Sweden Launches Campaign to Stop Tourists from Thinking It's Switzerland
The nation's tourism board is tackling this apparently common issue head on.
Sweden just wants you to know some basic geography—that's literally all it's asking. And it'll tell you what, it is even willing to put some effort into making sure you know your countries. Why, you ask? Well, because Sweden is just sick and tired of being confused with Switzerland—which, apparently, happens a lot.
You may be thinking, "but it isn't rocket science!" To you, maybe, it isn't, but to some of us it looks like it is. As Euronews reports, a whopping 120,000 people a year confuse Sweden for Switzerland, or vice versa. And Sweden has now had enough, which is why its tourism board launched a campaign—which comes with a hilarious video, too—to finally explain the difference between the two countries.
"People all over the world keep mixing up Sweden and Switzerland," reads the landing page of the campaign, dubbed "Welcome to Sweden (not Switzerland)," on Visit Sweden's website. "To end this confusion, we are now reaching out to Swiss officials."
A satirical video then follows, where an official representative of Sweden gives out a speech while standing on a podium. "Leaders and citizens of Switzerland," the official begins. "This is a message from Sweden. We're contacting you regarding our mutual problem. Yes, we are talking about this."
The official then proceeds to hold up a newspaper, which shows an article from this summer addressing President Biden's (real!) mixup when he confused Switzerland with Sweden in a NATO speech. "It's time we make the distinction between our two nations clear as day," continues the official in the video. "By deciding who talks about what."
What Sweden proposes, in the video, is simple. Switzerland will take some things to own, and Sweden will take others. For example, Switzerland will take banks, and Sweden will have sandbanks. Mountain tops will also go to Switzerland, as long as Sweden takes rooftops. Luxury? Switzerland can have it—but Sweden will grab "a different kind of luxury, like forgetting about time."
Sweden then urges Switzerland representatives to view and sign the proposal, which is linked below the video and redirects to an actual PDF file (which you can download and see here). "Switzerland, we are open to negotiation," the Sweden official says to wrap it up. "But we believe that we need to end this confusion as soon as possible."
Finally, one last note on the campaign website urges viewers to spread the news and give their own personal input on the matter. "If you want to influence the proposed division, you can do so here."