“A false start”. Yet naturally optimistic, the president of Charentes Tourisme, Stéphane Villain, must admit that the Easter weekend and the April holidays, the start of the tourist season, were rather disappointing.
There…
“A false start”. Yet naturally optimistic, the president of Charentes Tourisme, Stéphane Villain, must admit that the Easter weekend and the April holidays, the start of the tourist season, were rather disappointing.
Blame it on the (rainy) weather, of course, but also on an Easter weekend “disconnected” from the holidays. “The month of May will have to be good to really launch the season,” said on the eve of the 1er May Stéphane Villain, not very enthusiastic given the reservations.
All it took was a ray of sunshine! The bright weather forecast before the big bridge on May 8 and Ascension Day (Thursday May 9) created a call for salty air.
“The spring holidays were mixed,” confirms Jean-Baptiste Dagréou, departmental president of the Outdoor Hotel Federation. We observed between -20 and -30% attendance compared to last year, as at the national level. In May, with the 1er and the 8th in the middle of the week, and the Ascension which follows, we are going to be a big hit. Most campsites are full. We get comments from people who realize at the last minute that it’s going to be between 22 and 25 degrees and who can’t find a place. »
The “viaducts” of May
What Jean-Baptiste Dagréou calls “viaducts” – to designate bridges –, combined with the rise in temperatures, creates the ideal conditions for “great attendance”, which could last the entire month of May. Especially since, this year, Pentecost “falls” this month. “On the other hand, tempers the president of the FDHPA 17, the month of June worries us a little. We won’t have anything left until July 6. So, we hope to return to 2019 attendance, that is to say with the return of foreign tourists, particularly the Dutch. The figures were increasing last year, Covid is far behind, we have turned the page. We realize that they miss France. All this will depend on the weather. »
If it is too early to feel the “Paris 2024 Olympic Games” effect, Jean-Baptiste Dagréou believes that it will not change much in summer attendance. “In August, we are full anyway. In a pinch, it could change something at the end of July. So, in summary, April mixed, May very good, June calm. If we are in July-August, we will have a decent season. And that’s already very good. »
