Cafes and restaurants in Paris face sharp drop in visitors ahead of Olympics

The center of Paris was blocked for the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Because of this, restaurants and cafes in Paris faced a sharp drop in the number of visitors. Because of the situation, the owners of the establishments are forced to delay the salaries of their employees and rent payments, writes BelTA.

The head of the Confederation of Small and Medium Enterprises of the Paris region, Bernard Cohen-Hadadad, said that the owners of some restaurants faced a 50 percent drop in sales in July 2024, which created problems with the payment of rent and salaries.

“We anticipated that there would be difficulties, but we did not expect such a sharp drop in the number of French and foreign tourists,” Cohen-Hadad said. He said the economic situation was already difficult for many because of inflation and high electricity prices.

The entire central part of the city - the embankments of the Seine and nearby streets - has been enclosed with metal fences for a week. The entrance to this zone is made by QR codes, however, as Parisians themselves claim, the majority of citizens have never understood how to get them. The restrictions have been introduced for the sake of the unique, according to the idea of the authorities, opening ceremony of the Olympics on the river, which will be held in the evening of July 26.

Marielle, a restaurant owner on Cité Island, complained that the terrace of her cafe is empty at lunchtime, when it is usually difficult to find a free table in Paris. According to her, neither Parisians nor tourists can get to it.