There was certainly no shortage of top-of-mind topics at Atout France’s annual Canadian roadshow this week – a four-city tour that winds up in Vancouver Thursday after gala event in Montreal, Toronto, and Calgary. After all, the Summer Olympic Games awaits the starters gun July 26 in Paris, D-Day will be thoughtfully remembered in Normandy on its milestone 80th anniversary on June 6, and the long-awaited re-opening of Paris’s landmark Notre Dame Cathedral is scheduled for Dec. 8 (it was famously devastated by fire 2019).
With so much to talk about, close to 200 agents were collectively expected to turn out for the Destination France tour, with nearly two dozen French and local exhibitors on hand for presentations and a trade show – some of them coming to Canada for the first time.
“We’re very happy,” Atout France director Mélanie Paul-Hus told Travel Industry Today. “It’s been very good for the exhibitors to work with travel agents to mold programming with sustainable objectives, and for our online training,” she said.
She added that she expects agents will be particularly busy with France this Fall after as the country benefits from the massive exposure it will receive from the Olympics, and its other major events, which also incudes the 150th anniversary of impressionism.
Paul-Hus says Canada ranks as the 5th top market for online searches about the Olympics, adding, “We’re not see people avoiding France (because of the Games), but looking for other cities (than Paris) to stay in” – noting that most are less than two hours away by train.
At the same time, several Olympic events throughout August will take place outside Paris, such as sailing in Marseille (or even surfing in Tahiti).
“We’ve been very active telling people the rest of France is (a good place to be) while the Games are on,” Paul-Hus added.
As for the roadshow, the Occitanie region took centre stage, including five partners: Toulouse airport, Carcassonne Patrimoine Mondial, Destination Pyrénées, Uzès Tourism office and Cité Hôtels Groupe.
Occitanie’s flagship product is L’Occitanie Rail Tour, a suggestion of eco-responsible itineraries by train (or regional coach) that allows visitors to tour Occitanie, taking all or part of the several touring circuits that include 20 identified itineraries with 50 or so stopover stations that serve them.
Meanwhile, Air Canada, the official airline partner of the roadshow, promoted direct seasonal winter service from Toronto to Fort-de-France, Martinique; as well seasonal summer flights from Montreal to Nice; year-long Montreal-Toulouse and Toronto-Paris service; and the restart of Montreal-Lyon flights.
Also noted was convenient new air-rail connections throughout France in collaboration with SNCF, France’s leading rail operator, and its subcontractor AccessRail.
Awards
The Destination France 2024 Product of the Year award was presented to Patricia Fargeon President of Planet France for the “Live like a real French” itinerary – recognizing its elements of the sustainable and slow travel aspect of a stay in Côte d’Azur.
Other finalists included: Martinique and Guadeloupe – Senior Discovery Tours; Pilgrimage to France, Spain, and Portugal – Connaissance Travel; and The Mystery of Mary Magdalene – The Divine Destination Collection.
Several attendees also won prizes including Sylvie Perron, Product &Insurance Manager for Senior Discovery Tours (a Bordeaux river cruise); Ismael Tan, Centre Holidays (a 7-day/6-night stay in Occitanie) and Shereen Jeraratham, Globus Family of Brands ($250 gift card).
