1. Markets & Segments
  2. Markets
  3. France

France

France

Visitor characteristics

  • Most trips are by those aged 25-44, but the cohort of 45-54 also saw growth over most of the past decade
  • More than half of holiday visitors from France (excluding British nationals) are making a repeat trip to Britain (within ten years)
  • 26% of visiting friends and relatives (VFR) visitors from France are British nationals
  • 97% of departing visitors (excluding British nationals) are ‘likely’ or ‘extremely likely’ to recommend a visit to Britain

Popular activities

Sightseeing of Famous Buildings/ Monuments

Visited a Pub

Went Shopping

Global context

Measure2018
International tourism expenditure (US$bn)47.9
Global rank for international tourism expenditure5
Number of outbound visits (m)54.5
Most visited destinationSpain

Key demographic and economic data

Measure2018
Population (m)67.4
GDP per capita PPP (US$)38,361
Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%)0.9
Annual average GDP growth in the past year (%)1.5

Resources

France Market Profile (PDF, 3.50MB)

visitbritain_marketprofile_france.pdf

France Market Snapshot (PDF, 464KB)

france_fact_sheet_july_2019.pdf

France Aviation Profile (PDF, 928KB)

france_aviation_profile_20190618.pdf

More resources

Find out where visitors from France to the UK reside in their own country (Excel, 212KB, Published 2006, 2009 and 2014)

annual_states_of_residence_2018_for_web.xlsx

Read about the preferences of Europeans towards tourism (PDF, 1.65MB, Published March 2015)

2015-3 Preferences of Europeans towards tourism_3.pdf

Find out what perceived barriers to going exploring beyond London for the French (PDF, 904KB, Published July 2013)

2013-7 ‘Beyond London’ Research_5.pdf

Learn more about the role culture and heritage play for French visitors (PDF, 2.37MB, Published 2014)

foresight_134_-_leveraging_our_culture_and_heritage.pdf

Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.1059 EUR

As of 22 August 2019

Retrieved from the Bank of England

Inbound visits to Britain from France

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Number of visits

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What the French think about Britain

  • The French rate Britain highly for contemporary culture, vibrant cities, historic buildings and sport, but less for welcome and scenic natural beauty; Britain was rated 16th and 31st out of fifty nations repectively on these two attributes in 2018
  • Museums and music are the cultural products or services most strongly associated with Britain among the French
  • Australia, Italy and the US are the destinations most likely to be seen as the ‘best place’ for delivering on factors the French most ‘want’ from a destination
  • Areas of strength for Britain include the ‘ease of getting around’, ‘good shopping’, ‘being somewhere to see famous sites’ and for ‘lots of history’ and to ‘watch sporting events’ while very few consider Britain as the ‘best place for ‘food and drink’
  • Activities that appeal to potential French visitors include a ‘visit to Buckingham Palace’ and ‘spotting wildlife in the Scottish Highlands’

Caring for visitors

  • The French are keen to have information provided in their own language when in Britain
  • They prefer to stay in mid-range accommodation including bed and breakfasts, with en-suite facilities. Country house hotels are popular in France and a good benchmark for the value for money levels expected.
  • Youth travellers prefer to opt for youth hostels or university accommodation as they tend to be more price-sensitive
  • Expectation levels for standards and services are high – any issues should be resolved promptly

The leisure & travel trade

  • The trade structure is quite complex and fragmented - made up of tour operators and travel agencies (online and offline), with associations and social clubs playing an important role
  • November-December and May-September are the main planning periods
  • Tour operators are mainly based in Paris

 

Access to Britain from France

Measure2018
Weekly aircraft departures977
Weekly seat capacity142,109
Airports with direct routes in France39
Airports with direct routes in Britain23
Eurostar trains per day from Paris19
Weekly ferry crossings781
Weekly Eurotunnel Shuttles343
  • Slightly more visitors reach Britain from France by plane than through the Channel Tunnel
  • Airline seat capacity is highly seasonal but is largely shaped by demand for travel to France by holidaying Britons
  • Routes with the highest capacity are those operating from Paris to London
  • French visitors flying home from Britain pay £13 in Air Passenger Duty

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