Despite the suit and tie and mask, it was a more beachy and pétanque atmosphere at the Foreign Ministry on Tuesday. Jean-Baptiste Lemoyen, Secretary of State for Tourism, has actually come to unveil a communication campaign designed to attract tourists for the holidays. The economic share is quite significant, as the region represents around 7% of GDP in normal times, that is, it is EUR 57 billion. Revenue was halved last year due to the coronation.

To redevelop this “national treasure”, as Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne puts it, we must convince as many people as possible to spend and come to holiday with us. Obviously, France is not the only one who has this idea. According to a study by Forwardcage cited by AFP, Greece positioned itself long ago, and with success, in the field of international tourism. In mid-April, it announced that it was opening its borders to vaccinate people, resulting in almost immediate reservations from the United States and the United Kingdom. The island of Malta, for its part, offers a check of 200 euros to be spent on the spot. Apart from these two examples, Italy and Spain also appear to be serious competitors.

A slogan: “what really matters”

“It was not appropriate to communicate at first. Now that the sanitary situation is improving, we are at the right time. To differentiate itself from other tourist markets, France would “send heavily” he assured. In fact, this would result in a digital campaign with a budget of 10 million euros.

Two targets are targeted: French tourists, whom the government would prefer to stay in France during the summer, and Europeans, who represent the majority (75%) of foreign visitors. To appeal to all of these little people, Instagram-style visuals will be widely distributed, along with the slogan in several languages: “what really matters” (see below).

Still a fragile health reality

The goal is to ride the wave of everyone’s “priorities”, which would have been redefined by the Kovid-19 crisis. “At the end of a year abroad, everyone now wishes to reconnect with what is really lacking in recent months,” says Etaut France, the body responsible for promoting abroad about the country. He promises to “promote the basics of experience around people, sharing, conviction, but also the return of environmental responsibility.”

A beautiful speech that does not remove all uncertainties in the coming months. If France is planning a virtual “general withdrawal” at the end of June, the “emergency break” could be activated in the event of a sudden outbreak of the epidemic with the implementation of new sanctions. Furthermore, even though the rate of incidence has fallen below that set by Emmanuel Macron (400 cases per 100,000 inhabitants), it remains above the vigilance limit of 100,000 cases per 100,000 sets last year. “At any time, if the situation worsens, we can suspend communication,” explained Jean-Baptiste Lemoyon.