2023-08-13 12:59:15
With the return of the sun, tourism players are filling up in August. Good news following a “nuanced” month of July depending on the destination.
“We are complete until September 2 in rental. (…) We have to refuse a lot of people”. Owner of the Ker Helen campsite at the gates of the Bassin d’Arcachon, Lionel Pujade is smiling. In mid-August, reservations in his establishment are in full swing.
A dynamism observed by all tourism stakeholders. “Tourists are there for this weekend of August 15. There is an increase in attendance (compared to July), the occupancy rate is estimated at 81%”, rejoices Charlotte Vahove, co-manager of the nautical agency of the port of Arcachon. “Reservations are very good for the month of August. We are well helped by the weather”, abounds Ghislain de Richecour, president of France Tourisme.
The month of July marked by more than gloomy weather in some regions had indeed given some cold sweats to professionals in the sector. “We had a complicated end of July. It rained a lot,” admits Ghislain de Richecour. But “for the past week, things have been back to normal. Reservations are up for all our activities,” he adds.
Inflation weighs on the budget of holidaymakers
The capricious weather does not explain everything. Because “what we observe in the summer season, (…) is that July was not good, especially in the southern regions”, less affected by the bad weather of recent weeks but more by the hot weather, notes Patrick Viceriat, president of the French Association of Tourism Experts. “Paradoxically, the weather was much better in the southern regions, but it is in the northern regions that we are seeing an increase in attendance,” he notes.
Inflation undoubtedly weighed more than the weather on the choices of holidaymakers. “There were a few fewer people on the Côte d’Azur. The increase in prices means that the holiday budget becomes very complicated to assume”, underlines Ghislain de Richecour. In a context of rising prices, “what we can say is that there are new trends that are appearing with shorter stays and in closer regions”, adds Patrick Viceriat. This would explain the good performance of the northern regions.
For Didier Arino, president of ProTourisme, “it was the destinations on the coast, in the mountains and in the countryside that were impacted in July. Nothing dramatic but a drop of around 4% in attendance which was offset by an increase in price”. An inflation which “has generated a certain dropout with French people who say that the holidays ‘whatever it costs’, it’s over”.
While some French people have given up on holidays, others have instead chosen to consume differently, by making decisions. “They tend to restrict themselves a bit to complementary activities,” notes Ghislain de Richecour. In addition, “we must not mix frequentation of accommodation and tourist consumption. Attendance has been there in many territories”, tempers Didier Arino. But it has sometimes “deported from real tourism professionals to furnished rentals via internet platforms, and it is this change in behavior that surprised professionals”.
A bright end to the season
Despite the impact of inflation, the tourism sector is satisfied, because the level of attendance in July, even if it is a little worse than last year, “exceeds by quite a distance that of the years of pre-Covid”, assures Ghislain de Richecour. Didier Arino believes for his part that “we find a pre-Covid situation with a month of July which starts later for the main part of the seaside destinations, and a very good attendance in August”.
At the end of July, the Ministry responsible for Tourism drew up an initial assessment of the 2023 season, evoking “exceptional” months of May and June but a “more nuanced” month of July, with regions in the north of France which recorded “rates increase in occupancy compared to 2022, while certain regions in the south of France experienced a slight decline”.
Foreign tourists were however back in July with an increase of 11.4% for Spaniards and 20.6% for Canadians. “There is a return of foreign tourists, in particular local customers but also American customers”, confirms Patrick Viceriat. “On the other hand, Asian customers, especially Chinese, have not returned,” he laments.
Still, the months of August and September, moreover with the Rugby World Cup, promise to be bright for tourism professionals. “The year 2023 will be, barring disaster, excellent,” predicts Ghislain de Richecour.
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