The La Rochelle urban community is fighting to limit the growth of short-term tourist rentals which go through platforms such as Airbnb or Abritel. But what do the Rochelais think of furnished tourist accommodation, particularly present in the city center and in Minimes? The survey on the “perception of tourism by the inhabitants of La Rochelle”, carried out at the request of the community in October, by the firm MMGY TCI Resarch, with a sample of 500 adults, provides answers.
49% of respondents consider peer-to-peer accommodation “positive” for their city, but 43% “negative”. They are therefore shared and more so than elsewhere. The proportion of favorable opinions is in fact much lower than in Vannes, Nantes, Bordeaux, the Basque Country, Toulon, Marseille and Annecy which are included in the comparison model.
Tourist tax
The Rochelais do not conflate this mode of accommodation which reduces the supply of year-round accommodation for the permanent population and tourism in general. The survey shows that 58% judge the positive effects of tourism to be greater than the negative ones. The favorable net score is 16 points higher than the other cities compared. The share of Rochelais who are really opposed to tourism would be limited to 6%.
54% believe that “the impact on their daily lives is well taken into account” by local elected officials. Even if seven out of ten residents recognize nuisances, which range from parking difficulties to “increases in property prices and the cost of living”. However, 75% of respondents said they were ready to “share advice” with tourists. Which is not trivial: “The attitude of residents is the factor that most influences the visitor experience. » 80% finally display their “pride” in being from Rochelais.
Note that the amount of the tourist tax, collected by the Agglo de La Rochelle on tourist nights, must rise this year to 4.7 or 4.8 million euros, indicates Stéphane Villain, vice-president of tourism , compared to 4.2 last year.
