ETOA Paris Working Group

Working groups provide opportunity for ETOA’s members and partners to cooperate on issues to do with the business environment for tourism in Europe. They are topic or destination focused. Activities can range from in-person meetings to ad hoc consultation and information sharing.

Their composition is not fixed and expressions of interest are welcome. We try to ensure access to insight from various business models and origin markets, and specialist expertise where applicable. For destination-focused groups, representatives from members’ local offices are especially valuable.

The working group is focusing on addressing coach access restrictions, alternative transport options, and group metro ticketing. There’s also concern about staffing shortages and ticketing for main attractions.

Topics generally discussed in the Paris working group:

• Coach Access and parking
• Group restrictions
• Attractions and ticketing
• Accommodation
• Overnight Tax

ETOA’s Paris working group met on 7 July 2026 kindly hosted by Paris je t’aime, attended by member operators, attractions and city card providers, hoteliers and DMOs.

Topics covered included:

• Implications of hot weather on clients, suppliers and tour delivery
• Access to water fountains that can cope with high demand
• Availability and booking processes for attractions
• Product development and dispersal
• Impact of EES implementation and Middle East crisis

With operators planning programmes for 2028 and beyond, Europe’s changing climate will affect tour design and supply chain management. Questions arising included whether cultural attractions will open earlier, and who has the authority to decide.

On 15 April 2026, ETOA held a Working Group in Paris, kindly hosted and supported on the ground by Visit Paris Region, which focused on key operational updates, destination performance trends, and evolving booking and access systems across major cultural sites in Paris.

Visit Paris Region highlighted a growth in international arrivals in 2025, hotel nights, and sustained demand at key museums and monuments, alongside positive forward bookings for 2026.

Discussions focused on the Louvre’s new B2B booking system and capacity management measures, forthcoming changes at Centre des monuments nationaux sites, new Eiffel Tower group access rules, and transport updates from Île-de-France Mobilités. The session also highlighted the importance of timely communication on operational changes and balancing access restrictions with the ability of alternative sites to absorb demand.