DECRYPTAGE – Visitors from China were the big absentees from the strong post-Covid recovery in global tourism. Their numbers could return to around 70% of their 2019 levels in France by the end of the year.
On Paris’s Grand Boulevards, the procession of Chinese tourist coaches has not regained its incessant pre-Covid rhythm. But it’s no longer at a standstill. For months, these groups of hurried travellers had completely disappeared from the landscape.. Now they’re back. Many small shopkeepers on these boulevards – perfumeries, pharmacies… – had been waiting for them like the Messiah. Department stores had to learn to do without them, by targeting other customer groups, notably Parisians. Now they’re taking a breather.
“ This year, 80 to 110 million Chinese are expected to travel outside China, and France is still their most popular European destination “, says Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin, who has just returned from the Middle Kingdom. 80 to 100 million Chinese visitors worldwide? That’s a lot less than the 155 million or so before Covid, but it’s not far off. In the opinion of…
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