A study from the PAPVacances.fr website indicates that reservations for the February 2024 holidays are down sharply compared to last year. In addition to inflation, vacationers are also fearful of roadblocks.
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Reservations for this winter’s February holidays are down 9.4% compared to February 2023, according to a study by the website PAPVacances.fr, which Franceinfo was able to consult exclusively on Thursday February 1. PAPVacances.fr counted 32,023 reservation requests for the period from February 10 to March 10, corresponding to the winter school holidays, all areas combined.
The study puts forward several explanations for this drop in reservations. She points the finger at inflation and the decline in purchasing power, recalling that on average, it takes 1,150 euros per week to rent an apartment in the Alps.
Motorway blockages of farmers are also to blame, says this survey, notably in the drop in last minute reservations, since they “limit travel for the French as the February holidays approach”. PAPVacances.fr cites in particular the blocking of the A6 motorway around Paris and Lyon, which “reinforces the fear for vacationers of not being able to get to the ski resorts.”
The fear of a global phenomenon of strikes
According to the study, which sees a “natural barrier” blocking around massifs, especially alpine, it is “logical, in this context, that the French decide to play it safe by postponing their stay in the mountains.” Sabove all, notes the study, that there is the “fear of a global phenomenon of strikes which would also affect other professions such as railway workers, but also domestic flights”.
Finally, the question of snow conditions poses a problem and explains why medium or even low mountain resorts are recording a significant drop in reservations for these holidays compared to last February. If reservations are down by 10.8% in the Alps, the drop is significantly greater for the Massif Central (-41%), the Vosges (-46.6%) and the Jura (-42.1%). . The Pyrenees are down 6.4% compared to February 2023.