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        Notre Dame Cathedral





France Surges in Global Tourist Visits

Surprised?


France has again emerged as the world's most visited country with 85 million tourists last year.

The USA comes in second with 70 million visits, Spain follows with 61 million, and now China with 56 million.

Of those visiting France are 13 million Germans and 12.6 million Brits.  Approximately 4 million North Americans--USA and Canadians journeyed last year as well.  Yet it's the Chinese tourists where we see a surge of 24 percent last year to 1.7 million while visiting Japanese were 700,000.

Go to any deluxe boutique or department store and its glaringly apparent that the Mainland Chinese visitors are big spenders and the "new Japanese" or what the Americans were 25 years ago.  Add big spending Arab and Russian visitors and you see the new "bling-bling" clientele.

And what are the top tourist sites visited by those touring la belle France?

1  Disneyland Paris with 15 million

2 Notre-Dame of Paris     14 million

3 Sacre-Coeur                   10.5 million

 4 Le Louvre                         9 million (and all seemingly on the day we visit!!)

 5 Chateau de Versailles     7.5 million


La Vie en Rose?

                                           Courtyard of Le Louvre with the Pyramid