“Don’t forget that a Eurostar ride between Brussels and Paris is often faster than a RER train journey between Paris and its suburbs!” is the new message from the Brussels Hotel Association, as the Belgian capital prepares to take advantage of overspill from the Paris Olympic Games this year. The Paris 2024 Olympics will be taking place between 26 July and 11 August.
The hoteliers’ organisation is “confident” in looking forward to an influx of visitors from spring onwards. The increase in footfall and overnight stays is expected for a variety of reasons. The Association’s Yves Fonck has said, “Currently it is too early to give figures, but this will change around Easter. From then on, we expect a real overflow, as that is when hotels in Paris and surrounding cities will start filling up.”
Constellation of milestone events
France is anticipating a bumper year for tourism, having allocated a budget of 1.9 billion euros over the last three years to its Destination France program. The Olympic Games alone are projected to attract around 16 million arrivals. But a constellation of other milestone events, including the 150th anniversary of the advent of Impressionism, the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, and the re-opening of Notre Dame Cathedral, is aligning and the industry hoping for total annual visitor numbers closer to 100 million.
Intercity in 1.5 hours
Brussels is hoping to piggyback on those numbers. As the higher seasons and the Games approach and more and more rooms in Paris hotels and guest houses become unavailable, visitors wanting to be close to Paris and Olympics may turn their attention to Brussels as an alternative overnight option.
The fastest trains between the two cities take less than an hour and a half, making it a realistic possibility to see the Games as well as tick another European capital off the bucket list.
Complementary destinations
To promote the two cities as a pair of complementary destinations an “image campaign” is underway in partnership with tourism platform visit.brussels, said Jeroen Roeppe. A media deal has been struck with Eurostar’s magazine Metropolitan, and negotiations are in place with Eurostar to ensure the route between Paris and Brussels remains affordable.
But as well as picking up Games enthusiasts, Brussels could also benefit from the so-called “overflow” thanks to those wanting rather to escape or avoid Paris during the Games. visit.brussels notes that “a major conference that traditionally takes place in Paris in the summer is now opting for Brussels.”
