Translated by
Benjamin Fitzgerald
Published
Jul 4, 2017
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Tourist numbers in France drop in 2016 on lacklustre Europe, Asia visits

Translated by
Benjamin Fitzgerald
Published
Jul 4, 2017

The final figures released by France's Direction Générale des Entreprises (DGE) showed a predicted dip in the number of tourists to visit France in 2016, with numbers down 1.9 million to 82.6 million. However, the 2.2% decline has not dethroned the European nation from its top spot as the most visited country in the world. 

AFP


The drop in numbers came largely from Europe (-3.8 %) and Asia (-6%), only to be compensated by an increase in tourists from America (+14.4%) and Africa (10.8 %). Despite the incredible drop in numbers from Japan, down 39.7% to 400,000 visitors, the biggest blow came from Europe; the number of continental visitors falling to 64.5 million, making up just 78.1% of total numbers to France last year.

The leading country for French visitors, the United Kingdom, fell to 11.9 million or a 2.4% decline, followed by Germany with 11.4 million visitors (-0.8%), and the Belgium/Luxembourg zone with 10.7 million (-0,8 %). However, the largest drop came from Italy, down to 6.7 million (-11.4 %), and The Netherlands, falling to 4.1 million (-18.5%); the two countries proving to be the biggest contributors to the annual visitor drop.

Chinese tourists, privileged targets for luxury brands and department stores, also witnessed a weighty drop of 8.7% to 2 million visitors. A market just as coveted -- Middle Eastern tourists, also saw a 7.4% in numbers to 1.3 million. In the eyes of the DGE, however, these numbers must be seen in the light of a longer-term evolution for French tourism.

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