Paris to close its tourist office and replace it with a digital concierge service

On 13 January 2025, Paris will no longer have any physical reception points for tourists and visitors. Spot 24, its last PAT, will have closed the day before. 7 of the 10 employees at Paris Je t'aime in charge of informing and selling to visitors will see their jobs eliminated, according to the plan put forward by Corinne Menegaux, the association's managing director. ‘A centralised reception point is obsolete and inefficient’, an assertion that seems to be dictated more by the need to make savings than to adapt to the actual needs and expectations of tourists. In 2015, the capital's five Tourist Information Points (TIPs) received 574,000 visitors.

Is the centralised reception point obsolete and inefficient? 
The capital of the world's most visited country welcomes around 43 million tourists a year (in the Ile-de-France region). It can no longer afford to physically welcome tourists and foreign visitors, and considers a centralised reception point to be outdated. And yet, all over the world, tourist capitals and towns have kept their reception desks, inherited from the tourist information offices. 

Corinne Menegaux, Director General of the Paris Tourist Office since 2018, is planning to close the capital's last tourist reception area, Spot 24.  

The reasons for this are set out in an internal document that has been submitted to staff representatives for their opinion. 
In a city like Paris, where tourist attractions are scattered all over the place, the model of the centralised reception point, which assumes that tourists will travel several kilometres at digital speed to obtain information, appears to be both obsolete and ineffective, ultimately reaching only a tiny proportion of tourists. While digital tools, such as the parisjetaime platform (...), play a major role in preparing a trip and providing on-site guidance, this does not mean that we should abandon all forms of human welcome and guidance (...) Informed recommendations will be preserved by testing new hybrid information, advice and assistance services. To achieve this, the Office will focus on two projects in the future: the launch of a digital concierge service for tourists, and the creation of a network of tourist information points with newspaper kiosks and certain post offices.

The project to redefine the reception and publishing departments will result in the loss of 9 positions (editorial project manager, Reception and Boutique Manager, Reception Boutique Manager, holiday advisor and holiday advisor in charge).

Extracts from the document presented to the association's social partners at the end of the year. The outlines and details of the digital concierge service are still unclear, but a single position of respondent is planned.

Spot 24 and online forms, the minimum amount of information currently on offer
The only current reception point for tourists is called Spot 24 and is located near the Eiffel Tower, quai Jacques Chirac. The site, which opened in April and housed a temporary exhibition during Paris2024, succeeded the reception office located near the Mairie de Paris on rue de Rivoli. It is now in its final days of operation. In a recent article, the French newspaper Le Monde referred to it as l'office de tourisme introuvable. Leased from the RIVP, it has not been as successful as expected, in terms of visits and revenue, mainly because of its late installation and the difficulty of finding it. It would also have been quite expensive to fit out.

In the past, the structure has managed and run up to eight reception areas, in all SNCF stations (except Saint Lazare), in the Anvers metro station, under the Eiffel Tower and at the main office. ‘According to Cat Khe and Gilles B., both experienced tourist advisers and employees of the Tourist Office, ‘the crowds have always been great, and visitors are happy to find advisers who can give them all the information they need. They speak an average of nine languages, have over thirty years' experience and may well be reclassified ... to digital concierge services. ‘WhatsApp is out of the question for tourists,’ says Cat Khe, unconvinced by the options taken.  

During our visit to Spot 24 at the end of December, over fifteen visitors and tourists came in the space of an hour to ask for brochures or information, over 75% of whom were foreign tourists. ‘It's so hard to find you!’ exclaimed a provincial visiting Paris, looking for information on transport. How and where to buy metro or other transport tickets is one of the most frequent questions dealt with by Parisjetaime, Corinne Menegaux told us (interview conducted in 2023).

Physical, telephone and digital reception at the Paris Tourist Office, an overview.
The Paris Tourist Office no longer offers a telephone service. The number 01 49 52 42 63, which can be found on the Internet in a few places, leads to the following message: ‘Hello, you have reached the Paris Tourist Office. We can be reached via our contact form available at www.parisjetaime.com. We hope you enjoy your visit to Paris’. As far as online information is concerned, there is no formal commitment to a response time. In short, on 13 January, tourists will have no way of talking to the Tourist Office or one of its advisers if they want help, advice or to buy a ticket. At 5am or 3pm. They will be asked to fill in a form or go to a kiosk. But perhaps this only concerns a few people?

The flow of visitors, the number of visits to its reception desk, digital requests, the great blur at Parisjetaime
In its recent report, published at the end of August, the Cour des Comptes observed that ‘The OTCP does not draw up an annual qualitative and quantitative assessment of its activities. The agreement on objectives and resources for the years 2019 to 2021 provides for the OTCP to send the City of Paris an annual qualitative and quantitative report on the implementation of the missions set out in the agreement. An appendix to the agreement defines the indicators and target values associated with each objective. However, the Chamber has not been able to obtain the reports corresponding to the OTCP's activities for the years 2019 to 2021. 

4.5 million annual subsidy, which seems insufficient 
In the same report, the Cour des Comptes pointed the finger at the financial difficulties faced by the Capital Tourist Office. The reduction in the City's subsidy since 2017 (€4.5 million a year, compared with €6.5 million previously) has not been offset by a sufficient increase in the Office's own resources, which are ‘struggling to balance its books’ - not least because its own resources, derived from ticket sales, are reportedly struggling to take off. The structure, which manages a budget of around €6 million, had a deficit of €185,000 in 2022, the last financial year analysed. According to the tourist office, the losses would be of the same order in 2023. The only way to maintain a PAT would therefore be for revenue from ticket sales and excursion sales, for example, to balance the associated costs. Is this possible? 

The global market for excursions is worth 150 billion euros 
In the towns and cities where they exist, the shops and visitor centres are all very popular, even though the tourist industry is not very used to collecting and communicating reliable statistical data. The opportunity to access up-to-date information, with commentary and personalised advice, is much appreciated, if the customer reviews from the tourist information centres in Marseille, Annecy, Megève and London are anything to go by, and frequently leads to sales of holidays, packages and excursions. In 2007, New York City launched an advertising campaign called Just Ask The Locals, which suggested that it is the locals who are best able to share tips and advice on how to discover the city. Offering the kind of informed recommendation mentioned above is therefore the right subject. The question is how it should and can be given: face-to-face, by telephone or via forms, which are not very interactive? Companies such as GetYourGuide and others are determined to seize this opportunity, with the help of substantial digital and advertising resources. 

Furthermore, according to our information, Come To Paris, a private company, surprisingly cashed in for several months in 2023 on the proceeds of sales made by salaried Paris Tourist Office advisors. Come to Paris was bought by Butler Industries at the end of 2023. Does everything invoiced and sold to the Paris Tourist Office actually reach its coffers?

From five outlets to just one, how Paris gradually eliminated all its own outlets
The reorganisation of the reception function from five to two sites (extracts from the Cour des Comptes report, August 2024)

In 2017, the Tourist Office had five reception points, the main function of which was to welcome visitors to the capital, who found information, advice and tourist products at these points. The number of visitors to these reception points was falling (574,000 in 2015 and 424,000 in 2016), as was turnover, which fell from almost €8m in 2015 to €4.7m in 2016. 23 staff were assigned to the operation of these reception points.

On 1 June 2017, the OTCP's Board of Directors decided to abolish three of the five reception points. As a result of these closures, only the Gare du Nord reception point and the Paris centre reception point, then located on rue des Pyramides at the Office's head office, remained.

The savings in rental charges expected from these closures were of the order of €280,000/year, in addition to the reduction in the payroll of the order of €735,000 (see 5.2.1 above). As it was unable to negotiate with the owner of the rue des Pyramides premises, the Office decided to close the reception point and transfer it to the Hôtel de Ville buildings.

How to be hospitable and well-informed: the right question
Everywhere else in the world, capitals and tourist cities have kept their shops, their places for welcoming the public: Amsterdam, Madrid, Istanbul, Singapore, New York, Tokyo... Only Dubai does not have one, among the very popular destinations. In some cases, several locations are available to tourists.

A quick study of the many comments left on the websites of tourist offices in tourist towns reveals what is expected and appreciated in these situations. In Megève: ‘I always contact them by phone. It's the most efficient tourist office I know of. Very knowledgeable staff (...)’. In Saint Malo: ‘Lots of information, delivered with attention and a smile. You can buy tickets on the spot, especially for the Saint Malo aquarium. The tourist office is well located and accessible to all. In Chenonceaux: ‘Very pleasant welcome. As the château was still closed to visitors during my stay, the 2 hostesses advised me to discover it from the opposite bank, which they said offered the best view. When I went back to see them to thank them, one of the 2 saw my empty bottle of water and kindly offered to refill it. I really appreciated it’.

To find out more: how Geneva is looking after the visitor and tourist experience, with its Tourist Angels. They are mobile, going out to meet tourists and providing information to over 50,000 of them in six weeks during the summer. Tour guides help visitors discover cities, including Paris and its museums, parks and so on. Their profession has changed, but they are still in great demand. Here are portraits of Anne-Sophie Perret and Michel Faul.

The Tourist Office, since 1971
Created in 1971, the Paris Tourist Office is chaired by Pierre Rabadan, who took over from Jean-François Rial, who in turn succeeded Pierre Schapira. Paul Roll and Nicolas Lefebvre successively headed the Office, before Corinne Menegaux was appointed. The organisation spent up to a million euros on rent for its head office and reception area when it was located on rue des Pyramides. It currently employs 63.7 FTEs (full-time equivalent), including 10 directors plus the general manager. Is equipped with Salesforce.

To be equipped with CRM software licences but no reception desk, to replace face-to-face advice with an online form, picturesque options, relevant? We wish you a pleasant stay in Paris.  

The editors of En-Contact and Manuel Jacquinet.