Arosa Tourism Once Again Breaks The 1 Million Mark For Overnight Stays

Despite the mixed winter, Arosa Tourism once again broke the 1 million mark for overnight stays. As has been the case for many years, the holiday destination benefited from the strong solidarity of the top performers in the Schanfigger Bergdorf. With the slight loss of CHF 16,000 in the annual tourism accounts, we were almost able to achieve a perfect landing with a view to breaking even. At the general meeting, those responsible were very satisfied with the 2022/23 season and together - with a newly composed board of directors, to which two innovative women, Carmen Prantl and Tina Arpagaus, were elected - are looking optimistically into the future.

At this year's general meeting on September 19, 2023, the tourism organization presented a loss of CHF 16,000 with sales of CHF 11,320,367. As of April 30, 2023, the balance sheet shows equity of CHF 551,075, which corresponds to 15.49% of the balance sheet total. Despite the decline, which was -6.69% in overnight stays, there were more overnight guests last year than in the pre-Covid period. The five-year average figures are correspondingly positive. A look at the statistics also reveals something encouraging: the number of overnight stays exceeded one million once again. In the 2022/23 tourism year, a total of 1,163,354 guests stayed overnight in the holiday region - which also includes the Schanfigg valley for tourism.

President Pascal Jenny says: “Arosa has once again proven itself to be a do-it-yourself destination with great versatility. This and the unique solidarity of the top performers are the foundation on which Arosa can assert itself as a travel destination in a volatile environment.” Even after the Corona pandemic, Arosa remains one of the most popular destinations for Swiss people and guests from nearby countries. This is also reflected in the numbers of Arosa’s top performers. Arosa Bergbahnen AG was also able to end last year with the second-best result in the company's history.

For the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, Arosa was able to hold all events within its event strategy in the 2022/23 season. At the same time, the beloved winter with mild temperatures and demanding snow conditions was a challenge that Arosa's top performers also faced thanks to the altitude of 1,800 meters above sea level. M. in the village itself, knew how to cope well. “It is important that we continually question ourselves, develop further and also keep an eye on major social trends. “In this way, we will continue to write Arosa’s success story together,” says Pascal Jenny, who, as re-elected president, will be able to work with a slightly different committee in the future.

Promising castling on the board

There were two castlings in the regular elections. The previous board members Roy Zanin (2017 to 2023) and Thomas Blatter (2005 to 2023) announced their departure in advance. With Carmen Prantl (39) and Tina Arpagaus (29), the representatives of Ferienwohnungen Arosa and Hotelleriesuisse Arosa presented two highly competent and innovative personalities who will bring a breath of fresh air to the board.

Both women, like the other previous members of the board and President Pascal Jenny, were elected unanimously. The re-elected President warmly welcomed the new board members and is looking forward to the expertise they have gained. At the same time, Pascal Jenny thanked the resigned board members for their great commitment to Arosa's interests over the past few years. For his services, Thomas Blatter was made an honorary member of Arosa Tourism by the meeting of delegates to great applause.

The board of Arosa Tourismus will be composed as follows for the next three years:

Pascal Jenny (President, since 2020), Patric Iten (representative of the municipality), Noldi Heiz (Trade and Commerce, since 2008), Sven Bodenmann (Gastro Arosa, since 2018), Roman Geiser (second home owner, since 2021), Carmen Prantl ( FeWo, since 2023) and Tina Arpagaus (Hotelleriesuisse Arosa, since 2023).

The committee, which is younger and more female than the previous period, ideally covers Arosa's various top performers, so that the creativity of the local economy can be used as a multiplier for the Arosa holiday region. As an attractive location for ecological and economic activities, the already close cooperation between Arosa's top performers can be intensified.

Open, cooperative and sustainable for everyone

This Arosa mixture is no coincidence. The important strategy processes of the past few years are having an impact and are being received. The topic of sustainability is becoming more and more a matter of course from the main topic. Thanks to the overarching “Arosa 2030” strategy, sustainable action and impact is practiced at all levels. The first project implementations have been successfully implemented and have already been further developed, so that Arosa is gradually getting closer to its goal of becoming the most sustainable destination in the Alps. The targeted and conscious focus on the areas of participation and inclusion expands this category in a meaningful way and Arosa has set itself no smaller goal than to make the entire place completely barrier-free in the coming years.

In the area of ​​digitalization, the cooperation with Lenzerheide and the mountain railways continues to thrive. The “al.digital” project, a digital transformation project with the aim of giving tomorrow’s guests seamless, digital access to the services of all partners and thereby tying them closer to the destination(s), is taking big steps forward. Nothing stands in the way of making Arosa digitally afloat for the future and thus in line with the trend of being able to use electronic services in all areas of life.

Roland Schuler, tourism director, is convinced: “Arosa offers an incredibly attractive environment. We are pleased to see that all top performers contribute to Arosa's overall development with individual efforts and projects. This means the product will remain desirable for guests in the future.”