Switzerland Tourism's Prinz makes Canadian debut

Switzerland Tourism’s new Canadian market manager made his industry debut last night, as the destination continues to draw record numbers of Canadians.

Members of the travel industry welcomed Pascal Prinz at an exclusive event in Toronto last night (Nov. 7), just one day after the Canadian market manager started in his new role. Prinz, who has been with the organization since 2013, was formerly in charge of the U.S. East Coast and will continue to represent Switzerland Tourism in the Midwestern U.S. and Texas. He was announced as the new market manager for Canada during this year’s Switzerland Travel Mart.

Outlining his vision for the market, Prinz told PAX that with travel agents playing an important role in bringing travellers to Switzerland, the organization continues to invest in programs for the trade. The latest addition is the Switzerland Travel Academy, a new e-learning program which allows agents to learn more about Switzerland’s travel offerings.

“It’s only three hours to become a Switzerland travel expert,” Prinz said of the new program, “and as a travel advisor, you can specialize in the topics you want, including family, luxury and winter. The trade is very important to us, so we invest a lot of resources and care in the agent community.”

Pascal Prinz, market manager - Canada, Switzerland Tourism

During the reception, Urs Eberhard, Switzerland Tourism’s head of markets, provided a number of destination updates to attendees. According to Eberhard, Canadian arrivals continue to climb with a 12 per cent year-over-year increase recorded between January and September this year, the majority of arrivals taking place in winter. Ontario and Quebec continue to be Switzerland’s top Canadian markets, providing 39 per cent and 35 per cent of Canadian arrivals respectively.

With a focus on winter tourism, Switzerland’s Upgrade Your Winter campaign continues with a new initiative at more than 30 ski resorts this year; according to Eberhard, when travellers buy a ski pass at participating resorts, they can hit the slopes as of 3 p.m. on the day prior to the pass becoming valid. The program is expected to expand to between 60 and 90 resorts across the country next year, Eberhard said.

Meanwhile, cyclists visiting Switzerland in the summer will be able to take advantage of a new program next year, which will see some alpine roads closed to motorized vehicles.