Helbling Travel

What Helbling Travel does

Helbling Reisen AG is a privately held Swiss travel agency founded in 1986 by Rolf Helbling in St. Gallen and led since 2017 by owner and Managing Director Michael Mettler. Operating under the Helbling Reisen brand (with the Helbling Signature Reisen premium sub-brand), the company is headquartered at Ringstrasse 14 in Gossau with a second branch in Teufen, and serves as the leading travel agency in Eastern Switzerland — ranked among the top 10 largest private travel agencies in Switzerland. Its 18-person team of Reiseexperten handles leisure travel, group tours, and corporate travel for more than 80 companies, supported by mobile advisors serving Appenzell, Glarus, Eschlikon and Wil.

The company's product portfolio spans premium bespoke journeys (Signature Reisen, Rovos Rail Africa expeditions), themed and group tours (Spezialreisen, Gruppenreisen), business travel management (Geschäftsreisen), package holidays departing from St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport via partnerships with People's and Private Wings, and specialized SwissSkills/WorldSkills fan travel. Its technology layer comprises the helbling-reisen.ch online booking platform, Switzerland's first Virtual Travel Bureau (3D immersive experience at vr-helbling-reisen.ch), live and recorded virtual info-trip webinars, the Helbling App for travel documents, the "Underwägs für dich" video series, and a multi-channel content engine (blog, newsletter, in-person Reisegeflüster events). The firm is IATA-accredited, a member of Travel Professionals Switzerland (with a board seat) and the Garantiefonds der Schweizer Reisebranche, and is PCI DSS certified.

Helbling Reisen earns revenue primarily through commissions on package holidays sold from major tour operators (Kuoni, TUI, Hotelplan), airline ticketing, corporate travel management fees, and ancillary ServicePLUS offerings (private transfers, lounge access, parking, insurance). Distribution combines physical offices in Gossau and Teufen with the online booking platform, virtual consultations, video content, and event-based sales across Eastern Switzerland and into German-speaking Switzerland via TPS.

Name

Helbling Travel

Legal name

Helbling Reisen AG

Website

https://helbling-reisen.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Helbling Reisen AG is a Swiss independent travel agency, founded in 1986 and ranked among the top 10 largest in Switzerland, serving leisure travelers, groups, and 80+ corporate clients across Eastern Switzerland from offices in Gossau and Teufen, with a virtual travel bureau, mobile app, and signature long-haul products including Rovos Rail Africa journeys.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Travel Agency Services

NAICS

Travel Agencies (561510), Tour Operators (56152)

akta.pro primary industry

Inbound/Local Retail Travel Agencies (Destination Booking Offices) (THAKABAH)

Keywords

• Travel agency services
• Leisure travel packages
• Corporate travel management
• Group travel services
• Luxury train journeys

Headquarters

HQ city

Gossau

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Travel Package Sales: Commission revenue from selling package holidays and travel arrangements from major tour operators including Kuoni, TUI, Hotelplan and others at best market prices
2. Airline Bookings: Commission from flight bookings through airline partnerships including People's and Private Wings for flights from St. Gallen-Altenrhein airport
3. ServicePLUS Offerings: Additional services including private airport transfers, travel insurance, car rentals, airport lounge access, parking, and travel literature with special discounts
4. Business Travel Management: Corporate travel management services for over 80 companies, organizing flights, hotels, car rentals, and travel documentation

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Helbling Reisen AG is an independent full-service travel agency that plans, books, and manages leisure and corporate travel for clients in Eastern Switzerland. Its core offerings include bespoke Signature Reisen, Spezialreisen custom group journeys, Geschäftsreisen corporate travel management for 80+ companies, and destination-specialized packages (notably Africa safaris and Rovos Rail luxury train journeys). The company augments these with a 3D Virtual Travel Bureau, online booking platform, mobile app, and complementary ServicePLUS add-ons such as transfers, insurance, lounge access, and parking.

Product overview

Helbling Reisen AG operates as a full-service travel agency offering a portfolio of named products and service channels centered around four core offerings: (1) Signature Reisen — premium curated trips representing the company's flagship bespoke travel design; (2) Spezialreisen — custom group journeys including incentive travel, association travel, and Helbling-led themed tours; (3) Geschäftsreisen — corporate travel management for over 80 business clients; and (4) an Online Reisebüro digital channel encompassing a virtual reality travel office (Virtuelles Reisebüro), live and recorded virtual destination presentations (Virtuelle Inforeisen), and online consultation. Supporting these are destination-focused product lines including Africa travel packages, Group Travel, and Altenrhein-based flight packages. Content and community are delivered through the original video series 'Underwägs für dich,' a travel blog, and in-person 'Reisegeflüster' presentation events. An add-on ServicePLUS bundle provides ancillary travel services, while the Helbling App and customer login portal offer digital document management. The company also serves as official travel partner for SwissSkills/WorldSkills.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Helbling Signature Reisen: Premium custom-tailored individual travel experiences curated by Helbling experts.
• Underwägs für dich

Products and services

• Helbling Signature Reisen Premium, tailor-made curated travel experiences crafted by Helbling's own travel experts, representing the company's highest expression of bespoke travel design. Targeted at affluent individual travelers seeking customized, high-end journeys.
• Spezialreisen (Special Journeys) Custom group travel packages including incentive trips, association and corporate travel, and themed journeys led by Helbling's own tour guides. Also serves as the official travel partner of SwissSkills and FC St. Gallen.
• Geschäftsreisen (Business Travel) Comprehensive business travel management including optimal flight connections, car rentals, hotel bookings, travel document assistance, and concise travel documentation. Serves over 80 corporate clients across multiple industries.
• Reisen ab Altenrhein (Flights from Altenrhein) Package holidays departing from St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport (ACH), serving destinations including Sardinia, Elba, Corsica, Mallorca, Ibiza, Croatia, and Vienna via People's Airline and Private Wings. Package prices start from CHF 1,300 to CHF 2,290+ per person.
• Gruppenreisen (Group Travel) Small-group escorted tours with Helbling's own travel leaders, featuring signature rail journeys such as Rovos Rail expeditions through Africa (Namibia & South Africa 2027 at CHF 22,900; Dar Es Salaam to Cape Town 2026 at CHF 18,900 per person).
• Afrika Reisen (Africa Travel) Specialized African travel packages covering South Africa, Uganda, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Zambia, Tanzania, and Morocco, including luxury safaris and Rovos Rail luxury train journeys.
• WorldSkills / SwissSkills Travel Packages Official fan travel packages to WorldSkills and SwissSkills competitions, including travel to Shanghai 2026 with pre-program tours of Beijing, the Great Wall, and Xi'an's Terracotta Army.
• ServicePLUS Comprehensive add-on service bundle including private airport transfers, travel insurance, airport lounge access, car rentals, travel literature (with 10% discount via Gutenberg bookstore), and airport parking at Zurich Airport. Customers also receive a complimentary parking voucher when booking package holidays from Altenrhein.
• Helbling App Mobile application for accessing travel documents and maintaining contact with Helbling's travel experts before, during, and after the trip, used in conjunction with the customer login portal.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SwissSkillscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial travel partner of SwissSkills. Helbling Reisen organizes travel for fans, families, and supporters to European and World Vocational Championships. Also serves as official travel partner for WorldSkills competitions.
• FC St. GallencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial travel partner of FC St. Gallen (Swiss football club)
• Travel Professionals Switzerland (TPS)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember of TPS network comprising 27 large and medium-sized Swiss travel agencies with over 65 sales locations in German-speaking Switzerland. Helbling Reisen holds a seat on the board.
• Swiss Reise-Verband (SRV)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember of the Swiss Travel Association which represents the interests of travel agencies and tour operators in Switzerland and Liechtenstein
• IATA (International Air Transport Association)coreTechnology or IntegrationMember of IATA, the global trade association for airline industry, enabling access to airline booking systems and industry standards
• Garantiefonds der Schweizer ReisebranchecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember of the Guarantee Fund of the Swiss Travel Industry to comply with the Federal Act on Package Travel, ensuring customer money protection
• People's (airline)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary airline partner for flights from St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport operating Embraer 170 aircraft with 76 passengers to Mediterranean destinations including Sardinia, Mallorca, Croatia
• Private WingsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGerman airline partner since 2025 operating Dornier 328-100 aircraft with 32 seats for flights from Altenrhein to Elba, Brac, and Olbia (Sardinia)
• Tour Operators (Kuoni, TUI, Hotelplan)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAs independent travel agency, partners with major Swiss, German, and Austrian tour operators to offer best-priced packages including Kuoni, TUI, Hotelplan and others
• Rovos RailcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for exclusive luxury train journeys through Africa including Namibia, South Africa, and trans-continental routes with celebrity accompaniment

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Hotelplan Switzerland: One of Switzerland's largest integrated tour operators and travel agency chains. Comparable to Helbling as a competitor for Swiss package-holiday sales, but operates at much greater scale with own-branded tour products and broader geographic coverage.
• Kuoni Travel (Switzerland): A leading Swiss travel agency group delivering leisure and corporate travel through physical and digital channels. Directly comparable to Helbling on full-service agency offerings, but with national rather than regional focus and significant scale advantages.
• TUI Suisse: Swiss arm of TUI Group, one of Helbling's key tour-operator suppliers for packages. Comparable because both retail packages to Swiss leisure travelers and compete for the same end customer; TUI also runs its own retail network.
• DER Touristik Suisse (Travelhouse / Dertour): Swiss branch of the European tour operator DER Touristik, selling packages through own retail and agency distribution. Comparable to Helbling as both a supplier and a competitor for package leisure travel in Switzerland.

Direct peers

• Globetrotter Travel Service: Swiss franchise network of independent travel agencies with strong local presence and customer relationships. Highly comparable to Helbling's independent retail agency model, also serving East Switzerland and offering bespoke itinerary planning.
• Mittelthurgau Reisen: Swiss tour operator and travel agency focused on escorted coach and rail tours, including signature luxury rail experiences. Directly comparable to Helbling on group travel, themed tours, and Rovos-style premium rail product.

Regional players

• Vögele Reisen: Traditional Swiss travel agency with a strong Eastern Switzerland presence. Highly comparable in business model (independent retail agency serving leisure and corporate clients), competing directly with Helbling in overlapping cantons.

Emerging players

• STA Travel (now part of Touristik/independent agents in CH): Specialist student/youth travel brand with Swiss presence, focused on package holidays and experiential travel for younger demographics. Comparable on the leisure package side, complementary on demographic mix versus Helbling's family- and corporate-leaning base.

Others

• SRV (Schweizer Reise-Verband) members: Trade association representing Swiss travel agencies and tour operators; Helbling is a member. Relevant as industry peer ecosystem and competitive benchmarking set for SME private travel agencies in Switzerland.
• Booking.com / BookingSuite for local agents: Global OTA and accommodation platform. Functions as an indirect competitor and channel partner; comparable because customers increasingly self-book through Booking-type platforms, putting pressure on retail agency commission economics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@helblingreisen
• Facebookfacebook.com/helblingreisen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/helblingreisen

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Helbling Travel