Travel Market Switzerland 2007

Technical Report and Results - In 2007, for the seventeenth time since 1972, a survey on the travel behaviour of the Swiss population was conducted. The database resulting from this project (Travel Market Switzerland 2007) is still the most extensive on private trips by the Swiss resident population. Private trips are defined/ delimited as all journeys by private persons with at least one overnight stay outside their home and their normal life and work environment. They include all types of leisure motivations, but no business purposes.
This report overviews:
-the method/ procedure of data collection (Chapter 2)
-the results of this data collection (Chapter 3)
-publications that draw on previous editions of Travel Market Switzerland (Chapter 4)
-variables available in the database of Travel Market Switzerland for further analysis and special reports (Chapter 5).

Results (selection):
-Travel propensities: Switzerland experienced one of its most travel-intensive travel years ever, mainly due to the economic prosperity, an optimistic outlook and cheap transport during large parts of the reporting year.
-The duration of trips: most trips now last less than one week. The "classic" two-week trip has been supplanted by shorter as well as longer trips.
-The choice of destination: Switzerland remains the favoured destination. However, non-neighbouring countries in Europe as well as overseas destinations have achieved considerable market share increases.
-The month of departure: July remains the strongest month. More than half of all travel occurred between March and July. Other than in 2004, and signalling a long-term trend, travel increasingly occurred in the first half of the year, with varying market shares for spring and autumn.
-Travel motivation: people wanted to be pampered, diverted/ entertained and rid themselves of obligations. Time issues (motivation factors such as having time for family or for oneself) are less dominant than in previous years, although still strong.
-Sources of information: three major sources of information exist: the WWW, friends and relatives, and destination brochures. Occasionally (and especially when travelling internationally), tour operator brochures and travel guides inhibit prominent position. However, and most importantly, the major source of information is previous experi-ence.
-Modes of transport: 2007 has been the year of the plane, with flying as the mode of transport gaining the highest market share ever, attributable to capacity increases of the network carriers as well as a proliferation of low-cost airlines. Cars lost market share, mainly due to the choice of destination, and trains also continued to lose market share.
-Type of accommodation: the hotel industry in general, and four- and five-star hotels in particular, gained market share. Because travellers from Switzerland prefer to stay in hotels when travelling internationally, and international travel has gained market share, this was expected.
In summary, a prosperous 2007 led to increased travel activity, which generated above-average demand for long-haul travel, and therefore increased demand for flights and hotel accommodation. The overall trend of stagnation was interrupted in 2007; however, it is uncertain whether this is a temporary phase, considering the less-than-favourable economic outlook and higher transport costs for the time being.