“Beautiful autumn”: Roger Federer and Halle Berry light up autumn in Switzerland in new short film

In a humorous and inspiring short film, shot amid the breathtaking scenery of Lake Lucerne, tennis legend Roger Federer meets Hollywood star Halle Berry while travelling on some of the country’s most iconic public transport routes. Once again, the campaign highlights the tourism potential of the colourful season and its growing significance for the travel industry.

New York, Sept. 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For the second time, Roger Federer teams up with Switzerland Tourism (ST) to highlight the beauty of autumn in Switzerland, in what marks their fifth campaign together. This year, Federer invites an internationally renowned American actor to join him in celebrating the beauty of autumn in Switzerland. Halle Berry, who won an Oscar in 2002 for Monster’s Ball, first rose to fame through her acting career, later starring in blockbusters such as Die Another Day, the X-Men franchise, and Catwoman.

In this new short film – entitled Beautiful Autumn and created especially for distribution in Switzerland Tourism’s priority markets (United States, United Kingdom, Germany, India, South-East Asia and Japan) – Berry continuously makes clever attempts to delay the shoot. She’s fallen so deeply in love with Switzerland that she’s trying everything she can to secretly extend her stay there.

Travel better, stay longer
This humorous “making of”-style short film was directed by German/Swiss filmmaker Marc Forster and alternates between interview segments with Federer and scenes filmed in extraordinary locations such as a panoramic cable car, a vintage postbus and a boat. “The film showcases the strengths of spending autumn in Switzerland: longer, higher-quality stays and more mindful travel – the essence of Travel Better”, explains André Hefti, Chief Marketing Officer at Switzerland Tourism.

To further enhance the appeal of autumn, Switzerland Tourism has partnered with the Swiss national transport network Travel Switzerland throughout the campaign to offer special promotions on the Swiss Travel Pass, the ticket available exclusively to international visitors which enables them to travel comfortably and without limits in first class across Switzerland’s public transport network.

A season on the rise
Switzerland hotel statistics confirm that autumn is becoming an increasingly important season for travel in Switzerland, thanks to its mild climate and vibrant landscapes. Between September and November, hotel overnight stays have risen by 10.3% over the past five years (2019–2024) – a stronger growth rate than that seen across all months in the same period (+7.1%).

All regions in Switzerland have benefited from this growth, especially mountain areas, with overnight stays increasing by 8.2% in Graubünden (+66,729) and 8.5% in Valais (+60,762).

Swiss domestic travellers remain the driving force, with a 17% increase in overnights across five years (+707,970). However, international visitors have also contributed to the trend – overnights attributed to foreign guests have also risen by 4.3%, and by 4% among guests visiting from the Eurozone specifically. The most significant growth has come from visitors from the United States, with a 34.8% increase (+213,005 overnight stays).

Looking back: The whole world dreams of touring Switzerland with Roger Federer
The Swiss former tennis ace has been promoting Switzerland’s top tourism highlights with wit and elegance since 2021:

2021: No drama
Roger makes a memorable appearance alongside Robert De Niro, trying to convince him to star in a film about Switzerland. But De Niro declines – Switzerland is too perfect and lacks the drama his acting needs. This first short film, featuring two global stars, quickly went viral, garnering 53 million views and generating worldwide media coverage at a time just after the pandemic, when people were once again dreaming of travel.

2022: No-one upstages the Grand Tour of Switzerland
Roger finally fulfils his dream of making a movie about Switzerland – this time with Anne Hathaway. But the true star is the Grand Tour of Switzerland, a 1,643km scenic roadtrip through the country’s most beautiful regions. The short film highlighted roadtrip travel, supporting a campaign aimed at extending visitor stays. In 2023, nearly 44% of international guests went on to visit two or more Swiss destinations*.

2023: Grand Train Tour of Switzerland – The ride of a lifetime
Roger returns for a promotional film about Swiss rail journeys, now joined by actor Trevor Noah. The duo board the wrong platform and accidentally hop on a panoramic train along the Grand Train Tour of Switzerland. This “mistake” turned into a delightful journey — because in Switzerland, “you’re never on the wrong train.” The campaign inspired many, and Swiss Travel Pass sales rose by 15% in 2024 compared to in 2023, with a 53% jump in sales of the one-month pass**.

2024: Falling for Autumn
Amid a fairy-tale mountain setting, Roger and the film crew wait in vain for his co-star, Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen – who is too busy being at one with nature. This short film marked the most extensive international autumn campaign ever undertaken by Switzerland Tourism. Between 2017 (the year before Switzerland Tourism began promoting autumn) and 2024, overnight stays in autumn rose by 14.5% (Swiss guests: +21.7%, Eurozone guests: +5.5%, total international guests: +8.2%)***.

Sources:
* Tourism Monitor Switzerland (TMS), Switzerland Tourism 2023
** Swiss Travel System 2024
*** Federal Statistical Office

Useful resources and links:

‘Beautiful autumn’ short film: youtube.com/watch?v=1Kzf9YZkXSc
Key visuals: sa m.myswitzerland.com
Behind-the-scenes photos: sam.myswitzerland.com
Switzerland Tourism autumn landing page: switzerland.com/autumn

Media contact
Divine Bonga, Head of Media and Communications North America, Switzerland Tourism
Switzerland Tourism, Morgartenstrasse 5a, 8004 Zürich, Switzerland
media@switzerland.com | switzerland.com/medias

About Switzerland Tourism

Switzerland Tourism is a public-sector entity of the Confederation responsible for developing and implementing marketing programmes designed to stimulate demand and promote a strong brand image for Switzerland as a tourist destination, combining modernity and heritage. Switzerland Tourism works closely with the tourism industry, which contributes around half of its budget. The other half comes from federal funds. The company's activities are managed according to economic criteria, focusing on customer satisfaction and market needs. Switzerland Tourism has around 280 employees (255 FTEs) in 36 offices in 22 markets around the world. switzerland.com

Divine Bonga
Switzerland Tourism
646 760 0835
divine.bonga@switzerland.com

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