French tourism stronger than pre-Covid despite heat waves and travel chaos

Tourism spending has exceeded pre-pandemic years in France according to recently released government estimates.

If you're not yet familiar with the term "revenge travel", a real-life example could be seen in France this summer.

After years of Covid-restrictions and travel disruption, tourists have been eager to make up for lost time; a phenomenon that has been described as "revenge travel".

According to recent data, some destinations have been more popular than others.

In France, tourism returned thick and fast this summer, thanks to dropping Covid restrictions and a weak Euro, which made it an attractive destination for Americans, Brits and Europeans.

Once there, visitors spent up a storm and pushed tourism revenue above pre-pandemic levels according to recent government estimates.

As tourists flooded to popular spots like Paris, Versailles and Lyon, they spent large and pushed tourist spending back up to pre-pandemic levels and even higher in some areas, Tourism Minister Olivia Gregoire said.

Europe's airport chaos and incredibly hot weather didn't seem to deter travellers.

Tourism spending didn't just return to pre-pandemic levels but was 10 per cent higher than in 2019 according to data from bank card use and lodging and restaurant revenues.

This is good news for France's tourism industry and the wider economy, of which tourism contributes 8 per cent and 2 million jobs.

As for who visited, a majority were British and American followed by Dutch, German and Belgian.

Looking to the future

Tourist numbers are expected to drop as colder weather arrives, however the French government is already looking ahead to future summers and how it can make them as sustainable as possible.

"We can't necessarily follow the same practices in 10, 20 years, given the climate episodes we are facing," Gregoire told reporters, adding that France needed to "rethink tourism today and tomorrow".

Potential measures being discussed include crowd limits at famous attractions and encouraging people to visit less popular spots.