken to the euro like a fish to water, with one million sold on the day of launch, and registers still ringing.

Besides making it more convenient to spend money by eliminating the need to exchange currency in the euro zone and tourist destinations outside it, travelers are finding a hidden benefit: it’s easier to compare hotel and holiday prices across borders.

Heinz Keller of Switzerland Tourism says, “For the very first time, all the guests have full transparency on the prices all over the country, all over the Alps. That means for instance, people in France or in Belgium, who always had the idea that Switzerland is extremely expensive, can check out what is the real difference between a ski holiday in the French Alps or in Lake Geneva Alps. People are quite surprised that Switzerland is not as expensive as thought.”

The director of the St Moritz tourism authority, Hans Danuser, seconds the optimism over the potential benefits of the euro – such as not having to worry about a variety of exchange rates for different types of currencies.

EU visitors

“We (St Moritz) are very close to the border. We have always been in a position where we use several currencies. I think at least 50 per cent of our visitors are from the European Union. So I do not see a real problem. The only problem will be in (people’s) heads because it is something new.”

Danuser adds that border resorts will become two-currency areas within six months’ time.

Until the early Nineties, Switzerland’s ‘expensive’ label was equated with high standards of living and service.

Gieri Spefbach of the country’s largest tourist region, Graubunden, says this has not been the case for several years. He also believes that the introduction of the euro and the subsequent price transparency could induce a greater sense of competition in the Swiss travel industry.

Changing times

“It was certainly true until the Nineties that Switzerland, because of the high level of quality, was a bit more expensive than countries around it but many things have changed and that also affected the prices. So nowadays, you get more for less, so to say.”

However, the adoption of the euro in countries surrounding Switzerland is not expected to come without potential risks, particularly if the Swiss franc were to rise in value against the euro, and thereby push prices or interest rates up.

Peter Keller, from the tourism division of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, notes the rise of the Swiss franc’s value against the euro.

“Five per cent of real increase of exchange rates between the euro and the francs – that means a higher franc rate of five per cent – makes about 2.4 million less spending in Switzerland. That is a danger. We hope that in this field, the Swiss franc will not go massively higher.”

As long the euro does not shrink in relation to the Swiss franc, tourists may continue to benefit from the common currency in Switzerland, as elsewhere in Europe.

by MaryAnn Mathew