Basel hotel occupancy rises as room supply shrinks in October.

November 13, 2026

In October 2026, Basel's arrivals and overnight stays remained broadly stable compared to 2025, while hotel occupancy rose to about 74.6 percent due to fewer available rooms and slightly more occupied rooms. Switzerland remained the leading source market with 39.2 percent of overnight stays, and the overall figures point to a steady autumn tourism period without major fluctuations.

In October 2026, Basel recorded 81,365 arrivals and 150,203 overnight stays. Compared to the same month in previous years, arrivals were slightly lower than in 2025, when 82,274 arrivals were recorded, but remained well above the 2023 level of 69,007. Overnight stays were nearly identical to 2025, with only 263 fewer stays, and were higher than in both 2023 and 2024. The average length of stay held steady at 1.8 nights, unchanged from 2025.

Hotel occupancy showed a notable improvement in room usage despite a slight decline in available rooms. The number of available rooms fell from 147,498 in October 2025 to 141,763 in October 2026, a drop of about 3.9 percent. However, occupied rooms rose from 102,039 to 105,701, an increase of roughly 3.6 percent. This means the occupancy rate climbed from about 69.2 percent in October 2025 to approximately 74.6 percent in October 2026, indicating stronger demand relative to supply.

Switzerland remained the dominant source market, accounting for 39.2 percent of all overnight stays with 58,856 stays. Germany followed with 13.2 percent and 19,837 overnight stays. The United States contributed 9.4 percent, the United Kingdom 5.0 percent, and France 3.7 percent. All other countries combined represented 29.5 percent of overnight stays. The data does not include a breakdown by hotel category, so no comparison across categories is possible.

Overall, October 2026 showed stable tourism volumes compared to the prior year, with a modest shift toward higher occupancy driven by fewer available rooms rather than a large increase in visitors. The figures suggest a mature and steady autumn tourism period without major anomalies or sharp seasonal swings.


Table 1: Overnight Stays by Country of Origin in October 2026
Country of Origin Arrivals Overnight Stays Share of Total (%)
Schweiz 36,396 58,856 39.2 %
Deutschland 11,058 19,837 13.2 %
Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika 6,596 14,124 9.4 %
Grossbritannien 3,545 7,484 5.0 %
Frankreich 3,102 5,631 3.7 %
Other 20,668 44,271 29.5 %
Total 81,365 150,203 100.0 %


Table 2: Overnight Arrivals and Overnight Stays in October 2026
Category Arrivals Overnight Stays Share of Total (%)
4- und 5-Stern 33,744 65,232 43.4 %
3-Stern 24,989 44,813 29.8 %
Keine Kategorie 12,650 23,640 15.7 %
1- und 2-Stern 9,982 16,518 11.0 %
Total 81,365 150,203 100.0 %


Table 3: Arrivals and Overnight Stays in October by Year
Year Arrivals Overnight Stays Avg Daily Overnight Stays Occupancy Rate (%)
2026 81,365 150,203 4,845.3 74.6 %
2025 82,274 150,466 4,853.7 69.2 %
2024 74,472 142,593 4,599.8 71.5 %
2023 69,007 128,824 4,155.6 60.7 %

Figure 1: Overnight Stays by Origin of Visitors in the last 24 Months

Data source: Monatliche Ankünfte und Logiernächte, Tägliche Ankünfte und Logiernächte nach Herkunftsland, Tägliche Ankünfte, Logiernächte, Zimmer nach Hotelkategorie
Additional resources: Tourismusstatistik 2024

🤖 This text was generated with the assistance of AI. All quantitative statements are derived directly from the dataset listed under Data Source.