French tourism suffers losses amid Olympics season

Contrary to the expectations of the French Government and tourism industry, the 2024 Summer Olympic Games taking place in Paris have not created an "explosion" in the number of domestic and foreign tourists.

Locals and tourists take souvenir photos from afar as Trocadero Square and the Iena Bridge leading to the Eiffel Tower have been requisitioned for Olympic activities. Photo: Thu Ha/VNA

There is a common misconception that Olympic host cities will see a surge in tourism during the Games, said John Grant, chief analyst at aviation research firm OAG.

London, Athens and Atlanta have all seen a drop in visitors during the Olympic Games, he said. The world’s premier sporting event is often more of an “academic” event, for the athletes and their staff, than a recreational event, making it less likely to attract tourists than festivals and entertainment events.

Major airlines are predicting a drop in revenue during the Olympics (July 26-August 11). On July 25, Air France announced that it expects revenue to fall by 150-179 million euros ($163-184 million) in the third quarter of 2024 due to weak demand for passengers to Paris this summer.

Earlier, on July 1, Air France also mentioned this issue when it revealed that passenger traffic to and from Paris was falling compared to other major cities in Europe, showing "a significant avoidance of Paris".

Similarly, Delta Air Lines is also predicting a loss of up to $100 million due to a drop in traffic to France during the 2024 Olympics. “Unless you’re going to the Olympics, people aren’t going to come to Paris,” said Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian.

In a report released in June 2024, the Paris Tourism Board estimated that international air arrivals to the city during the Olympics would fall by 8% in June and nearly 15% in July, respectively, compared to the same period in 2023.

Hotels are also being hit hard by the drop in tourists this summer, with occupancy rates expected to fall to 60% by early July, according to the Paris Tourist Board.

Like airlines, many hotels had previously planned to raise room rates to capitalize on the tourism boom, but have actually had to cut prices after the spring period, when bookings have slowed.

Airbnb hosts are also trying to cut prices to attract renters, with some even slashing their apartment rental prices by more than 50%.

Airbnb said many new hosts had signed up to list on its platform in the months leading up to the Games, but the number of stays in recent weeks has “never been higher than the previous weeks.”

The low number of visitors is also reflected in the number of tickets sold for matches and events with tickets for sale within the scope of the 2024 Olympics. The Paris press office said that out of the 10 million tickets issued, as of July 25, 8.95 million tickets had been sold, but there was a surplus of high-priced tickets due to low demand.

In an era of rising sports tourism, many people are surprised that a major sporting event like the Olympics has not created a big push to attract tourists. But Grant explains that "the Olympics are too general". He says: "The Olympics are too broad... they are not a specific event" and "there may be tennis gold medals but it is not Wimbledon".

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