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| Commissariat général au Tourisme | |
|---|---|
| Name | Commissariat général au Tourisme |
| Native name | Commissariat général au Tourisme |
| Formed | 1945 |
| Preceding1 | Commissariat général à l'Information |
| Dissolved | 2009 |
| Superseding | Maison du Tourisme; Atout France |
| Jurisdiction | French Republic |
| Headquarters | Paris |
| Chief1 name | Jules Moch |
| Parent agency | Ministry of Transport |
Commissariat général au Tourisme The Commissariat général au Tourisme was a French public institution created to coordinate national tourism policy after World War II and to promote France as a destination for visitors from Europe, United States, Canada, Japan, and beyond. It operated alongside ministries such as the Ministry of Transport (France), the Ministry of Culture (France), and the Ministry of Economy and Finance (France), interacting with regional bodies like the Île-de-France Regional Council, municipal administrations of Paris, and provincial authorities in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Brittany, and Normandy. Its activities intersected with international organizations including the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the OECD, and bilateral relations with states such as Spain, Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, United States of America, Canada, Japan, China, Russia, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Australia, India, South Africa, Turkey, Greece, Portugal, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Iceland, Luxembourg, Monaco, Andorra, San Marino, Vatican City, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon National Tourist Office, and major industry groups such as the French National Railway Company and the Syndicat National des Entreprises de Tourisme.
Established in the aftermath of World War II by decree during the Fourth Republic, the agency drew on precedents like the Commissariat général à l'Information and the Ministry of Reconstruction and Urban Development (France), responding to demands from ministers including André Le Troquer, Jean Monnet, and Pierre Mendès France. During the Trente Glorieuses it collaborated with firms such as Air France, SNCF, and regional promoters in Nice, Lyon, Marseille, Biarritz, Bordeaux, Strasbourg, Lille, Toulouse, Grenoble, Annecy, Cannes, Saint-Tropez, and Chamonix to rebuild resort infrastructure influenced by events like the 1951 Paris Air Show and the Expo 1967. The 1970s oil crises, shifts in the European Economic Community, and the emergence of low-cost carriers altered its remit, while policies under leaders from the RPR and PS reshaped relations with bodies such as the Conseil économique, social et environnemental and the Cour des comptes. Reforms in the 1990s and 2000s led to mergers with agencies influenced by the Schengen Agreement and the Maastricht Treaty, culminating in eventual transfer of functions to successor entities such as Atout France and regional tourism boards.
The Commissariat comprised directorates modeled on ministries like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (France) and the Ministry of Interior (France), including divisions for promotion, statistics, infrastructure liaison, and regional coordination with prefectures of Paris, Bouches-du-Rhône, Nord, and Rhone. Its leadership included commissioners appointed by presidential or ministerial decree, working with advisory councils similar to the Conseil national du tourisme and professional federations such as the UMIH and the Confédération des Professionnels du Tourisme. It maintained territorial offices in capitals like Lille, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Nice, Reims, Nancy, and overseas departments such as Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion, and French Guiana; it coordinated with bodies like the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris and the Agence régionale de développement.
Mandated to promote France abroad, develop national touring routes, and standardize classification systems, the Commissariat worked on hotel star ratings alongside the OECD-style studies, collaborated with transport operators such as Air France and Eurostar, and liaised with heritage institutions like the Musée du Louvre, Palace of Versailles, Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, Mont-Saint-Michel, Château de Chambord, Pont du Gard, and UNESCO World Heritage Sites located in France. It issued guidance to regional tourism offices, regulated signage and wayfinding for landmarks including Avenue des Champs-Élysées, Mont Blanc, Dune of Pilat, and Gorges du Verdon, and consulted with cultural actors such as the Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques, Maison de la Culture, and festival organizers of events like the Festival de Cannes, Avignon Festival, Nice Jazz Festival, Festival Interceltique de Lorient, and Les Vieilles Charrues.
Programs included national marketing campaigns in collaboration with state media like ORTF and later private broadcasters such as TF1, France Télévisions, and Canal+; joint promotions with airline partners including Air France, British Airways, Lufthansa, Iberia, Alitalia, KLM, Transavia, Ryanair, and cruise lines docking at Le Havre and Marseille-Fos. Initiatives targeted niche sectors: culinary routes partnering with institutions like Institut Paul Bocuse and wine bodies in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Loire Valley, and Alsace; alpine skiing development with clubs in Les Deux Alpes and Val-d'Isère; coastal tourism projects on the Côte d'Azur and the Atlantic Coast; and sustainable tourism pilots aligned with Grenelle Environnement and EU programs like LIFE Programme. It organized trade fairs and salons including Salon Mondial du Tourisme, collaborated with Maison de la France, and supported events like Exposition Universelle participations.
The Commissariat produced statistical digests and yearbooks akin to publications by the INSEE and the UNWTO, publishing hotel occupancy rates, inbound visitor figures, and economic impact reports for regions such as Corsica, Normandy, Brittany, Occitanie, and Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It issued guides comparable to those of Michelin Guide and promotional brochures distributed through diplomatic missions at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., French Consulate in New York City, French Embassy in London, and offices in Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul, Moscow, and Sao Paulo. Periodicals reported collaborations with research centers like CNRS, academic units at Sorbonne University, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Sciences Po, and tourism studies at Université Toulouse‑Jean Jaurès.
Active in bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, the Commissariat engaged with the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the European Commission, and the Council of Europe on policy harmonization, visa facilitation post-Schengen Agreement, and crisis responses alongside IATA and the WTTC. It negotiated promotional accords with national tourist offices such as VisitBritain, Deutsche Zentrale für Tourismus, Italian National Tourist Board (ENIT), Turespaña, Swissôtel, and collaborated on transnational routes like the Ruta del Vino-style partnerships and cross-border cultural itineraries with UNESCO sites spanning Camino de Santiago networks and Alpine initiatives with the Alpine Convention.
Institutional reforms in the early 21st century, influenced by public administration modernization drives similar to those affecting the Inspection générale des finances and the Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes, led to consolidation of functions into entities like Atout France, regional tourism agencies, and private-public partnerships with actors such as the Région Île-de-France and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Its archival collections and statistical series are preserved in repositories like the Archives nationales (France) and referenced in scholarly works by historians of French economic history and tourism scholars at institutions such as EHESS and Université Lumière Lyon 2. Category:Tourism in France