French tourism board stereotypes travelers with issuing of online manual
Hoping to aid the country’s hospitality industry and its workers, the Paris Chamber of Commerce launched ‘Do You Speak Touriste,’ a new website profiling its foreign visitors.
But a website from the Paris Chamber of Commerce and its tourism board called doyouspeaktouriste.fr aims to change all that … by pointing out common stereotypes of tourists from various countries.
For example, the site describes Americans as wanting fast, personalized service. We also expect our servers to be fluent in English. We are technophiles who demand wi-fi for our tablets and smartphones.
From the Telegraph:
“The aim is to fight against the poor reputation for welcome in Paris and the Paris area,” said Jean-Pierre Blat, general director of the Paris area tourist board.
“You don’t welcome a Japanese tourist the same way as an Italian one. There are codes to take into account, so you have to adapt,” he said.
The website also gives an idea of how much tourists from different countries tend to spend, on average. Japanese tourists spend the most—186 euros per day.
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