French airlines worry that Olympics will cause loss of customers to Paris

Many markets are looking to avoid traveling to Paris during the Olympic Games season - Photo: AFP

On July 1, Air France warned that the Olympic Games could cause a loss of 200 million USD due to a decrease in the number of visitors to Paris during the summer.

About 15 million tourists are expected to attend the Olympics, including 2 million from abroad, according to the Center for Law and Economics of Sport (CDES), the Olympic monitoring body for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Paris 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee. This could discourage other tourists from traveling to Paris.

Air France said international markets showed a clear trend of avoiding Paris.

"Travel between Paris and other destinations is also below the usual average from June to August, as people in France appear to postpone their holidays until after the Olympic Games or consider other travel plans," AFP news agency quoted Air France as saying.

Air France said it expects its revenues to fall during the period, but it will not reduce capacity. Passenger numbers to and from France will recover after the Olympics and could even increase from late August to September.

It is expected that detailed results of the company's operations in the first half of the year will be announced on July 25.

At the end of April, Air France promised attractive airfares for the summer and would increase seat capacity by 5% compared to last summer.

The airline is an official partner of the Paris Olympics and Paralympics and will use the events to promote its brand and services. It has hired hundreds of temporary staff to help ensure smooth travel for athletes.

Air France plans to transport around a fifth of the Olympic athletes and more than a third of the Paralympic athletes, and hopes to return to pre-COVID-19 levels.

The period from June to August is financially important for airlines in the Northern Hemisphere because of the summer holiday season. The majority of their profits are made during this period.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hang-khong-phap-lo-olympic-lam-mat-khach-den-paris-2024070116333046.htm