first destination “Hauts-de-France” for accommodation in private homes
INSEE publishes the results of a study based on overnight stays recorded on the Airbnb, Booking, Expedia Group and Tripadvisor platforms for 2018-2019. A trend is emerging: this type of accommodation was on the rise before the health crisis, +27%. Against +7% for campsites and hotels.
While Hauts-de-France generally lags behind other French regions in terms of overnight stays with individuals (1), on the other hand, within the region, Pas-de-Calais takes the lead , with 40% of reservations of the 2.9 million nights booked with individuals via platforms, in 2019.
Behind follows the departments of the North (33%), the Somme (18%), the Oise (7%) and the Aisne (4%).
It should also be noted that, for this type of booking, the increase is +27%, compared to 7% for campsites (3 million overnight stays) and hotels (9 million overnight stays).
“In 2018 and even 2019, there was undoubtedly another 100th anniversary effect from the end of the First World War. You should also know that this type of accommodation is increasingly popular with tourists and that in 2020 and 2021, even if the general volume drops due to the health crisis, this phenomenon should increase and this type of accommodation should gain market share”, explains Thibault Decruyenaere, deputy regional director of INSEE Hauts-de-France. (2)
Note that the department of Pas de Calais would do well not only for its coastline but also for tourism by non-residents: Belgians and Britons (in Hauts-de-France 4 nights out of 10 are booked by foreigners).
With 968,000 overnight stays, the North accounts for 33% of overnight stays in Hauts-de-France, including one in three booked by customers residing abroad. Within this department, Lille accounts for the majority of reservations (23% of overnight stays in the region) but remains little mentioned in comparison with other major French or European cities.
The Sum is the department where the tourist density is the highest. Reservations represent 18% of the regional total (535,000 overnight stays), i.e. almost double its weight in the regional population (10%). This department dresses a clientele residing mainly in France.
Less touristy, theoise and theaisne between them only account for 300,000 overnight stays, i.e. 11% of regional overnight stays.
(1) To erase the population effects, INSEE produced a “nights / population” ratio for each region and then compared the figures. If Corsica, the PACA region and Occitanie stand out, but also the Midi-Pyrénées and Brittany regions; the Hauts-de-France are rather in the queue for this type of tourist accommodation.
(2) The publication of the 2020-2021 figures must take place before the end of 2022.