French Riviera Tourism 2011: 5 billion Euros generated by 11 million tourists!

Visitor numbers for the French Riviera confirm the healthy state of one of the most prestigious destinations

Tourist expenditure is up 19% compared with 2010 and private investments demonstrate investors' confidence in the Côte d’Azur tourist industry.
Here are the key elements for French Riviera tourism in 2011.
Key figures

• +6%: for the commercial sector: the 11 million tourist mark was once again exceeded (Alpes Maritimes and Monaco).
• +8%: foreign clientele showing stronger growth than in the rest of the world (+4.4%).
• +19%: due to an increased average spend, tourist expenditure again exceeded the €5 billion mark.

4 all-time records:

• total nights in 4 and 5* hotels (+15%: 3.3 million nights),
• visitors by air (+17%: 2.7 million visitors by air),
• number of visitors from emerging markets (+25%: 430,000 stays),
• tourists declaring themselves "very satisfied" (over 90% for the 1st time, 85% in 2010).

IN A DIFFICULT ECONOMIC CLIMATE, TOURISM REMAINS BUOYANT
The general economic situation remains unfavourable for consumption growth in Europe. In this rather depressed context, the results of French Riviera tourism over the last two years have been quite satisfactory, namely: of all the countries in the world the World Tourism Organization estimated the growth in international tourists in 2011 at 4.4%.

11 MILLION TOURISTS: THE RECOVERY IN TOURIST FIGURES IS CONFIRMED
Total tourist figures exceeded 10.7 million tourists in 2010 to reach 11 million in 2011 (a threshold last achieved in 2007) in the Alpes Maritimes and Monaco (excluding cruise passengers and day trippers).
This is the second consecutive year to see an increase, which is +9% in two years for total stays, and a return to the best visitor numbers seen in the "pre-crisis" years.
The 2011 results are just as positive in both the leisure and business tourism segments: stays by air are up 18% for leisure and 15% for business.
Conference centre activity is also satisfactory. After two difficult years for business tourism and a substantial decrease in company seminar and convention activity, the professional meeting markets recovered in 2011 with company meetings returning to hotels and conference centres.

FOREIGN CLIENTELE GROWING FASTER THAN EVEN THE GLOBAL ALL-TIME RECORD
The foreign clientele is still highly diverse, with over 150 nationalities represented annually.
In 2011, the total of foreign stays increased by 8% (to 5.2 million), nights in hotels and apartments for foreign guests grew by 13% and foreign stays by air rose by 16%.
A marked increase in almost all foreign markets (except 4 in decline: Portugal - Greece - Belgium and Austria):

• An upturn in all the traditional key markets, with Italy ranked first (+7% for hotel-apartment nights), including Great Britain (+12% although the trend has remained negative since 2005).
• Strong growth across emerging markets: +30% for Russia, +50% for South America, +60% for Asia excluding Japan and even 80% for China (doubling the nights in two years): the French Riviera has established itself as an essential destination for a holiday in France for these long-distance customers.

Additional demand generated throughout the year through the organisation and hosting of major events: the general public with the Royal Wedding in Monaco, politicians for the G20 Summit in November and sports people with the organisation of the marathon by the Departemental Council, but also due to the efforts to increase events in Nice from 530 to 1200 annually...

FIVE BILLION EUROS: TOURISM CONFIRMS ITS ROLE AS A DRIVING FORCE FOR GROWTH  
In 2011, for the first time since 2005, there was a positive trend in the tourism market, both in quantitative and qualitative terms, thanks to a recovery in average spend per visitor, which increased from €63 per day in 2009 and 2010 to €75 in 2011 (€129 in commercial accommodation, €51 in non-commercial).
A return in high-end customers has been observed, along with an increase in the average spend of foreigners, which is once again approaching €100 per person and per day. The share of visitors by air who spend over €250 increased from 11 to 15%.
In 2011, business aviation traffic rose by almost 4 % at Nice Côte d’Azur Airport.
Tourism is once again a major driving force across all businesses on the French Riviera: shopping activity was up again in 2011 and concerns 44% of tourists as opposed to 32% in 2009-10
Total tourist expenditure once more, and for the first time since 2006, exceeded €5 billion (+19% on 2010), helping to maintain the 75,000 local jobs that remain directly dependent on tourism and which cannot be relocated (excluding indirect jobs).

En savoir plus : pro.cotedazur-tourisme.com