Paris Olympics: Tourism on the rise in French capital

FRANCE 24 English

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00:00With Olympic venues packed out to the rafters, the world's 5th most visited city has managed

00:06to up its game this year. 20% more tourists visiting the metropolis this July than last

00:11July, including 15% more French tourists. Hotel occupancy peaked at 90% on the opening

00:18weekend of the Games, now down to 82%, but with prices still far higher than usual.

00:25But other sectors who hope to capitalise haven't seen the windfall they were expecting.

00:30For instance, with the Olympics laying on cars to transport VIPs and free shuttles

00:35in certain places for stadium goers, taxi drivers have been waiting hours to find customers.

00:43This month we've suffered a loss of 40-50%, so we can't even cover our costs.

00:51Taxi drivers' unions have lodged a request for government compensation. Another damper

00:56on the much-heralded boom, tourists with one eye on the budget.

01:03We've noticed that Olympic tourism is mostly backpack tourism. I say that without any negative

01:08connotation. They've spent a lot on transport to get here, on transport to get around Paris,

01:16on their accommodation and their tickets, so there isn't much left for food.

01:22Restaurants in the city centre have seen an uptick in customers since the lifting of widespread

01:27road closures around the opening ceremony, but they say they are far from reaching capacity.

01:32On Thursday, the government looked to reassure, promising longer-term economic benefits.

01:40In London, there was an uptick in tourism for four, five, six years after the Games.

01:46And when we see the image of Paris and France that we're showing the world with our Olympic

01:50venues in the heart of the city, in beautiful locations, we can obviously expect benefits

01:56for our tourism and our economy in the years to come.

02:01Neighbourhoods around Olympic venues are of course benefiting from the inrush of tourists,

02:06like here in La Villette and Seine-Saint-Denis.

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