Europe is conditionally open to Russian tourists. Now that they are free to travel around the Old World via third countries without being subject to Covid regulations, tourism figures have skyrocketed to record highs. For example, this happened in France, the most popular country in Europe. This may seem like good news for local businesses, especially after two years of stagnation, but in fact, the popular cities of the Fifth Republic are unhappy with what is happening and do not want to see an excessive number of visitors.
One of the measures in the fight against overtourism was the introduction of tourist passes and quotas, and this will apply to all tourists, and not only Russians, i.e. this has nothing to do with Russophobia.
Marseille
Excessive tourism has captured the oldest city in France, Marseille – the authorities have introduced a tourist quota and a booking system for visiting popular places. Only 500 people will be allowed to visit the sites, where previously 3,000 tourists arrived daily.
“Since their resounding success in the summer of 2020, the Calanques (the famous French national park located on the Mediterranean coast in the south of the country) have been the victim of overcrowding in July and August. It damages flora and fauna. To combat this phenomenon, PNN is launching an unprecedented promotion for natural space: a daily booking system, ”the city’s tourism office explained. On the other hand, Region Sood has created an app to control overtourism during the peak tourist season.
Island of Corsica
In addition, the French island of Corsica has also introduced a limit on the number of holidaymakers, and has also created a daily quota method in order to protect the environment in the resort region. For example, to visit the Lavezzi Islands, the Restonica Valley and the Bavella Needles in Corsica, tourists need to book in advance.
Paris
Again “suffocating” from the influx of tourists and the legendary Paris. So many visitors that the situation in the French capital remains alarming: the Eiffel Tower attracts about 6 million tourists a year, and the attendance of this place has remained stable over the past ten years. About 300,000 travelers a day visit Paris, compared to 2.5 million people who pass through the city every day.
In addition, Parisians have expressed their dissatisfaction with group tourism, when crowds of visitors meet on the streets of the capital, sometimes very noisy, while while the locals try to carry on with their normal lives.
Double-decker tour buses are also a concern for Paris as they create traffic jams and make it difficult for bike lanes to open, widening sidewalks for some sports. According to the newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche, an accident in which one of these buses crushed a man to death caused outrage among the French. Since June, Paris police have counted 219 tour bus violations.
“We don't want tour buses to run around Paris in a completely anarchic way. Buses are no longer welcome in the city center,” Gregoire, a Parisian mayoral candidate, said emphatically in an interview with Parisien ahead of the municipal elections. From September 2022, double-decker buses will have to be subject to restrictions, and half of them must be clean.
Earlier, Turprom wrote that ““ Because you are Russian ”: in Europe, Russian tourists began to be denied passes to attractions” .
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