Project Description

Bike Valais/Wallis

Top-down approach with bottom-up implementation

The BikeValaisWallis project was initiated by the STRATOS destination network and Bikeplan was commissioned to develop the project.

The project analysed the situation of mountain bike tourism in the canton and the potential of the guest and the region to become a mountain bike destination. In addition, goals for the development of mountain bike tourism in the canton and corresponding approaches were developed. Finally, the project shows how mountain bike tourism can be coordinated, institutionally anchored and financed.

The project also involves stakeholders such as environmental organisations, neighbouring projects and national coordination bodies such as SwitzerlandMobility.

Potential of mountain bike tourism

The strengths of Valais lie in its unique landscape and the resulting natural and cultural experience, as well as in its easy accessibility thanks to a dense network of public transport and mountain railways. Gastronomy and culture are also an important factor in the overall Valais experience and contribute significantly to the region’s experience-orientated offerings. Bikers have long since discovered Valais for their sport. It’s no longer just the wild downhillers or top athletes who want to explore Valais by bike.

Valais is ideally positioned to promote the largest customer segments (touring, all-mountain, enduro and freeride mountain bikers). These are also the customer segments that are closest to skiing in public. Synergy effects can be utilised here. In snow sports, too, it is the vast majority of pleasure and adventure skiers who generate added value in the Valais winter, and not the minority of extreme and performance-orientated skiers. It therefore makes sense to position mountain bikers in this pleasure and adventure segment and not in the mass sports segment. However, there is currently still a lack of official trails, holistic bike offers and regional marketing.

Process & services

Based on a survey of local conditions and developments, analyses of tourism and spatial planning as well as coordinating discussions with those involved, individually tailored concepts with a mountain bike-specific focus are being developed for the destinations.

The participatory approach is intended to ensure a high level of acceptance in the destinations. They also form the basis for the development of the cantonal mountain bike strategy and the associated implementation projects.

The tourism analysis is carried out by mountain bike scouts, so-called ‘trail agents’, who spend a week travelling around the destination and riding all the trails. An app is used to collect data on trails, the scene, services, hotels and transport from a mountain bike-specific perspective. The data is then analysed using a programme.

BikeValaisWallis coordination office

As a result of the project, the BikeWallis coordination centre will be set up in 2017 to provide technical support for the implementation of the regional concepts and to develop the cantonal master plan. It is the first point of contact for bike-specific questions and mediates between the destinations, external service providers (e.g. trail builders, planners, journalists and the international scene), the cantonal services and environmental organisations. It plans and implements specific marketing and PR measures. Regional connecting trails are planned by the coordination centre and supported through to implementation.

Client

STRATOS Netzwerk

Actors involved

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Amt für Wirtschaftsförderung, Kt. Wallis
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Valais/Wallis Promotion
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Valrando
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SBB, Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn, Postauto Wallis

Services

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Survey of local conditions
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Tourism analysis
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Spatial planning analysis
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Coordinating discussions
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Bike-specific development concepts
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Support coordination centre

Dates

The project was planned for a period of five years. The first two years (2015-2016) were used to analyse and design the participating destinations. In the following three years (2017-2020), the BikeWallis coordination office developed and implemented the defined tasks in a pilot phase.

Volume

The total costs amount to 3.42 million Swiss francs and are financed by NRP funds (federal and cantonal), own contributions and funds from the destinations.