Chinese tourists are increasingly seeking unique, tailor-made experiences rather than participating in one-size-fits-all group activities when they travel to Switzerland to engage in immersive winter travel around the Alps.
One of the draws for Chinese tourists is the iconic Matterhorn Mountain, and an increasing number of visitors choose to see this famous peak from the air and experience an adrenaline rush in a tandem paragliding flight.
Guo Mu is from Jilin Province in northeast China, and she was on a holiday to Switzerland with her husband.
Visiting Zermatt for the first time, she had decided to do a tandem paragliding flight to get close to the Matterhorn.
"I want to see the country. I want to see, you know, the mountains, the forest, and just look around from the height. So, I'm actually very excited, just yeah, let's see how it goes, and if it goes well, perhaps I do a training course, and I'd like to do the paragliding on my own," she said.
With her fear of heights, the 10-minute flight is a memory for a lifetime, said Guo, adding that she was inspired to take the flight after seeing others paragliding on a previous vacation to Switzerland.
According to Switzerland Tourism, Chinese visitors have been seeking tailor-made, unique experiences rather than one-size-fits-all group activities, and for many, tandem paragliding is a must-do when travelling to Switzerland.
Bruno Schmidt is a Swiss pilot with over 40 years of flying experience. He said that almost half of his clients are tourists from China.
"It's more younger people, for sure, more younger people, but I think that's a question about the language. Because the younger people speak English, and the older not so much. So, I think, it's about the language because we have to communicate with them. We have to explain the take-off. We have to explain to them what they could do wrong," he said.
Chinese tourists increasingly seek tailor-made experiences in Switzerland's winter tourism boom
