With a gain of 89 million foreign foot falls every year, France is considered as the world’s top tourist destination always. The contribution of Indian tourists in the field cannot be ignored, as the number of visitors from India has been steadily growing over the last few years to record almost 8,00,000 travellers to France in 2018.
Witnessing a decent growth in the tourism sector, the French Ambassador Alexandre Ziegler in a recent seminar revealed that visa applications from India, over the past five years recorded an increase of over 180 per cent. As compared to the previous year, in 2018, the number of visa applications grew by 15 per cent, with a support of an over 43 per cent increase in applications from south India alone.
According to Ziegler, since 2015, the Embassy has been issuing visas within 48 hours.
Since the French regions provide an array of diverse experiences like the allure of visiting iconic monuments being coupled with the city’s unique cultural life, chic seaside resorts in the South of France and alpine escapades, it becomes the most desired destination of Indian travelers now. Again in adventure tourism the country is the top choice of the tourists world wide with 55 million skier days sold.
Not only its tourist attractions but France’s splendid wine parks such as Bordeaux, Champagne, Burgundy and the Loire Valley are also of great interest for selective Indian tourists and their number is in increasing form. In fact, France’s wine tourism is one of the most dynamic industries, with 24 million visitors a year.
Along with all these, with world famous brands like Chanel, Dior, Vuitton, Hermès or Louboutin, France is also perceived as the ultimate luxury shopping destination for Indians. Further the VAT-exemption for foreign tourists in France again contributes in enhancing the country’s popularity as a shopping destination.
Noticing the “striking upsurge”, Ziegler said, “We are very honoured to witness this upward trend and it is a priority to facilitate Indian tourism in France. It shows that France is ever growing in popularity and that the country is now the number 1 European destination for Indian tourists. It is just the beginning of a trend.”
