Published on 25 June 2026

Major events

Switzerland boasts hundreds of festivals, as well as sporting, cultural and political events, and some of them appeal to an international audience. Every 25 years or so, Switzerland mounts a national exhibition.

The international “Locarno Film Festival” shows films d'auteur and holds its own among the world's top film festivals. — © Festival del film Locarno

Hundreds of events and festivals take place in Switzerland every year. There are major international private-sector events such as the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos and the Watch and Wonders fair in Geneva. The world of sport is also represented, with the Lauberhorn Races, the Omega European Masters golf tournament and the Weltklasse Zürich athletics meeting. And then there's Art Basel, a globally renowned art fair.

The Lauberhorn races take place in January against the backdrop of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau mountains, and are broadcast by over 60 television stations. — © Verein Internationale Lauberhornrennen

Festivals abound in Switzerland, including a particularly high number of music festivals. They range from classical music, with the Lucerne Festival, to jazz, with the Montreux Jazz Festival, flanked by a plethora of rock and pop festivals. Paléo Festival Nyon is one of Europe's largest open-air music festivals. But there is also an array of theatre, dance and film festivals reputed around the world, such as the Locarno and Zurich film festivals.

And about once every 25 years, Switzerland showcases its multifaceted identity in a national exhibition. The last one, in 2002, was spread over four sites around Lakes Neuchâtel, Biel and Murten.

And about once every 25 years, Switzerland showcases its multifaceted identity in a national exhibition. The last one, in 2002, was spread over four sites around Lakes Neuchâtel, Biel and Murten.

Facts and figures on major events in Switzerland

• Davos' 1992 World Economic Forum served as the stage for the first-ever meeting between the then South African President, Frederik W. De Klerk, and Nelson Mandela.
• Twenty-seven world records have been set at the Weltklasse Zürich athletics meeting since its inception about a century ago.
• Paléo Festival Nyon is one of Europe's largest open-air music festivals. In 2025, it drew 250,000 visitors to its 200 concerts performed on 8 stages, and won the Best Major Festival award of YOUROPE – the European Festival Association.
• One of the international Locarno Film Festival's highlights is its star-studded open-air evening screenings in the unique ambience of Piazza Grande, which seats around 8,000 film aficionados.
• In 2009, the Omega European Masters golf competition in Crans-Montana was the first event in Europe to be co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour. Today, it is one of Europe's most prominent competitions.
• One of the main attractions at the Expo.02 national exhibition was a huge artificial cloud of mist produced by 88 pumps with 32,000 nozzles.

For more on this see