August 26th, 2010 | 
Author: France’s tourism industry enjoyed a strong month of July, thanks mainly to a significant rise in the number of overseas visitors.
According to a report by Le Figaro, the majority of the international visitors who enjoyed a French holiday this summer came from European countries such as the UK, Holland and Belgium.
However, a significant number also came from Russia and China, as holidaymakers looked to benefit from the weak Euro.
French hotels and holiday industries endured a fairly grim summer in 2009, as many UK households in particular felt the financial squeeze and decided not to holiday overseas.
However, recent French tourism figures suggest that visitor numbers are gradually returning to pre-recession levels. France’s Minister for Tourism even went as far as describing the 2010 holiday season as “highly satisfying.”
The French tourism industry recorded a 4 per cent rise in overall visitor numbers compared to 2009, thanks mainly to an influx of foreign holidaymakers. In addition, foreign tourists injected as much as 2 billion Euros into the tourism industry this summer, according to tourism experts Protourism.
The report in Le Figaro says that luxury holidays on the Côte d’Azur were particularly profitable. Chinese tourists were the biggest spenders in this domain, closely followed by visitors from Russia and the Middle East.
“Visitor numbers in France are back to pre-recession levels, with a rise from 5% to 10% in the number of European visitors and double-digit growth in visitors from further afield,” Protourisme analyst Thierry Bouriat told Le Figaro.
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