China and fifteen countries have received authorization for their nationals to travel to the European Union from this Wednesday. Not the United States, blamed for the worrying situation of the epidemic in this country most affected by the coronavirus with 125,928 deaths for nearly 2.6 million cases listed. A new cold shower for the French tourism sector which will have to do without nearly more than five million regular American tourists and often their big budgets.
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10% of tourists in Ile-de-France
If we put the Europeans aside, the Americans constitute the largest number of foreign tourists to land in France each year, or 5% of all travelers. For Île-de-France, we are even talking about 10%, the country that most appreciates the capital and its surroundings. A higher figure than for the British, disqualified in this ranking in 2018. On the scale of the hexagon, the Americans overtake the Chinese. Like their counterparts from Asia, they spend a lot, 60% more per day on average than other nationalities.
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"The country with the most billionaires and millionaires in the world"
A clientele that will be all the more lacking in palaces, starred hotels and restaurants and all high standing places. "Indeed, we are missing out on these budgets," says Eliott Cohen-Skolli, co-founder of "Le Collectionist", a company that rents villas and high-end services to foreigners. "The United States is the country with the most billionaires and millionaires in the world. They represent 15% of our customers."
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In detail, the professional highlights the loss of turnover for the catering sector in particular. Americans being very fond of French haute cuisine "We collaborate with great chefs so that they come to cook for an evening and have a tailor-made service. This is typically what Americans will love," says Eliott Cohen- Skolli.
European tourists to the rescue?
In this area of high-end tourism, the specialist however seems reassured for his turnover this summer. Europeans should mainly stay at home and therefore turn to his business. "The summer promises to be very good, since we have just achieved our historic record. Reservations have been multiplied by two," he announced. Enough to compensate for the losses due to this travel ban for American tourists.