Sharjah24 – AFP: Few tourists are gazing at the Mona Lisa or wandering the streets of Paris this summer, dashing hopes that the top tourist destination would see brighter days after last year's pandemic-linked desertion.
The City of Light has seen between 3.6 million and 4.7 million visitors between June and August, down from 10 million in 2019, before the coronavirus emerged and wrecked international travel, according to tourism office figures.
Only 2.6 million tourists visited Paris last year.
France eased its travel rules ahead of the summer season, putting countries in a red, orange and green colour-coded system that determines if visitors need to take a Covid-19 test before arriving, have a compelling reason to visit or quarantine.
Museums and other cultural venues reopened after long closures, though visitors have to show proof of vaccination or negative tests.
But Paris visitor numbers still disappointed.
Tour guides have also suffered from the absence of tourists, with activity dropping by more than 80 percent in the Ile-de-France region, which includes Paris, according to the FNGIC association of guides.
On the river Seine, the sightseeing boat company Vedettes de Paris has seen turnover drop 50 percent compared to 2019. French clients used to make up half the number of passengers; they accounted for 65 percent this year.
The Eiffel Tower reopened in mid-July after a nine-month hiatus due to the pandemic, but it has only had 13,000 visitors per day -- half its usual number.
Some 50 percent are French compared to 20 percent in the past.
Similar scenes have been seen at the Grevin Museum, which features wax figures of famous people.
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