Cost of leisure activities rises dramatically in Switzerland

Above-average price increases for leisure activities Keystone-SDA

The Swiss had to pay more for leisure activities in December. Prices for vacation apartments, package tours and mountain cable cars in particular rose significantly.

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According to the Comparis Leisure Price Index, prices for leisure goods in Switzerland rose by 0.9% overall in December 2024 compared to the same month a year prior, according to an analysis published on Thursday by the comparison service Comparis.

Meanwhile, the official annual inflation rate according to the national consumer price index was 0.6%. The leisure index shows how inflation has developed in the areas of leisure and culture as well as gastronomy and travel.

Expensive ski vacations

Winter vacations in particular have become more expensive. The price of parahotel offers, which include vacation apartments and other alternative forms of accommodation, rose by 4.5% within a year. Long-term vacation rentals are also significantly more expensive, rising 17.7% compared to 2019. This is particularly the case in the mountain regions.

Tickets for mountain cable cars and ski lifts have risen by 3.3% across Switzerland over the last year and are 10% more expensive than five years ago. This is mainly due to inflation and the dynamic price systems, says Comparis expert Adi Kolecic. The latter ensure that tariffs vary depending on demand, time of booking and weather. This leads to significantly higher costs, especially at peak times.

In contrast, prices for flight tickets have fallen, albeit from a high level. In December, consumers paid 4.6% less for air travel than in the same month last year. In a five-year comparison, however, air fares have still risen by a good third. While high demand and low supply drove prices up in 2023, the capacity bottlenecks were largely eliminated last year, according to Kolecic.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

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