France News: Tourist Destination
France is the number one tourist destination in the world. But when it comes to the tourism industry and the property market, it must vie for consumers’ attention as much as any other country.
At the beginning of the year, ABTOF, the Association of British Travel Organisers to France, successfully launched its 2008 consumer campaign France, Yes You Can. Chief executive of ABTOF, Martyn Sumners explains: ‘The aim of our campaign and associated website is simply to show the travelling public of all ages, aspirations and backgrounds that France has something to offer them. If they start with the question ‘Can I…?’ then the answer almost always is that in France, Yes You Can! Can I, for example, dive onto coral reefs, fly a military fighter jet, drive a Porsche on ice, ski for miles out of a mobile home or rent an entire village for a party without having to fly for hours? In France, Yes You Can!’
The campaign’s newly launched website instantly featured in the Times Online’s ‘ten travel websites to watch’. The site allows users to search different types of holidays, book accommodation and gives an overview of destinations; you can also look up the expected weather conditions, the nearest airports and see which events coincide with your trip.
Brittany Ferries have reported that forward bookings for 2008 are up on last year across all routes from the UK to France. Director of communications for the ferry company, Stephen Tuckwell continues: ‘Those [forward bookings] for members of our Property Owners Travel Club are up 10 per cent on last year and our wide range of ferry-inclusive holidays (gîtes, villas, hotels, chalet camping, holiday apartments, etc) are up 7 per cent.’
Now is the time to book according to Tuckwell: ‘The cardinal rule is to book as early as you can. The most popular sailings such as a Friday overnight from Portsmouth to St-Malo at the beginning of school holidays are already full, but if you are prepared to be flexible and travel midweek then, not only is there greater availability, but fares can be much lower too.’
Now is also the time to start planning for those wanting to buy property in France. Sam Carter of Properties in France advises: ‘It is better to view properties when the weather is at its worst as everything looks fantastic in the summer and you are less likely to get carried away. It’s also good to see areas that have a fair amount of tourism out of season so you can see if there is still enough happening in the villages and towns when things are quieter. You can get good deals on out-of-season gîtes and hotels at this time of year. We allocate up to a day for speculative trips for clients to show them the area and the type of property they get for their budget – this can be a year or more in advance of when they want to buy as we understand that they need to get a feel for a region.’
So how will France’s fortunes fare in the year ahead? ABTOF are upbeat as Patrick Daly reports: ‘With 26 new airline routes due to go on sale this year, covering departure points from Edinburgh to Shoreham, Eurostar’s faster schedule and that fact that modern ferries now resemble mini cruise liners, the sheer ease of accessibility of France holds in its favour. Increasing environmental awareness also helps a destination that you can get to by train. The France, Yes You Can campaign aims to show the British public the vast diversity of what is available from this beautiful and often overlooked country so we are confident that 2008 and beyond will see a renewing of vows between Britain and France.’
www.franceyesyoucan.com
www.brittany-ferries.co.uk
www.propertiesinfrance.com