France Posts New Tourist Record Despite 'yellow Vest' Unrest

France welcomed nearly 90 million foreign tourists last year, a new record for the country despite the "yellow vest" anti-government protests that prompted many visitors to put off trips late last year, the government said Friday

Paris, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th May, 2019 ) :France welcomed nearly 90 million foreign tourists last year, a new record for the country despite the "yellow vest" anti-government protests that prompted many visitors to put off trips late last year, the government said Friday.

"France remained the world's top destination in 2018," the government's tourism committee said in a statement.

The total of 89.4 million visitors was a three percent jump from 2017, and France is now targeting 100 million foreign tourists for 2020.

The biggest increase came from Asian visitors, up 7.4 percent from the previous year, though Europeans still make up the bulk of foreign tourists to France, representing 79 percent of the total.

Statistics office Insee had already indicated another bumper year for tourism, saying last month it had tallied 438.

2 million nights spent in hotels, campsites and youth hostels in 2018, an increase of nine million from the previous year.

And that figure doesn't include the figures from home-sharing platforms like Airbnb, which has 65,000 listed apartments in Paris alone.

Tourist spending reached a record as well, with a five percent increase from the previous year to 56.2 billion Euros, the government said Friday.

Business tourism also picked up markedly, with Paris hosting 212 international conferences last year, pushing it to the top of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) rankings.

It was a sharp jump from the 190 conventions held in 2017, allowing Paris to surpass Barcelona as the most popular destination for industry gatherings, the ICCA said.