On Women’s Day, Switzerland Tourism launches new international campaign “100% Women”
Kolkata: Switzerland Tourism recently launched a special “100% Women” campaign on International Women’s Day. With a growing interest in adventure sports among women travelers, this initiative, created by women and for women, is aimed at attracting ladies from across the world to holiday in Switzerland with a different perspective on new experiences, especially to outdoor activities and mountain sports. Along with a six-month 100 % Women Peak Challenge, ST is delighted to present around 230 offers and events that are specially geared towards women and provide a female perspective of Switzerland, where all experiences – ranging from just a few hours to several days – are led by women and include mountaineering tours, different city and cultural tours, majority of which have been newly conceived, especially for this campaign.
Part of the initiative, the 100% Women Peak Challenge, starting on 8th March is a six-month challenge that is aimed at encouraging women-only teams to come together to ascend the highest peaks in the Swiss Alps. Switzerland Tourism is joining forces with the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC), the Swiss Mountain Guide Association and Swiss outdoor brand- Mammut to encourage female mountaineers to climb all forty-eight 13,000ft peaks in Switzerland – in teams made up exclusively of women. The campaign is not about competing against one another – but rather the focus is on experiencing the 48 – 13,000ft peaks together. It will be accompanied by an interactive landing page Peakchallenge.myswitzerland.
“In the outdoor segment, in particular, ST sees great potential in attracting women as new visitors and encouraging those already keen on outdoor activities such as hiking to try something a little different such as high-altitude hikes, mountain biking, etc. Women-only offers, led by female mountaineers or guides, can help inspire many women to get out of their comfort zone in the company of other like-minded individuals and embark on a mountain tour they would never have dared to try otherwise, for example,” said Ritu Sharma, Deputy Director, and Marketing Head – India, Switzerland Tourism.
Women-only travel is booming
Why the focus on women? Because 80% of travel decisions are taken by women, regardless of who they are traveling with. Among tourists booking adventure, cultural or nature holidays, 75% are women between the ages of 20 and 70. National Geographic identified women-only trips as one of 2020’s top travel trends. Demand has shifted away from traditional wellness trips towards a broader spectrum of interests. In the outdoor segment in particular, ST sees great potential in attracting women as new visitors and encouraging those already keen on outdoor activities (such as hiking) to try something a little different (high-altitude hikes, mountain biking, etc.). Women-only offers, led by female mountaineers or guides, can help inspire many women to get out of their comfort zone in the company of other like-minded individuals (to embark on a mountain tour they would never have dared to try otherwise, for example). Back in February 2020, ST invited the tourism industry to a workshop in order to discuss women’s needs with respect to outdoor sports under the direction of female experts. The results were compiled in a set of industry guidelines.
All experiences, whether for a few hours or over the course of several days, will be led by women to give them and their achievements a platform and provide other women with positive role models.
