The Île-de-France region welcomed 22 million visitors in the first half of the year, including four million who came just for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, according to figures published on Thursday, September 12.
The Olympic Games are giving a boost to tourism in Île-de-France. In the first half of 2024, the region attracted more than 22 million tourists, 700,000 more than in 2023. These figures, published this Thursday, September 12 by Choose Paris Region, the attractiveness agency of the Île-de-France region, show a 3% increase in tourism compared to the same period last year.
Among the tourists welcomed in the first half of the year in Île-de-France, more than 12 million were French (+3%) and 10 million were international (+4%), notably Americans, English, Europeans, Chinese and Brazilians.
Peak attendance for the opening ceremony
On the day of the Olympic Games opening ceremony, July 26, the region also recorded a peak in attendance. For this historic day, the Ile-de-France region welcomed nearly 360,000 tourists: 62% international visitors and 38% French visitors, two-thirds of whom were from the Paris region. The hotel occupancy rate in Paris then reached almost 90%.
In a press release, Choose Paris Region states that the Games “have changed and boosted the usual tourist attendance”. In addition, the event served as a springboard with “a significant increase in the number of tourists from July 24 to August 11”.
“We are seeing a 15% increase in tourist numbers with a greater number of stays by French (+22%) and international (+9%) visitors,” explains Choose Paris Region.
Tourists have largely headed to competition venues and fan zones, “leading to an increase in local economic activity while changing traditional interests.”
Continuing the “legacy of the Olympics”
The Games are now over, but many tourists are still wandering around the capital. And they should be joined very quickly, because the Ile-de-France attractiveness agency notes that “the first signs of this “Olympic” dynamic are manifested by air reservations up by +7% in October and +6% in November compared to 2023″.
“The quality of the reception has reached an unprecedented level of satisfaction thanks to the mobilization of tourism professionals but also thanks to the provision of efficient transport infrastructure and exceptional Olympic sites”, rejoices Valérie Pécresse.
“With the help of all the people of the Paris region, we will continue this legacy to make the Île-de-France region the best tourist destination in the world,” assures the president of the region.
Djena Tsimba with Alicia Foricher
