The sustainable tourism market - France (2023)

1.2 The global market

In ****, the global sustainable tourism market was worth ***.* billion USD. The exchange rate at the time was *.****[***], or around ***.* billion euros when converted at the current exchange rate (***).

As explained above, tourism in general is bound to evolve towards a model that respects the three dimensions of sustainable development. The sustainable tourism market therefore has unprecedented growth potential. Estimates suggest an average annual growth rate of **.*% over the period ****-****. The graph below shows the estimated evolution of the global sustainable tourism market up to ****.

Evolution of the size of the global sustainable tourism market World, **** - ****, index base *** in **** Source: ****

In the space of just six years, the size of the global sustainable tourism market could increase by a factor of almost *.*. Key players in the global sustainable tourism market include Bouteco, Kind Traveler, Responsible Travel and Wild Frontiers Adventures Travel.

A clear upturn in tourism since the end of the pandemic

Hard hit by the pandemic and the resulting confinements, the tourism industry has been able to breathe new life into itself since the reopening of most international borders.

International tourism revenues: percentage of **** levels recovered by **** World, ****, in Source: ****

international tourism is rapidly returning to pre-pandemic levels. Only ...

1.3 The French market: a relatively new market with great potential

According to a barometer published by Flower Campings & MadeInVote in ****, **% of French people say they take the sustainable dimension of their vacations into account. In ****, the tourism market (***) was worth **.* billion euros, or *% of France's GDP[***].

Estimates suggest that sustainable tourism represented *% of the tourism market in **** [***]. The size of the sustainable tourism market was therefore */*** * **.* = *.*** billion euros that year.

And yet, as we have seen on a global scale , sustainable tourism is a fast-growing sector. According to the association ATR (***), it is growing by an average of **% a year in France[***].

According to these estimates, the size of the sustainable tourism market in **** could therefore be : *** + **/*** * *** = ***.* million euros.

Considering the estimates made for this market and its evolution, our calculations result in a sustainable tourism market size in **** of around ***.* million euros.

Evolution of the sustainable tourism market (***) France, **** - ****, in billions of euros Source: L'Info Durable, Businesscoot processing At an annual growth rate of **%, the size of the sustainable tourism market could more than double by ****, to reach *.*** billion euros. Sustainable tourism therefore offers exceptional growth potential.

1.4 The threat of overtourism

With its rich historical, cultural and natural heritage, France will be the world's leading tourist destination in ****.

Ranking of countries receiving the most international tourists World, ****, in millions Source: ****

far ahead of its competitors, France welcomed ** million international tourists in ****. Given the small size of France (***), this high level of tourism necessarily comes at the expense of sustainable development and the preservation of the most visited sites. Indeed, in France, **% of tourist activity is concentrated on **% of the territory. To redress this imbalance, in June **** the government announced a national plan to regulate tourist flows. For example, a communications campaign is to be launched to encourage "four-season tourism" that is more evenly distributed across the country, and to promote lesser-known locations.

In addition, sustainable tourism has partly developed in response to the threat posed by mass tourism and, more specifically, overtourism. Overtourism refers to the excessive growth in visitor numbers, with harmful effects on local populations and the environment. Aware of their impact, both French and foreign visitors are increasingly calling for sustainable tourism. "At least **% of tourist customers say they are clearly ready to prefer France within Europe and/or the world, if it commits to becoming a sustainable destination ...

2.1 Early awareness of the need for sustainable tourism

For the past ten years or so, the French seem to have been aware of their responsibility towards the environment and local populations during their travels.

Responses to the question "Are you very, rather, rather not or not at all attentive, when you go on a trip, to respecting the environment and the lives of local populations?" France, ****, in %

indeed, back in ****, **% of them said they were attentive to respecting the environment and local populations when they travelled.

As we'll see in the market structure section, "responsible tourism" is a form of sustainable tourism. It is "a type of tourism whose objective is to contribute to the economic development and long-term preservation of the natural, cultural and social resources of the places visited and the local populations". Having defined this concept for the sample studied, the study gives the following results:

Answers to the question: Have you ever traveled "responsibly"? France, ****, in Source: ****

nearly one in five French people had already taken part in responsible tourism in ****. Today, this number has risen sharply, and the French are much more concerned about sustainability issues than they were then.

The following graph illustrates this shift in attitudes. Although the question asked is not ...

2.2 Demand limited by higher overall costs and limited supply

At present, the generalized model is classic tourism, i.e. tourism with little regard for sustainable development issues, and it can be more expensive to opt for sustainable tourism. Price is therefore an obstacle for many tourists. For example, **% of travelers think that more sustainable travel options are too expensive, a figure up **% on ****. Only **% of travelers are willing to pay extra for travel options with sustainable certification [***]. Added to this is inflation, which as in many other markets, has a significant influence on the tourism market, putting a strain on demand.

Inflation trends France, **** - ****, in Source: ****

For more than a year and a half, the French have been facing a sharp loss of purchasing power, with inflation struggling to fall below *%. According to the same survey conducted by Booking.com,"**% of French people questioned mentioned the desire to benefit from economic advantages in order to opt for more environmentally-friendly choices". Similarly, **% of respondents would feel encouraged to adopt a responsible approach to travel if reward points were awarded for their sustainable choices.

The following graph shows the importance attached to price when planning a vacation:

Responses to the question: "Which of the following do you consider when planning your ...

2.3 Demand focused on preserving the environment

Although sustainable tourism is not exclusively about preserving the environment, it is the primary interest that the French see in it:

Answers to the question: "For you, sustainable vacations are a way of:" France, ****, in % Source: ****

The environmental pillar is therefore the most important for respondents when it comes to sustainable tourism: **% of them believe that practicing sustainable vacations is above all a way of preserving the environment. The economic and social pillars are not unknown, however, nor totally neglected. Indeed, **% of respondents consider that sustainable vacations contribute to the development of a region and support local players.

2.4 Characteristics of demand for sustainable tourism

It is possible to distinguish profiles that are more sensitive to sustainable tourism than others. First of all, in ****, **% of French people were sensitive to sustainable tourism, i.e. **.* million people. The main characteristics of this category are as follows:

**% live in households without children ; **% are over **, which seems paradoxical given young people's proven sensitivity to the challenges of sustainable development, explained by their greater exposure to potential future climatic and social crises; **% of people living in towns with more than ***,*** inhabitants are aware of sustainable tourism, compared to **% of people living in smaller towns; **% of the PCS + and **% of the inactive are sensitive to sustainable tourism, versus **% of the PCS -.

Among French people who say they are "sensitive to sustainable tourism", a hierarchy can be established: **% are "committed" sensitive, **% are "responsible" sensitive and *% are "concerned" sensitive. In addition, as we saw earlier, the main concern of these French people sensitive to sustainable tourism is the preservation of the environment. The following graph describes the eating habits of individuals sensitive to sustainable tourism:

Responses to the question: "During your vacations, in what proportion do you consume products from local producers and artisans?" France, ****, in % Source: ****

We can see that ...

3.1 Multiple, protean players: tourism industry organizations

Sustainable tourism is a market driven by many different players, as mentioned in the introduction. These include travel agencies, tour operators, hotels, campsites, etc . The main players , however, remain travel agencies and tour operators, which we present as follows:

Travel agencies

Many travel agencies have embraced the principle of sustainable tourism, and offer travel packages in line with this approach. But some agencies have even been created to offer exclusively sustainable tourism travel. They offer the services of tour operators. It's important to note that these agencies generally offer a wider range of destinations around the world, and as such are hardly ever involved solely in the French market for sustainable tourism in the territorial sense. The following agencies have been listed by[***]:

Voyageurs du Monde Akaoka Atalante Chamina voyages Culturecontact Men and mountains Mornings around the world Encounters at the end of the world Saiga Solidarity tourism and development Vision du monde Vacances Bleues

New players are therefore aware of the opportunity represented by sustainable tourism, hence the emergence of numerous travel agencies specializing in this sector. However, the biggest travel agencies still seem far from reforming their model towards sustainable tourism. For example, Havas Voyages, Selectour and TUI, the ...

3.2 Associations and the public sector

The associations

Numerous associations are committed to making the transition from the current tourism model to sustainable tourism. Among the most important are

Acteurs du Tourisme Durable Agir pour un Tourisme Responsable Global Sustainable Tourism Council Association pour le Tourisme Equitable et Solidaire (***)

These are the most generalist associations, aiming to federate players in the tourism sector to help them move towards sustainable tourism. This can be achieved, for example, by setting up labels. There are also associations specializing in certain areas of sustainable tourism, such as accommodation, with the Clef Verte.

The public sector

Responsible for **% of greenhouse gas emissions in **** (***), tourism has a devastating impact on the environment. The government is well aware of the challenges of sustainable tourism. Thus, the France Relance plan creates a Sustainable Tourism Fund in **** and **** and allocates ** million euros to it.

This fund is steered by the Agence de la transiton écologique (***), and aims to reform the tourism industry around three points: catering, accommodation and slow tourism. Thus, sustainable tourism is a market that the French government is keen to invest in, subsidizing it cheerfully, following the example of the ** million euros allocated to the FTR. This should help to support the development ...

3.3 Sustainable tourism value chain

Finally, there are investors , whose decisions naturally influence the dynamics of all markets, local players such as town halls and tourist offices, and of course tourists. The following diagram illustrates the relationships between the players in this market:

The arrows describe the influence and commercial relationships between the various players. Their size is not related to the importance of the relationship.

4.1 Sustainable tourism typology

Climate Consulting by Selectra] distinguishes four forms of sustainable tourism:

responsible tourism, "minimizing the impact of travel on the environment and local culture"; and ethical tourism, which "includes a range of tourism activities based on fair trade principles"; slow tourism, "taking the time to discover travel destinations at your own pace, with an emphasis on respect for the environment"; solidarity tourism, based primarily "on the objective of developing territories and bringing local populations closer together."

We can also add other forms of sustainable tourism, such as ecotourism, which focuses on the discovery of nature, or even urban ecology, while respecting the environment.cology, while respecting the environment and local culture, and community tourism, which is led by local people who invite tourists to visit their communities and offer them activities and accommodation. These different forms of sustainable tourism can be broken down into several sectors[***]:

Ecotourism & gentle roaming Cruises & boating and sports tourism Wine tourism Culture and heritage Well-being Accommodation and restaurants Business tourism

Some sectors are more advanced than others in sustainable tourism. This is the case for accommodation and restaurants, for example. This is also the case for wine tourism, particularly in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, where the proportion of ...

4.2 Modalities of the sustainable tourism offer

As the players in sustainable tourism are many and varied, so are the services they offer. Indeed, tourism is an industry encompassing many fields. The same applies to sustainable tourism. To begin with, it is possible to distinguish the concrete practices and gestures proposed within the framework of sustainable tourism [***]:

having an ecological toiletry kit respecting local traditions, customs and religions taking care of the environment encourage soft mobility (***).

Then there are, generally speaking, the companies responsible for offering sustainable travel, namely travel agencies and tour operators, described in the market structure section. They offer trips and packages whose characteristics are in line with sustainable tourism.

It is also possible to distinguish the specific services required for sustainable tourism :

soft means of transport (***) accommodation: hotels, camping, glamping, ecogîtes, youth hostels, vacation villages, cabins, trailers or ecodomes[***] food: eating locally, ethically and healthily.

Finally, we can mention the various activities offered by organizations as part of sustainable travel:

hiking (***) trekking cycling fishing

4.3 Examples of travel packages

The following table lists sustainable travel offers and their prices, to give you an idea of the budget involved:

Inflation is not sparing the tourism sector in general. The travel sector is said to have seen a **% rise in prices since ****. Another trend in the tourism market concerns the duration of trips. The French are going away less often, but the duration of their trips is lengthening slightly, from six to eight days[***].

5.1 General regulations

There is a World Charter for Sustainable Tourism. This was created at the World Conference on Sustainable Tourism in Lanzarote (***), drawn up in **** by the European Federation of Protected Areas. The latter has three objectives:

To increase interest in and support for protected areas as a fundamental part of our heritage, to be preserved and enjoyed by present and future generations, Tocreate a local network of players in the protected areas and share a common vision for the development of a new form of tourism, To develop and manage tourism in protected areas in a sustainable manner, taking into account the needs of the environment, local residents, local businesses and tourists.

This approach is based on collaboration between protected area managers, institutional bodies, tourism service providers, tour operators and local players. It is structured around three areas of intervention:

the first concerns the protected area and its sustainable tourism strategy. The Charter enables the construction of a territorial project for quality tourism that meets the needs of the area and the expectations of visitors. the second is dedicated to organizing relations between the protected area and the area's tourism service providers. For businesses, it's a *-year commitment to adopt environmentally-friendly management ...

5.2 Labels

In order to guarantee the commitments of the various players involved, associations are setting up labels. These also serve to guide tourists as they plan their vacations.

One such label is ATR (***). It is based on three pillars: transparency, partnership and consistency, broken down into ** criteria. It is aimed at all travel operators wishing to structure and gain recognition for their commitment to responsible tourism.

The Green Key is the first international sustainable tourism ecolabel for tourist accommodation and restaurants. The Green Key criteria are environmental policy, environmental awareness, water management, waste management, energy management, responsible purchasing and living environment.

The Grand Site de France label is awarded by the French government and managed by the Ministry of Ecology. Award of the label is conditional on the implementation of a project for the preservation, management and enhancement of the site, in line with the principles of sustainable development. The label is awarded, at its request, to a local authority, a public institution, a mixed syndicate or a management organization including the local authorities concerned.

The Fair Tourism label is based on over ** criteria that attest to the practices of operators, unlike systems based on a simple commitment. It is the only ...

6.1 Segmentation

• Voyageurs du Monde Groupe
• ATR (Agir pour un Tourisme Responsable)
• ATES (Association pour le Tourisme Equitable et Solidaire)
• Chamina Voyages
• Double Sens
• Atalante
• Grand Angle
• L'Arbre à voyages
• Evaneos