Which countries did the French visit this summer? Travel agencies and tour operators, who are meeting in Paris from Tuesday 17 to Thursday 19 September for the IFTM Top Resa trade fair for tourism professionals, describe a summer like no other. Overall, the number of trips abroad fell: -14% for medium-haul trips in July and -2% in August. The same trend is true for long-haul trips, according to the barometer of Travel Companies (EDV), the trade union for the sector, which aggregates sales of travel agencies, both in person and online.
“The Olympics disrupted the ecosystem. People anticipated difficulties at airports or decided to attend the Games. And then, at the beginning of the year, the prices for plane tickets for the summer were crazy. Prices dropped before the summer, but it was too late.”comments Jean-François Rial, CEO of Voyageurs du Monde.
This summer, the trio of most booked foreign destinations remains the same: Spain, Greece and Tunisia, although all three recorded fewer departures than in 2023. In addition to the increase in prices, fear of high temperatures, with the multiplication of heat waves – episodes in the Mediterranean – can explain this lower appeal. On the contrary, the fourth destination on the podium, Italy, was a great success thanks to numerous hotel offers at good prices and accessible without having to take a plane from France.
Collapse for Middle East destinations
Furthermore, due to the geopolitical context, destinations in the Middle East have plummeted: − 38% of departures to Turkey, − 39% to Egypt. As for the Dominican Republic, it is experiencing a drop in the number of departures compared to the volumes recorded a few years ago, due to the cessation of direct routes by Corsair and Air France from 2023.
The United States is suffering from the strength of the dollar against the euro and the rise in local service prices. The number of departures to America fell: -20% in July and -25% in August. “Couples are still doing well, but families are giving up, it’s too expensive”Mr Rial notes. On the contrary, cheaper destinations in South-East Asia attracted more people. This is particularly the case in Indonesia (+35%).
Another trend: reservations for this autumn, particularly for All Saints’ Day, are on the rise. “Since Covid-19, we have had more and more departures in September-October. Prices are attractive and temperatures are mild. People can go out at this time; and even more so this year with the Olympic Games, which postponed the holidays of those who were mobilized for the event until autumn.”notes Olivier Kervella, director of NG Travel. For this winter, the Union of Tourism Enterprises reports very good sales of trips to Thailand, Vietnam, Japan and Tanzania.
