Tourists flock back to France, spending €58bn in 2022
Tourists spent a record €58 billion in France in 2022, according to new figures which seem to show the country's vital tourist industry has bounced back from the pandemic, although visitor numbers from Asia remain low.
France's huge tourist industry represents around 10 percent of its GDP and was badly hit by two years of Covid-related travel restrictions.
However new data released by the country's tourism body Atout France seems to show that the sector has bounced back, with tourists spending a record €58 billion in 2022. This is €1.2 billion higher than the pre-pandemic tourist spend, although the report's authors noted that inflation has had an impact in prices compared to 2019.
In both 2018 and 2019 France was the most visited tourist destination in the world - although international comparisons are not yet available for 2022 the Atout report indicates that French tourism is close to pre-pandemic levels.
READ ALSO 6 reasons why France is so popular with tourists
The biggest spenders in 2022 were the Belgians (€7.3 billion, up 23 percent on 2019), the Germans (€6.4bn, up 6.9 percent on 2019) and the British (€6.2 billion, up 4.2 percent) while American tourists - who tend to be fewer in number but big spenders - spent €5.5 billion.
The spend from American tourists was up a whopping 34 percent compared to 2019, a rise which some give credit to the 'Emily effect' after the hugely popular Netflix series Emily in Paris.
The only groups who spent less in France compared to 2019 were visitors from China and Japan, where tourist spend was down 72 percent and 62 percent respectively, probably due to ongoing pandemic restrictions, particularly for Chinese visitors.
France recorded a higher tourist spend than all but one of its European neighbours, with total spend until the end of November 2022 recorded at €64 billion in Spain, compared to €53 billion in France, €39bn in Italy, €26bn in Germany and €19bn in Portugal.
READ ALSO A must-see destination for each of France's 96 départements
France's all-important domestic tourism also appeared to showing signs of a recovery, although in total over the year overnight stays by French residents in different parts of France were down five percent on 2019. The report notes that the decline in levels of domestic tourism seen in the first half of the year halted by the autumn.
Domestic tourism was promoted heavily during the pandemic, when French people were encouraged to support the tourist sector by taking a holiday in France - although travel was heavily restricted in 2020 because of the pandemic, by the latter part of the year and through 2021 French residents could travel freely through the EU.
Even before the pandemic, domestic tourism was a vital part of the industry - although the French tourist industry as a whole accounts for 9.7 percent of GDP, international tourism accounts for just 30 percent of that figure - the rest is taken care of by French residents going on holiday in their own country with the traditional month-long August break a big economic driver.
Tourism bosses are also keen to promote domestic tourism as a green alternative, boosting the country's rail network as more people try to limit air travel because of concerns about the climate.
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France's huge tourist industry represents around 10 percent of its GDP and was badly hit by two years of Covid-related travel restrictions.
However new data released by the country's tourism body Atout France seems to show that the sector has bounced back, with tourists spending a record €58 billion in 2022. This is €1.2 billion higher than the pre-pandemic tourist spend, although the report's authors noted that inflation has had an impact in prices compared to 2019.
In both 2018 and 2019 France was the most visited tourist destination in the world - although international comparisons are not yet available for 2022 the Atout report indicates that French tourism is close to pre-pandemic levels.
READ ALSO 6 reasons why France is so popular with tourists
The biggest spenders in 2022 were the Belgians (€7.3 billion, up 23 percent on 2019), the Germans (€6.4bn, up 6.9 percent on 2019) and the British (€6.2 billion, up 4.2 percent) while American tourists - who tend to be fewer in number but big spenders - spent €5.5 billion.
The spend from American tourists was up a whopping 34 percent compared to 2019, a rise which some give credit to the 'Emily effect' after the hugely popular Netflix series Emily in Paris.
The only groups who spent less in France compared to 2019 were visitors from China and Japan, where tourist spend was down 72 percent and 62 percent respectively, probably due to ongoing pandemic restrictions, particularly for Chinese visitors.
France recorded a higher tourist spend than all but one of its European neighbours, with total spend until the end of November 2022 recorded at €64 billion in Spain, compared to €53 billion in France, €39bn in Italy, €26bn in Germany and €19bn in Portugal.
READ ALSO A must-see destination for each of France's 96 départements
France's all-important domestic tourism also appeared to showing signs of a recovery, although in total over the year overnight stays by French residents in different parts of France were down five percent on 2019. The report notes that the decline in levels of domestic tourism seen in the first half of the year halted by the autumn.
Domestic tourism was promoted heavily during the pandemic, when French people were encouraged to support the tourist sector by taking a holiday in France - although travel was heavily restricted in 2020 because of the pandemic, by the latter part of the year and through 2021 French residents could travel freely through the EU.
Even before the pandemic, domestic tourism was a vital part of the industry - although the French tourist industry as a whole accounts for 9.7 percent of GDP, international tourism accounts for just 30 percent of that figure - the rest is taken care of by French residents going on holiday in their own country with the traditional month-long August break a big economic driver.
Tourism bosses are also keen to promote domestic tourism as a green alternative, boosting the country's rail network as more people try to limit air travel because of concerns about the climate.
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