Switzerland Tourism (UK/IRE) is the official organisation responsible for promoting Switzerland as a travel destination to the UK and Irish markets. Known for its year-round natural beauty and rich cultural experiences, the organisation runs seasonal campaigns to inspire holidaymakers and adventurers to explore everything the country has to offer, from city breaks to Alpine escapes.
For winter 2024, Switzerland Tourism saw an opportunity to build a campaign that connected a major cultural moment with the destination’s winter appeal: the 40th anniversary of Wham!’s Last Christmas, filmed in Saas-Fee in 1984.
About the Campaign
Bauer Media proposed a multi-platform partnership through Magic Radio to bring the campaign to life. With its broad adult audience, festive tone, and reputation for iconic Christmas music, Magic Radio was the perfect match for a campaign built on nostalgia and inspiration.
The strategy centred on engaging listeners through both emotion and experience:
A series of on-air promotional trails and live reads promoting the campaign
A Watch & Win competition hosted on the Magic Radio website
Targeted social media advertising and organic presenter content
Video content filmed in Zürich and Saas-Fee, capturing the full magic of the trip
Promotion of a luxury prize: a winter getaway including flights, hotel, dining, and spending money, all tied to the iconic Last Christmas filming location
Together, these activations made Switzerland the talk of the festive season and gave listeners multiple ways to engage.
And… we think we found Wham’s biggest super fan!
VIDEO
Client Testimonial
“A radio-broadcast based marketing campaign hadn’t been something that Switzerland Tourism (UK/IRE) had previously considered. An opportunity, however, arose with the 40th anniversary of the release of Wham’s Last Christmas in December 2024. The music video was actually filmed in Saas Fee, Switzerland (in November 1984), and we wanted to link the anniversary of this globally recognised cultural milestone to a wider promotion of winter-time in Switzerland so a radio approach made sense.
It was a slight leap of faith for us, but this approach paid off handsomely. The Bauer Media team’s professionalism, knowledge and insight were apparent from the outset. They immediately grasped our campaign objectives and proposed using the Magic Radio platform, which paid dividends.
This suggested campaign allowed us to integrate our key partners and deliver our main ‘Winter in Switzerland’ message across various media touchpoints including a live broadcast, promotional audio trails, social activation, and an online competition. It went on to exceed several of our planned KPIs.
One of the most valuable elements was the ‘long tail’ impact of the online competition hosted on Magic Radio’s website. Their clever ‘Watch & Win’ mechanic enabled us to sustain awareness of Switzerland for weeks beyond the live Magic Breakfast Show broadcast.
Ultimately, the campaign helped us exceed expectations across multiple objectives. We wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this approach or working with Bauer Media again. It was without doubt our stand-out campaign of 2024.”
Success Measures
Radio and On-Air Impact
National coverage across the Magic Radio network
Dedicated comp rounds with winners featured live on-air
Spotlight promotional trails ran from 22 November to 29 December 2024
Live reads throughout the campaign build-up
Pre-promote trails beginning 13 November
Overall Campaign Reach
Total Reach Across All Platforms: 4,251,954 (Including organic Instagram and Magic social activity)
Award Recognition
The campaign has been nominated for Best Media Partnership at the Travel Marketing Awards 2025, a testament to its strategic creativity, execution, and outstanding results.
Summary
Magic x Switzerland Tourism demonstrates how powerful a well-matched media partnership can be. By tapping into a nostalgic, cultural moment and bringing it to life through trusted presenters, engaging audio, rich visuals, and interactive digital content, this campaign inspired real emotional connection with audiences.
Not only did it drive entries, data capture, and brand awareness, it built lasting resonance with listeners and delivered exceptional return on objectives. This standout winter campaign redefined what radio can do for destination marketing.
