• After a 2020 summer marked by the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 summer season promises to be just as unique.

  • As restrictions are being eased, many French people are organizing to leave in July and August.

  • The Hexagon logically has their preference.

    And it is the coastal and rural regions, like Brittany and the Jura, which could stand out.

The easing of restrictions was expected, Jean Castex confirmed this Thursday evening.

The ban on moving more than 10 km from his home during the day will be lifted on May 3, the Prime Minister said at a press conference.

And this while waiting for the reopening of the terraces and a possible relaxation of the curfew.

But what will happen this summer?

Will we be able to go on vacation normally?

A priori, not totally.

Never mind, the French are already preparing their holidays.

Because for a week, tourism stakeholders have observed movement in reservations.

People in the air, waiting on the rails

Direction first the air, where according to Air France, future vacationers are not afraid to project themselves. “We offer 100% refundable tickets. So people book for this summer without fear, because they have the possibility of canceling until the last moment, ”says the airline. Ben Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM, has also indicated, via press release, his desire to go from 30% of scheduled flights to 50% for the months of July and August.

On the rails, however, reservations are long overdue.

According to SNCF, “it is still too early.

People plan their trips at the last minute and since the crisis, reservations have been made based on announcements made by the government ”.

As for accommodation, the Association des Gîtes de France confirms an increase in reservations compared to April 2020. “The occupancy rates for July and August are close to those of 2019 on an equivalent date.

The Gîtes are at 43% occupancy rate in July and 48% in August ”.

Between sea and mountain

After three confinements and a curfew implemented for six months in some regions, tourism pros confirm it: the French need space and nature more than ever.

And that will always be the case this summer.

"People book in Aveyron, Lozère or even in the Jura, because they have an image of natural spaces," notes Christophe Marchais, deputy director of DNA Tourisme.

The population density is lower there.

We feel a desire to breathe deeply ”.

Same story with Airbnb and Gîtes de France, where reservations are made in particular in coastal and rural areas: Brittany, New Aquitaine, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Occitanie.

The American platform has also recently joined forces with the Association of Rural Mayors of France to accelerate rural tourism.

Foreign tourists… or stays abroad?

For the sector, there will surely be, like last year, a glaring shortage of foreign tourists.

But the campsite, the country's leader in family accommodation, hopes to be spared.

"If all goes well, the summer of 2021 will be like that of 2020," explains Nicolas Dayot, president of the National Federation of Outdoor Hotels.

A lot of people go on vacation to France, some even an hour from home ”.

This will be particularly towards the massifs: "Areas like the Vosges or the Jura had better figures than in 2019, before the epidemic",

The Hexagon will therefore be, like last year, the more than privileged destination.

But some are betting on an overall improvement in the health situation to go abroad.

Still according to Air France, Malta, Southern Europe (especially Spain) and North Africa (particularly Tunisia) are holding the rope for the moment.

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  • Tourism

  • Covid 19

  • Summer holidays

  • Coronavirus