Swiss festivals feel the strong franc
The 22nd Verbier Festival is history. It generated around 41,000 admissions. The festival compensated for the presumed lack of visitors from the eurozone due to the strong franc with a strong influx of visitors from the region and Vaud.
Of the 30,000 tickets sold, 39 percent went over the counter during the festival. 11,000 visitors took part in the free events. According to Kim Gaynor, the Verbier Festival's administrative director, ticket prices have not risen. However, the strong Swiss franc caused additional costs for residents of the eurozone, who make up 20 to 30 percent of the festival audience.
The number of viewers watching the festival on the internet is growing all the time, according to the organizers. This year, the concerts broadcast on medici.tv broke all records. Valery Gergiev's concert was watched by 34,000 viewers (the previous record holder was Martha Argerich, who brought 22,100 viewers to the screen three years ago).
