Education and research in Graubünden
The holidays of the future
The tourism industry is undergoing profound change. In Graubünden, students are working alongside tourism experts to explore new possibilities and actively shape its future.
Storytelling and data-driven visitor management
One creative approach to technology in gastronomy is Elysium, a multisensory restaurant where students at EHL Hotelfachschule Passugg learn to combine gourmet cuisine with animations, projections, sound and scent to create extraordinary dining experiences. But how do you learn to design experience-led tourism? The hospitality school’s new subject, Affective Hospitality, equips students with the skills to orchestrate these experiences.
From augmented-reality hiking guides to robotic assistants, new digital technologies are taking Graubünden’s real-world experiences to new heights. Data has also recently begun to inform visitor capacity planning in the canton. Through intelligent data collection and analysis of customer behaviour, destinations can predict excess capacity or capacity shortages at different locations and times. Experiences that are not working can then be discontinued, while new tourism offerings can be tailored to different travel needs.
Alongside digital technologies and visitors eager for new experiences, one factor above all is shaping tourism today: climate change. Every year, more than two million visitors from Switzerland and abroad come to Graubünden to enjoy mountain sports.
As temperatures rise, mountain plants and animals must move to higher elevations. CERC, the research centre at SLF in Davos, combines international research excellence with regional knowledge to investigate questions such as how mountain habitats are changing. CERC also enables avalanches to be detected automatically in satellite images, revealing where they occur repeatedly, where they release and which paths they follow.
A research group at the University of Applied Sciences Graubünden is also developing large, water-permeable textile strips for use on slopes prone to gliding snow. In winter, these can release accumulated snow in controlled quantities. Unlike traditional wooden snow-support structures, these geosynthetic materials can be removed, allowing the meadows to remain available for agriculture in summer.
Through an art exhibition on glacier melt, students at the Höhere Fachschule für Tourismus (HFT), together with scientists and glaciologists, demonstrate how science and art can communicate environmental issues and raise awareness locally. For all their pleasures, holidays have an impact on the climate. Davos has therefore set itself the ambitious goal of becoming Switzerland’s first climate-neutral tourism destination by 2030. How will this work? When customers or guests choose a climate-neutral overnight stay or purchase, they make a contribution that the business matches. The money goes into a fund supporting regional and international climate projects. The aim is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Davos and offset CO₂ emissions. This pioneering project shows that lasting change happens when guests and hosts work together.
Education and research in tourism
Further information and useful links
Höhere Fachschule für Tourismus Graubünden
Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education in Tourism Management
Diploma in Event Management, HFT Graubünden
Diploma in Public Relations, HFT Graubünden
Diploma in Marketing, HFT
GastroGraubünden Hotel and Restaurant Management School
GastroGraubünden Hotel and Restaurant Management School
G1 Foundation Course in Hospitality with GastroSuisse Certificate (Hospitality Operator Course)
G2 Hospitality Management Course leading to a Federal Diploma of Higher Education
Vocational Trainer Course for the Hotel and Restaurant Industry
Vocational Trainer Programme leading to an Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education
EHL Hotelfachschule Passugg (EHL SSTH)
EHL Hotelfachschule Passugg (EHL SSTH)
Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education in Hospitality Management
Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education in Hospitality Management
Bachelor of Science in International Hospitality Management
Further master’s studies at EHL Hospitality Business School
Centre for Applied Glaciology
Centre for Applied Glaciology
Natural Hazards specialisation within the BSc in Civil Engineering
Ecology in Tourism
Swiss Snowsports Professional and School Association
Swiss Snowsports Professional and School Association
Snow Sports Instructor with a Federal Diploma of Higher Education
SSBS Ski Instructor with authorisation to conduct high-risk activities
SSBS Snowboard Instructor with authorisation to conduct high-risk activities
