New York: Luxury travel agencies in the United States are observing lukewarm interest in the upcoming Paris Olympics, with affluent travelers favoring other European destinations over the French capital.
Historically, Olympic host cities experience a surge in visitors. However, travel agents note that current bookings for the July 26-August 11 Olympics in Paris are predominantly from more modest travelers. European luxury brands like LVMH and Cartier have already indicated they anticipate increased business from wealthy travelers outside of France, as many opt to avoid Paris during the event.
According to Valencia, Spain-based flight ticketing data firm Forward Keys, the U.S. leads in ticket issuance for arrivals to Paris during the Olympics as of late May. Tickets from the U.S. to Paris are set to rise by 37% year-over-year compared to the same period in 2023.
“We are definitely seeing people go to Paris,” said Virtuoso spokesperson Misty Belles. “But is it as robust as it could be? I can’t say that it is.”
While Virtuoso’s summer travel bookings for Paris have surged by 172% year-over-year, overall bookings for France have dropped by 22% from the previous year. Instead, Virtuoso clients are favoring nearby Spain and the UK, with summer bookings up by 44% and 10%, respectively, from 2023.
Miami-based luxury travel concierge The Prelude reported some inquiries about Olympics tickets and packages, but confirmed that bookings are yet to materialize.
“Given the nature of the clients we deal with and the Olympics not being until July, I expect we will start getting a lot more requests closer towards mid to the end of June,” said Stefan Di-Finizio, founder of The Prelude. He added that the ultra-wealthy tend not to plan this far in advance, which is evident in the availability at top hotels, including the Four Seasons. The Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris declined to comment.
Accor Group CEO Sebastien Bazin, speaking at a New York industry conference in early June, remarked that hotel bookings for the Olympics are not “extraordinary.”
“In Paris, you are going to have a solid 85% occupancy but it’s not that different from the year before without the Olympics… it’s not going to be as extraordinary as we would have expected,” he said.
According to commercial real estate data firm CoStar, luxury and upper upscale hotel occupancy in August is expected to increase by 9.1% from the previous year, with room rates projected to rise by 73% during the 11 days of the games. However, CoStar forecasts a 0.5% decline in July’s occupancy compared to the previous year.
