Tourism in the French economy
After two years of pandemic, the speed of recovery varied according to the region and the origin of clientele. By 2022, tourism in France was back to pre-COVID levels, an exceptional performance on a global scale, with 93 million arrivals recorded in the country.
Despite geopolitical, ecological, and health-related upheavals, France has maintained its world leadership in terms of the number of arrivals. That position should be shown to be stronger in 2024, a year of international influence with the hosting of world events including the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Main economic data
100M
international arrivals by 2024 (Estimate Atout France)
71 Md€
in international spending in 2024 (Banque de France)
18.6 MD€
in tourism investment by 2022
According to URSSAF data, the accommodation and food services sector will have 1.3 million private sector employees in 2022, up 8.5% on 2019 (+93,800 private sector jobs).
Employment in the accommodation and food services sectorreprsented 6.5% of all private-sector salaried jobs in 2022. The HCR sector was one of the most dynamic industries in 2022, both in terms of percentage and volume of employment.
Source: Urssaf
In 2022, tourism's direct contribution to France's GDP was 3,6%, or €82,1 billion, based on the gross added value of tourism activities.
In France, domestic tourism accounts for 70% of tourism GDP, a share comparable with that of competing countries.
Domestic tourism consumption amounts to 192 billion euros (126 billion euros for residents and 66 billion euros for non-residents). It totaled €185.6 billion in 2019.
Source: Insee, tourism satellite account
Despite the continuing health crisis at the beginning of the year and the outbreak of Ukraine war in the spring, 2022 was a year of recovery for French tourism, with very solid performances in numbers of visitors, revenue, and investment.
The number of international arrivals 100 millon in 2024* (90 million in 2019)
* Estimate by Atout France for 2024, based on international visitor numbers for 2023/2022, France having welcomed 93 million visitors in 2023 according to INSEE.
With €71,3 billion in international earnings in 2024, France exceeded the 2019 and 2023 by +26% and 8% respectively. (Source: Banque de France)
These results were driven by Belgian, British, german and swiss customers .
Total revenue growth from 2019 to 2024
Tourism investment in 2022 totaled €18.6 billion, representing an increase of +1.3% compared to 2021 and +4.5% compared to 2019.
Of the total, second homes account for 27%; hospitality accommodation (hotels, guest houses, campsites, rental homes, and holiday villages) 34%; restaurants 17%; and other facilities 22%.