It’s the return of tourists to France. According to the latest figures from the Paris tourist office, there are 20% more tourists in the capital than in 2019. Enough to reposition France on the podium of world tourism.
The news depriving us of Russian and Chinese visitors, who are these 20% more strollers than in 2019? Richard Vainopoulos is the president of TourCom, a network of travel agencies.
” There is such a desire in all countries to leave, to travel, to escape that today we see many tourists who we never saw again, such as the Americans, the English, the Italians, the Dutch , the Spaniards. »
Western tourists who had deserted our places during these two years of pandemic, but who are determined to see the country again. The figures for the Easter weekend bear witness to this: in Paris, the hotels were 80% full and the Eiffel Tower received 22,000 onlookers a day, very close to its maximum capacity.
The momentum should continue. The Tourist Office predicts a summer rich in visitors, both French and European. So for Richard Vainopoulos, the challenge is now recruitment in the sector.
” In the whole world of tourism, travel agencies, restaurants, leisure centers, museums, there is an understaffing which risks posing a problem in welcoming tourists this summer. »
In France before the pandemic, tourism employed more than two million employees and represented around 6% of GDP.