Lights, tourists, action! And then there was Paris – eTurboNews.com
Oscar Wilde said, “When good Americans die they go to Paris.” The good news is that we do not have to wait for this event! We can easily join the estimated 29.3 million people who visited Paris in 2013 by air, rail, car and bus. Approximately 10 million people arrived in Paris the same way I did, on the Eurostar; another 90.3 million found their way to the City of Light by air.
Guests
According to Master Card research (2014), Paris is the third most visited destination by international visitors. New York is the largest feed city, followed by London, Amsterdam, and Rome. The majority of visits (53 percent) are from outside Europe. Expanding markets (as of 2013) include visitors from the Middle East (326,000), China (186,000) and Japan (550,000).
Paris welcomes visitors: We contributed 39.9 million euros (US$45.48 million) to the tax base of the City (2013). Americans lead the traffic to Paris (accounting for 1.6 million hotel arrivals).
The President of France, Francois Hollande supports tourism and in his address to the French Ambassadors, cited this as an important way to help France regain its national trade balance. In 2012, tourism represented 7 percent of the GDP and was responsible for 2 million jobs.
So Busy
What do all these people do in Paris? It appears that many head to museums (over 50), visit monuments (2,000), attend one (or several) meetings/conferences held yearly (1,055), gamble in casinos (8), attend sporting events, and shop (two major holding companies in contemporary fashion, Pinault-Printemps-Redoute and LVMH, are headquartered in Paris).
Paris is the original home of haute couture and sets the fashion trends for Europe. As the second largest industry in France, it is both regulated and supported by the government for its economic and tourist value. The City is the home of Chanel, Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Chloe, Givenchy, Lanvin, Celine, Hermes and Louis Vuitton. Premier shopping streets include Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore and the Champs-Elysees. Jewelers are associated with Paris, including Cartier, Boucheron, Chaumet and Van Cleef & Arpels. Perfumes and cosmetics are part of Paris (perfume exports are in excess of US$91 billion per year) and our favorites include Coty, Chanel, Helena Rubinstein, L’Oreal, Lancome, Kerastase, Clarins and Sephora.
Sleeping Options
There are approximately 150,000 hotel rooms in Paris, and according to Francois Navarro the Managing Director for the Paris Region Tourism Board, Airbnb accounts for about 3 percent occupancy.
Airbnb research (2013) blog.airbnb.com/economic-impact-airbnb/ found that guests generated 185 million euros (approximately US$240 million) of economic activity in Paris and supported 1,100 jobs. Between 2012 and 2013, 10,000 local hosts welcomed over 223,000 guests to Paris, primarily renting their personal residences. Almost half of the hosts indicated that they rely on Airbnb income to pay for their household expenses. Airbnb guests stay an average of 2.9 night longer and spend 426 euros more over the course of their trip, compared to hotel guests. Twenty-seven percent of guests said they would not have come to Paris or stayed as long without Airbnb. Guest using Airbnb (93 percent) want to “live like a local” and 80 percent use Airbnb to explore a specific neighborhood.
Not everyone is looking for a bargain. The most expensive hotels in Paris include Hôtel Fouquet’s Barrière, the Mandarin Oriental, Paris; Park Hyatt Paris – Vendome and the Shangri-La Hotel Paris. Plan on an excess of US$1000 per night to be a guest at these properties.
At the newest hotel (near the Arc de Triomphe), in the building where George Gershwin wrote “An American in Paris” (1928), visitors are checking into the Peninsula Hotel that opened August 1, 2014. Owned by Qatar’s Katara Hospitality and The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels, the building was purchased from the French Foreign Ministry who occupied the premises after the WWII when it served as the German army headquarters. The most basic room at this property starts at US$1,400 per night.
Leadership
Heading up the team that encourages and motivates us to head to Paris is Francois Navarro. His education in public law (2002) led him to an affiliation with the French Parliament. His next career move was to become associated with the Paris Region Tourist Board (2004) as the Project Leader on cultural issues. Four years later he became the Director of Communications and in 2014 he was promoted to his current position as the Managing Director.
Lights, tourists, action! And then there was Paris – eTurboNews.com
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