Sports tourism grows thanks to Paris Summer Olympics
Luxury travel packages for the 2024 Olympics are already on sale, offering wealthy travelers exclusive access to the games, along with very high-end travel experiences and accommodations. 2024 Olympic attendees are willing to pay several hundred thousand dollars to watch the games.
Some wealthy Olympic tourists have chartered the Ducasse sur Seine. Photo: Pierre Monetta
For example, a North American family of five traveling to Paris for the Olympics through experiential travel company The GR8 Experience could spend between $250,000 and $380,000, depending on the five-star hotel or luxury rental they choose.
The six-figure sum will include 11 nights' accommodation, premium seats at the opening ceremony and tickets to sports including swimming, water polo, diving, beach volleyball, athletics and soccer. They will also enjoy VIP transport around Paris and a dedicated hostess service during their stay in the city.
As the above prices show, sports tourism is set to be a big moneymaker for France: in 2022, the industry was worth nearly $588 billion and is expected to grow by 17% by 2030. Notably, no sporting event is bigger this year than the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“Our customers want to be in person at sporting events, gymnastics, tennis and basketball. The company is receiving record numbers of bookings from a primarily North American clientele for the two-week event,” said Barnabas Carrega, CEO and co-founder of The GR8 Experience.
"The iconic Seine River will take centre stage at the opening ceremony as organisers replace the traditional stadium setting with a floating parade of nations. As always, the first night of the Paris Games will be in the highest demand and visitors will want the most exclusive experience possible," said Carrega.
Custom Itinerary
According to tour operator Kensington Tours, they will take two clients to Paris for the first seven nights of the Games. These visitors will watch the opening ceremony from the vantage point of the Pont d'Alma, with the Eiffel Tour. The base price for this official Bridge 360 Package is $10,300, which includes champagne, live music and a meet-and-greet with the Olympians in a brasserie-style setting.
The best tickets – “golden tickets” – will cost between $500 and $1,000 each for tennis and basketball tournaments, Kensington said. On days when there are no events, visitors will be invited to private whisky tastings hosted by the distillery owner.
Meanwhile, Angela Adto Teppa from AZA Luxury Travel noted that AZA Luxury Travel also designed an experience program throughout Paris for a family from Oahu, Hawaii, who came specifically to watch basketball and wrestling.
“Paris offers countless opportunities for wealthy travelers to enjoy the 2024 Olympics. I have tailored a number of itineraries that include gourmet dining at Michelin-starred restaurants, guided shopping excursions in Paris’ fashion districts and private tours of iconic attractions such as the Louvre,” said Adto Teppa.
Similarly, Craft Travel also organized a busy 15-day experience for a family of four from New York.
“Performers will include a professional ballet dancer, a classical quartet and an opera singer. A delicious dinner will accompany the performance. Afterwards, they will enjoy a behind-the-scenes tour of the opera house, including a visit to the costume workshop where all the magic happens,” notes Craft Travel Director Andrea Galvez.
Palaces and superyachts
To ensure that their clients can stay at the most prestigious hotels in Paris, many luxury travel advisors have made reservations at hotels in the city.
“We have contracts to rent rooms at eight different hotels for the duration of the Games. We then offer shorter stays in those properties to our guests. Among them are the Rosewood Hôtel de Crillon, Le Bristol Paris and Shangri-La Paris,” said Dave Guenter, sports travel specialist at Roadtrips, a company of Internova Travel Group.
Those who can book rooms at Paris’s top hotels are paying big bucks for the privilege. At Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris, one of France’s most prestigious “palaces,” the 2,000-square-foot Royal Monceau Suite is fully booked during the Olympics at a cost of $27,000 a night.
“Some hotel rooms are also personalized according to the guests' decoration preferences, even having makeup and hairdressing areas,” emphasized Nicolas De Gols, General Manager of Le Royal Monceau.
In other French cities like Marseille and Nice – and even the remote French territory of Tahiti – which also host Olympic events, superyacht charters are also trending ahead of the upcoming 2024 Summer Games.
Superyacht management company Fraser Yachts said Askari, a 33m classic yacht based in French Polynesia, has received many bookings to participate in surfing events in Teahupo'o, Tahiti./.
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