Skift Take
Corinne Menegaux says the 2024 Paris Olympics will be a global tourism advert for the City of Light, rather than attracting large numbers of tourists as an event in itself.
Dawit Habtemariam
Paris will host the 2024 Olympics this summer, but it won’t be a big international tourist destination — only 30% of the event’s attendees will be from abroad — and its real value will come from the footage of professional breakdancing, skateboarding and other urban sports taking place in the heart of Paris.
“This is a way for Paris to show its commitment to the urban culture,” said Corinne Menegaux, director of the Paris Tourist Board.
Menegault spoke to Skift about the Olympics’ impact on Paris, trends in the US market, why 2024 isn’t the best year for tourism in Paris, and why his organization doesn’t pay influencers.
American tourists continue to drive Paris’ tourism recovery
Skift: You said that American tourist spending in Paris last year was “phenomenal” and key to the city’s recovery. What is the U.S. inbound market like right now?
Americans have a lot of money to spend. They’re driving the luxury market. But we haven’t seen any improvement in the last year or the year before. [demand] It’s actually pretty stable, because our currency is pretty stable against one and against the other.
Tourism in Paris during the Olympics
I have a feeling that because of the Olympics, Paris might be too expensive for tourists.
I expect hotel prices, food and drink, and everything else will go up a little bit during this time, but honestly, compared to what happened in previous conventions in other cities, this is actually a very reasonable price.
And we have to take into account that most of the audience at the Olympics are locals, so 2024 is not going to be the best year ever in terms of tourism, and the Olympics are not a driver of tourism.
What is the makeup of visitors to the Olympics? How many of them are from overseas?
Only 30% of the people are from overseas. There aren’t that many. People from overseas come to support their country, their athletes, etc.
To see your reservations and status, [visitors from the foreign] Whether it’s the beginning or the end of the Olympics, the situation is different for different countries depending on the competition, and it’s very related to the competitions and events that are currently being broadcast.
Corinne Menegaux, Secretary General of Paris Je t’aime
Olympics puts spotlight on Paris
What will hosting the Olympics mean for your promotional efforts?
You will see amazing images of the Paris Olympics, because we chose to hold them in the heart of the city. What you will see is not so much new theaters or new rooms, but the change in the way people live in Paris. This is a way of showing a Paris that is much greener than before, with new bike lanes and the Seine, which is extremely important to us.
One of the main things we want to show is the new dynamics with the Olympics: it’s local, but it’s also about urban culture, new disciplines like urban climbing, skateboarding, breakdancing, etc. This is a way to show that Paris is really involved in this urban culture.
They also opened a new venue for the only Olympic exhibition and new sports: Spot24. A large exhibition center in the center of Paris, a few steps from the Eiffel Tower, where sports, urban culture and street music come together.
And to me, the legacy is much more important than the two weeks themselves. If I had to rank them a little bit, I would say the Paralympics are much more important to me than the Olympics in terms of message and values. And I think we need to put our greatest effort into the Paralympics, because it’s also a vehicle for showcasing the values of inclusion that will be carried forward in Paris.
Why Paris won’t pay influencers for marketing
You said last year that you don’t pay influencers to promote Paris because you don’t think they’re authentic. Can you explain that?
No, that’s not the way we want to promote Paris.
We are Paris je t’aime and we take our brand very seriously. Our challenge is to bring together people who love Paris and want to talk about it, and to harness that love.
Because people who love Paris just want to say they love Paris, and everyone has their own history with Paris, and I think this is what we want to share, and really, let’s show Paris from the inside in a different way and say, “Look at Paris. I love Paris. I love Paris.” [visit] I could go to Paris ten times and see something different each time.
We have ambassadors, for example all the athletes and young people who are taking part in the new sports I mentioned earlier, who are proud to present the destination and express their love for Paris, and it is not a sold or paid collaboration.
Photo by Alexis Minchella on Unsplash
