France fatal attraction

Why France is best tourist attraction ?

France,is one country which garners around eight per cent of international tourists.So how did a nation – not always renowned for the warmth of its welcome, and where English, the world language, is far from guaranteed to be spoken – perch on so high a pedestal ?

The number of borders

France shares borders with eight different nations, which means it’s even easier for all those Francophiles to pop over. France is not, however, the country with the most borders in Europe. Germany actually has nine (Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands) – but has suffered from something of an image problem.among British visitors. And Russia and China have a whopping 14 borders each – both welcome a notable number of tourists, but nowhere near as many as France.

The booze cruise

Despite, Duty free was abolished back in 1999, which certainly dented the number of people doing the cross-Channel shuffle to pick up a trolley-full of decent plonk (and possibly a few cartons of cigarettes to boot), it still has cheapest stuff. Anyone who’s been to a Calais hypermarket recently, and seen the number of crates – available for far cheaper prices than in Dover just a few miles away – picked up by British visitors, will realise this is far from a thing of the past.

They’ll always have Paris

“Paris is always a good idea”, says Audrey Hepburn in the 1954 movie, Sabrina. As her character intimated, Paris has been the most romantic destination in the world in the popular imagination for time immemorial, a perception reinforced by films such as Amelie in more recent years. 

The weather

France’s appeal also lies in it's mild climate in the months of spring and autumn. And then, there are the lovely, warm summers, attracting waves of sun-seekers every year.

Of the 60 per cent of French people who go away on holiday, some 80 per cent stay within their own country too enjoy best.

The heritage sites

We’re talking quality, not quantity here. France actually lags behind some countries in terms of the sheer number of UNESCO World Heritage sites (Italy has the most with 51, with France in fourth place on "just" 41). But it’s the profile and raw appeal that counts.

Few other nations have so well looked after their past – cathedrals, chateaux and what-have-you – so that it's present in the present. 

Then again, few other nations, also, are so little talented in presenting this past in an engrossing, or even interesting, manner. But sites like the Loire chateaux or Mont St Michel are strong enough to resist even the French drive to crashing historical tedium. 

The burgeoning Chinese market

This is perhaps not as big a factor as you may have thought – but the French have done much better at encouraging visitors from China, a big-spending market with enormous potential. Can India take a cue out of it being next door to China with it's Budhist attraction and even as a biggest destination of Chinese products? 

The fine dining

In 2010, France was the first nation to have its gastronomy recognised by UNESCO as "intangible cultural heritage”, reinforcing the imperious reputation of French cuisine. 

The fine wine

New wines are fast catching from other Nation too but will sparkling wine ever have the same cachet (a French word, perhaps not entirely coincidentally), as Champagne? Or claret? Burgundy? The list goes on…

Friendly with English

As a country France is fully equipped for welcoming tourists. Tourist information centres are everywhere, most attractions are multilingual or have audio guides in multiple languages.”

The sheer diversity

One country can offer three very different coastlines (channel, western and Mediterranean), several mountain ranges (Alps, Pyrenees, Jura, Massif Central and extinct volcanos in the Auvergne), a very wide spectrum of food, wines and beers, different climates.”

“France is the whole of Europe in one country. It has the lot, both physically (mountains, rivers, coastlines both Atlantic & Med, lakes, plains, great estuaries and anything else you might need, bar icebergs) and culturally. From the German and Flemish-influenced north, by way of Celts in Brittany, Basques, Catalans being noisy about rugby and Perpignan, Spaniards roaming Languedoc and as much Italian incursion as you need on the C?te-d’Azur – not to mention a whole swathe of frankly French French in the middle – you couldn’t want for more. And all that translates into a rich tapestry (are tapestries ever anything else?) of different foods, wines, drinks, traditions, music and, God help us, folk-dancing.

“Travel from Strasbourg in the far north-east, with its choucroute, beer, riesling and outrageous head-gear (black bows like crows pinned to young girls’ heads) all the way to Basque Bayonne in the deep south-west, full of chipirones stuffed squid, cured ham, berets and dark fellows in white playing pelota – and you’ve experienced more brands of foreignness than any other European country can provide."

The mountains (and some excellent skiing)

The mountain ranges are varied and they make France one of the world’s biggest destinations for skiing. Good transport links

The French TGVs have been the envy of the world, whisking passengers from one end of the country to the next in a fraction of the time it takes in the UK (when there are no strikes, of course). And if you’re not on the train, the roads outside Paris are much often much emptier and freer flowing than they are in the UK. Having two-and-a-half times the space of Britain counts for something. 

The women

Last but not the least. This theory, which we expect may meet a little opposition, is expounded by Anthony, despite the minor risk of alienating approximately 200 other nation states. He writes: “The number one answer is so many people go to France is, obviously, French women. 

While there is the slightest chance of sharing a funiculaire with Emmanuelle Béart, Vanessa Paradis or Marion Cotillard – better still, all three together – people will always be queuing.”