French Riviera: The Russians Still Ahead Of Most Tourist Spenders

The recent survey by Global Blue shows that tourists who spend most cash in the Cote d'Azur are still Russians. Furthermore, nearly half of all the tax free purchases in the PACA region (Provence-Alpes-Cote-d’Azur) are made by six countries. Most of the purchases are made in Cannes.

With respect to their level of expenditure, the Russians are still number one customers in French riviera as Global Blue, the leading tax refund corporation, reported. Despite a decline in 2009 (- 11.8% of transactions), Russian tourists make up 27% of purchases for Tax Free Shopping with a cart of € 1,175 on average.
Nearly half of all the tax free purchases in the PACA region are made by six countries: the Russians, after them the United States (+2.6%), China (+14.8%) and Switzerland. In 2009, the number of transactions in the PACA region has declined by 3.7%.

According to tourmag.com, clothing, shoes, and accessories are the products most popular with foreign tourists, representing 84% of purchases. They spend an average of € 952 for such purchases. Watches and jewelry come in second place (3% of purchases).


Nearly 34% of purchases by foreign tourists are made in Cannes. Among the other places are Nice (29%), Monte Carlo (11%), Saint-Tropez (6%) and Marseilles (5.6%). In Marseilles, the main spenders are from the Algerian community who arrive there by boat.


In Cannes, Jean-Marc Leroy, CEO of Global Blue France, is to launch the first issue of the magazine SHOP Côte d'Azur, which will inform foreign buyers about the offer in the area. Published in English and Russian, 30 000 copies of SHOP Côte d'Azur will be distributed mainly in hotels.

Source: www.tourism-review.com