30 years of development by experience
“When we founded faszinatour, we knew what we wanted: a company where work is simply fun because it makes perfect sense. Because it connects nature and people, hence every day is different, every encounter is new and each experience is unique.” Werner Vetter & Charly Siegl
at a time when rafting was totally unknown in Europe we brought it with us from New Zealand and started our first rafting tours in Tirol (Austria) – and thereby a real boom.
In the 90s we opened our outdoor centers in Haiming and Pfunds in Tyrol (Austria) using them as the perfect starting points for our outdoor adventures and adventure-based learning programs.
In 1992 scientists and trainers discover that collective challenges in nature sustainably cultivate team building and team development actions. Companies begin to use outdoor-based methods for their personnel development programs. As one of the first providers in Germany faszinatour established its reputation in this area with innovative outdoor leadership programs.
In 1997 we build the first multifunctional high ropes course in Bolsterlang (Allgäu). faszinatour CONCEPTION & CONSTRUCTION (now ADVENTURE PARK SOLUTIONS) plans and builds ropes courses all to the highest international standards across Europe.
During the following years, we constantly widen our offerings and services. Intense encounters with people and nature continuously bring new experience leading to new ideas and concepts such as our faszinatour Apprentice Outdoor Programs. These are gaining more and more popularity at companies for training and supporting personnel. Responsibility for human and nature increasingly become the focus of our work.
In 2003, together with our partner Ropes Courses Inc., we developed a high ropes course made of steel with a continuous belay system: the first SkyTrail® in Germany. faszinatour takes care of sales and distribution in Europe and builds Sky Trails® mainly for the leisure and cruise ship industry.
In 2004 we initiated the CSR School Construction Project in Cabarete: Marcel Pachler, CEO of faszinatour Austria, launches an initiative for the construction of a new school building in the Dominican republic which we support since then. During the first year already enough donations are generated to start the construction in winter 2004/2005. Today, around 250 boys and girls are learning in their new school every day.
In 2007 we are founding infer: Institut für Erfahrungslernen, where we scientifically address the topics learning, change, prevention and health. The generated insights and results from research are from now on influencing our daily work and furthermore found the strong methodical basis of our TRAINING & EVENT SOLUTIONS.
In 2008 our faszinatour Smart Belay revolutionizes the belay and safety engineering in high ropes courses, sets new benchmarks in the industry and in addition wins the OutDoor INDUSTRIE AWARD 08.
In 2009 the outdoor industry is reaching another peak. We build our 100th high ropes course, found faszinatour ACADEMY with offers around advanced training in the area of experimental learning and education, and become market leader in the outdoor industry with a unique range of services.
In 2010 we combine the range of products of the departments INCENTIVE & EVENT and CONSULTING & TRAINING into the new business domain faszinatour-b2b aka TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS to meet the request of business clients for specialized programs.
In 2011 faszinatour celebrates its 25th birthday. The focus of our work is more than ever the meaningful encounter between human and nature. Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs and the new outdoor team events connect engagement for environment and sustainable adventures in nature with true additional benefit for people and companies. Together with Schulbrüder Illertissen we initiate the project YES – learning through experience - which imparts soft skills like team work, self responsibility and conflict management to pupils. The project is rewarded with a teacher award for the category "innovative education".
In 2012 we developed a completely new training concept for the sustainable initiative in the tourism industry together with infer: called Futouris: "experiencing sustainability" combines state of the art event formats and interactive elements, and thereby enables people to closely experience the principles of sustainable actions in own projects. This format becomes an inherent part of our offers for businesses. We are negotiating cooperations with the "Bavarian State Forests" and nature parks, consult the United Nations in developing national parks and sustainable tourism and coach the execution of projects in Georgia.
In 2013 we redefine human resource development and design a three-year leadership qualification program targeted on "sustainable leadership". Based on the method of experimental learning we prepare 600 experienced managers in one single project for the challenges of leading in the future. During this project an environmental education training center allocated at Nature Park Nagelfluhkette is built and opened to the public in 2014.
In 2014 we further extend our engagement for people and nature with our consulting department. We enable companies, institutions and associations to experience sustainability and facilitate their development process.
We are starting our 30th season! To celebrate the anniversary of our ADVENTURE & SPORTS department, we have added exclusive 5-star programs to our portfolio. Both private and corporate customers now have the opportunity to book individual rafting & canyoning trips.
We reconfigure our top management. Our management team has now been enhanced by Jörg Janzen and Inke Scholz, two of our long-serving department heads. Together with managing partner Werner Vetter and authorized officer Stefan Wendel, they are now responsible for the future of the 20-strong team in Immenstadt. At the same time Charly Siegl, a member of the company management team for many years, left the company to dedicate himself to new adventures outside of faszinatour GmbH.
we are developing fresh concepts for teams and managers to react to the new challenges of Industry 4.0. Brandnew is our program "FEEL-GOOD Summer Camp". Shocked by insect mortality, we take on a bee sponsorship and participate in the "German Sustainability Action Days". At the end of the year, we all lend a hand with the "Gift with a Heart" campaign. New at the faszinatour AKADEMIE is the possibility to become a process trainer.
holistic projects are becoming increasingly important and we proudly present our new Adventure Park in the Jochen Schweizer Arena in Taufkirchen. The special feature is the first ever continuously secured zipline course with two rope slides running parallel to each other. After several projects in Finland, we build our first climbing forest in Norway for the TrollAktiv leisure centre.
our TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS department presents itself anew with a relaunch of the website. In addition to current agile concepts, numerous success stories now illustrate the programmes offered. This year, we are once again taking part in the gift package campaign for Humedica and fill 100 packages for children in need.
the first fully floating ropes course "Aqua Chimp" opens in Delamere, Great Britain. We will be responsible for Europe-wide distribution of this world first, which was developed in collaboration with Adventure Lakes. Even with all the challenges from the COVID pandemic, material shortages, and strict border restrictions, faszinatour ADVENTURE PARK SOLUTIONS still managed to successfully set up the zipline course at Kronberg Adventure World in Switzerland.
At the same time, faszinatour TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS quickly switched its workshops and seminars to fully digital training sessions.
In Åre, Schweden, a climbing park with 90 different elements is being built, offering various levels of difficulty and even featuring a zipline. The setup there doesn’t just include a zipline but also a family-friendly course and an adventure playground.
Despite a delayed start due to COVID restrictions, loads of guests were able to fully enjoy rafting and canyoning this summer. The season was marked by unforgettable adventures and thrilled participants.
At the same time, hybrid training formats, which combine in-person and digital sessions, were successfully developed and put into practice.
A leadership transition at faszinatour: Tobias Vetter is taking over management of faszinatour GmbH from his father, Werner Vetter.
After 35 years, the outdoor centre in Tyrol has been handed over to CanKick.
TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS is back in full swing, with many corporate events and workshops successfully taking place. The focus is once again on team building, captured perfectly by the hashtag #backtoteamspirit.
In the spirit of change, faszinatour is giving its office spaces a makeover, including a brand-new kitchen and a lounge area.
With fresh energy, the TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS department is launching its new website in November, which focuses more on team, personal, and corporate development.
Another innovation: ADVENTURE PARK SOLUTIONS is building the first Aqua Chimp on a reservoir used for snowmaking. This floating high ropes course adds a unique summer attraction to Nesselwang's tourist offerings.
TRAINING EVENT SOLUTIONS continues its success in Switzerland, delivering exciting events and workshops on-site.
Since COVID, apprentice events have reached a new level, as companies increasingly recognise the importance of professional onboarding. The successful partnership with Porsche AG in developing future leaders has been extended for another three years, now marking over 20 years of collaboration.