The Workshop France Mediterranean is held every two years in one of the cities in the South of France and its 8th edition was held in Nice at the Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de La Mediterranean this year. 

 

The event was attended by 86 tour operators from 10 countries including Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Israel, UAE, Lebanon, Egypt and, for the first time, Croatia and Slovenia, together with 102 exhibitors from all over France (1/3 of the exhibitors were from Cote D' Azur), conducting 2,000 meetings.

 

The tour operators had the opportunity to experience pre-event tours and media from the Middle East, Italy, Greece and Israel were invited for special tours of the city of Nice and surrounding towns.

 

Nice was named in Unesco’s World Hertiage list in July 2021.

 

Atout France CEO Caroline Leboucher said: "France can see a more than 20 per cent increase in international visitor arrivals this summer. The destination’s attractiveness is key and it is also due to the excellent vaccination rate in France and Europe.

 

"Cote d’Azur region is on the way to reach 2019 figures of 1.7 million international stays with the GCC one of the region's top 10 markets."

 

Nice Tourist Board General Manager Denis Zanon said: "Winston Churchill once said, 'if you are going through hell, just keep going' and this is exactly what we have done the last two years. Moving forward with Atout France and all our partners and professionals in the tourism trade and media, we've maintained contact through virtual forums with webinars, social media, newsletters and so on.

 

"Also by organising communication campaigns with our partners at Atout France to provide and reassure our customers a positive image during this period in order to keep the dream alive and a promise of a clear future of travel.

 

"Today the situation is better. We have seen European countries opening up this summer. The long-haul markets are re-opening slowly. Our industry is changing, and we will adapt together. We are together living the DNA of our industry and that is meeting, sharing, working to build the best travel experience for our customers."

 

Cote D’Azur General Regional Tourist Office Director Claire Behar said: "We are delighted to welcome you here and show you all the attractions of our region. This event is the fruition of a collective project which has taken many months of preparation and I would like to thank the General Manager of Atout France for all her hard work.

 

"Today is the result of the consultation of the tourism boards of several Azorean towns. Nice was very motivated to take part in this event and it is our pleasure to have been selected to host this event. I also want to thank the management of the tourism board, and particularly the Mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi.

 

"Over the last few days, tour operators have been able to discover the richness of the region. This event is a major showcase for us and its very closely linked to the Mediterranean markets which are important to our region."  

 

Nice's Deputy Mayor Jennifer Salles Barbosa said: "Having the 8th edition of this workshop in Nice is a testament to our strong cultural heritage and our influence on tourism across the region and across the country. The summer season that has just passed has been one of the most successful seasons with an occupancy rate of 92.5% in hotels in the region.

 

"This shows that Nice and the Cote D’Azur have never lost its attractiveness or its competitiveness and with the classification of Nice on the UNESCO World Heritage list of towns makes it clear that our destination is one of the most important one in France. 

 

"With Nice's excellent climate and location between the sea and the mountains, you can ski in the morning and swim in the afternoon. Not everyone can boast of this advantage. It’s also a host of events including the Nice Annual Carnival, and many sporting events like the Tour de France.  Nice has also been chosen to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

 

"We also have a great public transport network, notably the tramway that leads from the airport to the city and is very good value for money (for one Euro a person can travel from the airport to the city of Nice). For the future, Nice will soon become the home of a new exhibition hall which will be environmentally friend and will boast the latest in digital technology.

 

"In 2025, Nice will have an additional 300 hotel rooms which is another testament to our pledge to encourage tourism."-TradeArabia News Service