France is planning a campaign telling Brits and other foreign visitors to stay away from its most popular tourist destinations.
Officials want to use social media influencers to encourage tourists to avoid the best-known regions and visitor attractions in a bid to tackle over-tourism.
Instead the campaign will promote some of its lesser-known destinations.
France Tourism Alliance, which came up with the recommendations, also wants to introduce daily quotas at sites, controlling numbers with scheduled ticketing and higher prices.
Authorities are also considering rolling out a ‘de-marketing’ campaign, with images of overcrowded sites to make them seem less appealing.
Tourism Minister Olivia Grégoire said 80% of tourists focus on just 20% of the country.
She told Le Figaro: “If we want to free up sites that are overly frequented, we need to bring other destinations to the fore and other tourist itineraries.”
A campaign in English and other languages will promote ‘tourism for four seasons better spread over the country,’ which will also propose 40 tours, the Telegraph reports.
Last month, tourism officials at Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy (pictured) posted images of sightseers stuck in huge queues after 60,000 people flocked to the 10th-century abbey and village over the Ascension Day holiday weekend.
Thomas Velter, head of the local tourist authority, told France Info: “It wouldn’t be desirable to put turnstiles at the foot of Mont-Saint-Michel but we will very soon have to regulate the flow.”
The Telegraph adds the tiny island of Bréhat in Brittany which has a population of 377, has introduced a limit on day-trippers during the summer, while Calanques National Park, near Marseille is to introduce a booking system for the Sugiton coves, cutting tourist numbers from 2,500 per day to just 400.
In March, Amsterdam launched a hard-hitting campaign telling British men looking for cheap or boozy trips to stay away from the city.
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Officials want to use social media influencers to encourage tourists to avoid the best-known regions and visitor attractions in a bid to tackle over-tourism.
Instead the campaign will promote some of its lesser-known destinations.
France Tourism Alliance, which came up with the recommendations, also wants to introduce daily quotas at sites, controlling numbers with scheduled ticketing and higher prices.
Authorities are also considering rolling out a ‘de-marketing’ campaign, with images of overcrowded sites to make them seem less appealing.
Tourism Minister Olivia Grégoire said 80% of tourists focus on just 20% of the country.
She told Le Figaro: “If we want to free up sites that are overly frequented, we need to bring other destinations to the fore and other tourist itineraries.”
A campaign in English and other languages will promote ‘tourism for four seasons better spread over the country,’ which will also propose 40 tours, the Telegraph reports.
Last month, tourism officials at Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy (pictured) posted images of sightseers stuck in huge queues after 60,000 people flocked to the 10th-century abbey and village over the Ascension Day holiday weekend.
Thomas Velter, head of the local tourist authority, told France Info: “It wouldn’t be desirable to put turnstiles at the foot of Mont-Saint-Michel but we will very soon have to regulate the flow.”
The Telegraph adds the tiny island of Bréhat in Brittany which has a population of 377, has introduced a limit on day-trippers during the summer, while Calanques National Park, near Marseille is to introduce a booking system for the Sugiton coves, cutting tourist numbers from 2,500 per day to just 400.
In March, Amsterdam launched a hard-hitting campaign telling British men looking for cheap or boozy trips to stay away from the city.
The post France urges Brits to stay away from top tourist destinations appeared first on Travel Gossip.
Continue reading...
