For the Indian ultra-wealthy who have made the Swiss Alps a fixture of their winter calendar — and there are more of them than the coverage of this phenomenon suggests — the logistics of the journey are as carefully managed as the booking of the ski instructors.
Here is how the private jet programme to Gstaad actually works.
The Flight
Mumbai to Geneva: approximately 8,500 kilometres. This is a sector that requires an ultra-long-range aircraft — a Gulfstream G650, Global 7500, or Falcon 8X — to fly non-stop. Flight time: approximately 10 to 10.5 hours westbound, slightly shorter returning with tailwinds.
From Geneva, the transfer to Gstaad is 90 minutes by road, or — weather permitting — by helicopter. The helicopter transfer from Geneva to Heliport Gstaad is approximately 35 minutes and transforms the journey’s final leg from a mountain road into an arrival that matches everything that preceded it.
The Geneva Private Terminal
Geneva International Airport’s general aviation facilities are among the finest in Europe.
The private terminal at GVA handles the volume of ultra-luxury traffic that the Swiss ski season generates without the congestion that characterises commercial terminals. Customs and immigration for private arrivals is managed on the ramp. The transfer from the aircraft to the vehicle is measured in steps, not terminals.
The Gstaad Programme
What makes Gstaad specifically attractive to the Indian ultra-wealthy — beyond the skiing — is the privacy.
The village is small. The clientele is established. The properties are largely chalets in private ownership, rented by the week or the season to returning clients through relationships rather than public platforms. The discretion of the ecosystem is architectural.
The chalet for the season — or for two or three weeks within it — is booked through introductions. The ski instructors are retained by the day. The in-chalet chef is briefed on dietary requirements before the party arrives.
Hype Luxury manages the aviation for several Indian families whose Gstaad programme runs as an annual operation. The flight booking, the Geneva terminal coordination, the helicopter to the heliport, the vehicle from heliport to chalet.
One programme. One point of contact. The mountains at the end of it.
What the Season Actually Costs
Geneva private jet from Mumbai, round trip: $200,000–280,000 for the aircraft. Geneva-Gstaad helicopter each way: CHF 3,000–5,000. Chalet rental for two weeks in peak season: CHF 80,000–300,000 depending on property scale.
These are real numbers, provided without decoration.
The families for whom this is the annual programme have already made the calculation.
The Alps are worth the journey. Build the journey to match them.
