A picturesque Swiss village has begun charging tourists to access a lakeside dock made famous by the hit South Korean Netflix series “Crash Landing On You”, capitalising on its newfound popularity. Iseltwald, home to just 406 inhabitants, now requires visitors to pay 5 Swiss francs (£4.40) via a turnstile to reach the spot, often for souvenir photos.
Local leaders and tourism officials insist the villagers are not getting rich from the influx. However, the scheme has proven lucrative, with entries in 2024 bringing in nearly 245,000 francs (£215,000). An additional 58,000 francs (£51,000) was collected from a one-franc public toilet, according to village clerk Gabriela Blatter.
Proceeds have gone mostly to garbage disposal, restroom cleaning, additional work hours and custodial staff hires, she said.
Titia Weiland, manager of the Bönigen-Iseltwald Tourism agency, said the funds go right back to village upkeep: “It’s not correct to read it as ‘the community gets rich’,” alluding to some comments along those lines in the media and online.
The village, situated along a small peninsula that juts out into Lake Brienz, features majestic views of Alpine peaks over the water.
An episode in early 2020 of the cross-border Korean love story spotlighted the dock as a romantic getaway. That sparked online hype among fans of the series across Asia and beyond, which hasn’t let up, fueling the rush of tourism to Iseltwald.
A map of Iseltwald:
The continued influx has exposed growing pains for the Swiss village, like those faced by other tourist hotspots that get too much of a good thing.
Part of the problem is infrastructure: Iseltwald has three hotels and four restaurants, not enough for about 1,000 visitors who arrive by tour bus, public bus and car each day on average, according to Blatter. The village is revamping a parking lot to help cope with the strain, and the only village store now operates 7 days a week. Previously, it was open Monday to Friday.
“There were always tourists in Iseltwald. We are…
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