French tourists would rather have an eye-full of London
FRENCH holidaymakers are more likely to have gone up the London Eye than the Eiffel Tower because they think British tourist attractions are better.
Research has found that visitors from across the Channel have a growing fascination with this country, thanks to factors including the wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle and the approach of Brexit.
They also enjoy exploring our attractions that are steeped in history. Many French people questioned had never bothered visiting the main sites in their capital, despite Paris being the most popular tourist city in the world.
Only 39 per cent had visited the Eiffel Tower that stands at 1,063ft and 31 per cent had gone to Versailles, the magnificent estate west of Paris where French kings and queens lived before the French Revolution in 1789.
By comparison, 46 per cent of French people had been on the 443ft London Eye that opened in 2000, and 44 per cent had visited Buckingham Palace.
When asked why they had travelled to such attractions in the UK, 37 per cent said it was because they “were internationally famous with a rich historical past”, while 35 per cent superb”.
The survey was conducted by flight comparison website Jetcost. A spokesman said: “More French tourists went abroad and visited the London big wheel rather than the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Versailles, the Louvre Museum and Notre Dame Cathedral.
“French tourists find that the attractions abroad have a richer history and are simply prettier.” The spokesman added that tourists should also value the attractions in their own countries. He went on: “Tourist attractions are always more attractive in other countries than in our own country of origin.
“It’s a pity, we should put our national activities and attractions on top of the list. They are part of our culture, heritage and history.”
The Jetcost research team interviewed 2,417 French people over the age of 18 who had travelled abroad by plane over the past five years.
Despite their views, Paris regularly pips London to the title of the world’s most popular tourist city, with the biggest visitor group to the French city being the British. said they were “simply