the essential
According to an INSEE report, the Occitanie region should experience a major upheaval in summer tourism before 2050, which would abandon coastlines that have become stifling for a more welcoming and cooler hinterland!
By 2050, three quarters of the tourist offering in Occitania will be exposed to extreme heat, according to an INSEE study. This prospect, although worrying for some, could offer opportunities to the Gers.
Rising temperatures could make the department a popular destination for tourists fleeing the heatwaves of the seaside.
INSEE 2024
Between 1976 and 2005, 2% of Occitania was affected by frequent extreme heat, i.e. more than 35 days at 30° or more, or more than 50 tropical nights per year, during which the temperature did not drop below 20 °C. According to INSEE, in 2030, this regional surface area will increase to 30%, and 50% by 2050.
From 2030, the Mediterranean rim and the hinterland will be affected, before the phenomenon extends to the Garonne plain and the northwest of the region, including part of the Gers, by 2050.
Leave the beaches
Gers, and especially its western part, would then be located in the least affected departments. And this could bring back part of Occitanie tourism. Currently, the region welcomes 17.5 million tourists per year, generating 55.2 million overnight stays, half of which are in summer, the hottest period.
Coastline, cities… The areas of Occitanie which will be subjected to this unbearable heat are precisely those where the majority of tourist accommodation is concentrated. 72% of beds in collective tourist accommodation in the region are located in areas where high temperatures will be most frequent by 2050.
Breathable outdoors
Campsites, hotels and second homes will be most exposed to high heat. Outdoor hotels provide two thirds of the capacity in commercial collective accommodation. The Gers, more spared by the heat, could have their card to play. The area facing the Pyrenees will be the most spared, according to INSEE projections.
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The Baïse trail, which links Condom to Valence-sur-Baïse, is establishing itself as a major asset for Gers tourism
The northern and eastern parts, on the other hand, will be hit by increases in temperatures in the same way as the Toulouse basin. Second homes, often located in rural areas of the Gers, already offer attractive accommodation for summer tourists. The trend should be confirmed, or even intensified, as the mercury rises from summer to summer…
