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Summer 2026: Vacation Spending Boosts Retail Activity

September 18, 2026 by Amara Nambinga

La consommation des Français affiche une dynamique soutenue durant l'été 2026 selon SumUp - Depositphotos.com @Kitzcorner

MSC Croisières

As the summer season 2026 comes to a close, French consumer spending displays sustained momentum.

This emerges from an analysis conducted by SumUp based on the transactions recorded across thousands of merchants in July and August 2026, compared with the same periods in 2025.

The fintech data notably highlight the weight of the dining sector, but also a solid performance in tourism and accommodation.

Regionally, Île-de-France stands out particularly for the growth of its business volume.

In July 2026, the activity of the merchants analyzed by SumUp rose by 17.4%, while turnover increased by 35.5% compared to July 2025.

The trend continued in August, with a rise of 11.1% in activity and 25.5% in turnover year over year. An evolution that aligns with the summer of 2025, when SumUp had already observed a growth of 35.1% in activity and 27.3% in turnover compared with summer 2024.

The restaurant sector remains the engine of activity

As in the previous summer season, cafes and restaurants are among the sectors showing the strongest gains.

In July, the sector records a rise of 24.3% in activity and a 45.5% increase in turnover compared with July 2025. The food trucks also benefit from this momentum, with +20% activity and +24% turnover.

The momentum continues in August. Cafes and restaurants show a rise of 13.6% in activity and 31.1% in turnover.

This performance extends the trend observed in 2025, when cafes and restaurants recorded a turnover growth of 31.4% and an activity growth of 45.8% over the studied period.

Tourism and accommodation benefit from the summer season

Professionals directly linked to holidays also profit from this consumption dynamic.

In July, activity in the accommodation and hospitality sector rises by 10.6%, while its turnover soars by 62.3% year on year. The tourism sector shows a turnover increase of 44.7%.

The trend remains positive in August, with tourism turnover up by 20.5% year on year. Accommodation and hospitality likewise register an increase of 36.5%.

For SumUp, these results illustrate the dynamism of the entire tourism ecosystem, supported by holiday and leisure spending during the departure and return periods of vacationers.

The analysis also highlights several peak periods during the season. Nationally, the week of 20 to 26 July 2026 constitutes the main consumption peak of the month. Activity then rises by 17% and turnover by 37% compared with the same week in 2025.

In August, the peak occurs during the week of 16 to 23 August, with a rise of 17% in activity and 35% in turnover year on year.

Île-de-France stands out in August

The performances vary across territories.

In July, the Pays de la Loire register a 31% rise in activity and a 48% increase in turnover. Bourgogne-Franche-Comté shows +18% and +40%, Bretagne +19% and +38%, while Nouvelle-Aquitaine progresses by 18% in activity and 32% in turnover.

The Île-de-France also ranks among the most dynamic regions in July, with +24% activity and +48% turnover.

In August, the Centre-Val de Loire confirms its progression, with +24% activity and +31% turnover. Brittany and Nouvelle-Aquitaine continue their growth as well, with +15% and +14% activity respectively.

The Île-de-France nevertheless retains a special place with a 44% increase in turnover, the strongest regional growth observed by SumUp on this indicator in August.

According to the fintech, this territorial distribution extends certain trends already seen in 2025, notably in several Western regions such as Brittany, Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Normandy.

A summer season favorable to merchants

For SumUp, these results reflect a solid performance of consumption in France despite the episodes of extreme heat recorded during the summer.

“Summer 2026 confirms the solid state of consumption in France despite the heatwaves“, analyzes the fintech. The dining sector remains, according to it, the main driver of this momentum, while accommodation and tourism directly benefit from the summer season.

Beyond Île-de-France, the performances recorded in Pays de la Loire and the Centre-Val de Loire also testify to a momentum that goes beyond the main economic hubs. Expenditures related to holidays and leisure will thus have contributed to supporting merchants’ activity throughout the season.

Colombus Voyages: How Its Writing Contest Boosts Brand Image

August 31, 2026 by Amara Nambinga

Costa Rica

It is a writing contest that is carving out a place on the agenda of aspiring writers, and even established authors.

“Everybody told me, you’ll see, you won’t receive anything. The site Texte à la pelle runs contests, and when they have 50 stories, that’s the maximum, so I think travel and writing captivate people,” enthuses Nathalie Pierret, founder of the agency and of the contest.

And it’s no understatement to say that the 2026 event found its audience.

There were more than 2,700 people registered for 570 submissions, compared to 415 the year before.

The success is very real and, as in the previous year, an awards ceremony was organized in the presence of the four winners, but also of a few loyal clients.

“There were about sixty people present. It was a fantastic evening. This is the kind of event that helps distinguish a travel agency from a traditional one. Not only does it shape our brand image and our notoriety, but it also makes us somewhat more relevant in our communications,” shares Charly Verchère, the CEO of Colombus Voyages.

It must be noted that beyond the prestige of winning, the winner left with two tickets to the destination of her choice on Air France’s long-haul network.

The contest “gives a great image of Colombus Voyages”

On the other end of the line, the winner, Sarah Jeanmonnot, takes us on an internal and personal journey, in which her heroine revisits the places where she spent the early weeks of her life, thousands of kilometers from her current daily life.

It is in India, like in many stories of this second edition, that the journey unfolds.

“We receive testimonies from participants that are incredible. I recall a couple who reimmersed themselves in a trip cut short because of Covid. They were supposed to depart for six months.

Ultimately, by writing within the contest, the urge to escape and to continue this stay returned to them. Recently, they sent us an email from Patagonia to thank us for organizing the contest. They were finishing their journey after spending three months in Latin America.
” They restore their faith in travel through writing, and this is remarkable.

I feel that writing triggers something incredible in people. Rewriting their story makes them relive emotions and powerful moments.

In response to this enthusiasm, we decided to organize a third edition.

The fact that the contest is open to everyone, even to those who have never written, creates something around the agency. It gives a great image of Colombus Voyages.

Whether among clients or in the industry, I am regularly approached and congratulated for this initiative, explains Nathalie Pierret.

To read : Colombus Voyages: journeys of a mother… into a son !

For this second edition, the Nîmes-based agency forged partnerships with Le Petit Futé and a writing school called Les Mots.

This latter probably partly explains the better quality of the narratives read by the jury.

The Colombus Voyages team also had to implement a social media communications strategy, then approach bookstores to give the contest more visibility.

The workload is real, but the agency’s image is enhanced by it. And this isn’t the only advantage: the contest also serves as a source of inspiration for the store managers.

India, revelation of the contest and Colombus Voyages’ new destination

During the ceremony, Maxime Jammes, author of “Qui roulera verra“, won five nights at You & Me Maldives, a resort on a private island.

This time, the story does not unfold in India, but a few dozen kilometers away… in Sri Lanka.

The journey does not go as planned. A couple traveling around the island are involved in a scooter accident. The man suffers a serious fracture of the femoral neck and ends up hospitalized on site.

Tossed between different facilities, his ordeal becomes a true crucible that, instead of creating distance between the two young people, gives rise to great solidarity and reveals the strength of their love.

India seems to be a popular destination among lovers of adventure and writing, at least among those who took part in the event. With its guaranteed sense of immersion, its strong culture, and its many facets, this country-continent attracts and inspires.

“This is not a destination we sold a lot of up to now. But, as we read the readings and heard the jury’s feedback, we decided to put India more in the foreground to ride this traveler appeal.

One of our salespeople went on an education tour just a few days ago to become familiar with the destination.

We are not organizing this contest for commercial purposes, but beyond nudging us toward destinations to push, the event also brings us customers.

We have added new contacts to our newsletter and, during the contest, we received about ten inquiries, even though there was no commercial strategy behind it,” continues Charly Verchère.

The other countries most frequently appearing in the candidates’ writings are Morocco and Mauritius.

Colombus Voyages: “a third edition that could be the last”

The two last prizes were awarded to Axelle Simon for Sans filtre.

She will be able to travel five nights to Zanzibar thanks to her story recounting a border crossing between Slovenia and Italy that did not unfold as planned, due to an unaccommodating taxi driver.

This year, a special prize for emotion was also awarded to the tale “Revenir vers elles.”

A moving account of a father in mourning who rebuilds himself gradually through travel, after the loss of a child. If the first stay does not erase the pain, it opens the way to possible rebuilding.

To read : An agency launches a writing contest around the… travel!

It is on Belle-Île-en-Mer that his renaissance takes place, during an off-season stay that will give rise to other getaways on this sea-swept island, now a place of introspection and a calmer reconnection with his daughter.

The author, Alain Thiesse, was given a voucher to spend with Colombus Voyages. After two successful editions, what can the agency hope for next?

“There will be a third edition, which could be the last. It takes a lot of energy to run the contest. Then it becomes increasingly difficult to find channels to disseminate the information. There may be other editions; we are still thinking about it. It is also possible that the contest adopts another format, such as a photo contest. We do not want to stage the edition too many times, but, whatever happens, we will always stay within the artistic realm,” confides the agency’s CEO.

This time, the best entries will not be published, but the organizers are considering having storytellers read the texts to immortalize this opus in a novel way.

The theme of the next edition is currently under discussion. It could take the form of a starting phrase that budding writers, or more experienced ones, will have to complete to begin their tale.

And you, which phrase would you like to start your next story with?

Published by Romain Pommier Journalist – TourMaG.com
See all articles by Romain Pommier

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Markets: Middle East Conflict Boosts the Dollar and Fuels Inflation Fears [ABO]

August 24, 2026 by Amara Nambinga

Economic Situation

Marchés : le conflit au Moyen-Orient renforce le dollar et relance les craintes inflationnistes - Depositphotos.com Auteur JackFotografo

IFTM prenez RDV avec TourMaG

The Middle East conflict has escalated to a broader scale. On Sunday, Iran struck for the first time six Gulf states (United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, and Jordan) in retaliation for American strikes.

Until now, the confrontation had been confined to Washington and Tehran around the Strait of Hormuz. By targeting directly the Gulf monarchies, Iran widens the scope of the conflict, far beyond a mere escalation.

Everything accelerated since July 8, when Donald Trump declared the ceasefire terminated after the attack on three ships near Hormuz. Since then, U.S. strikes have followed one another (four in a week) and Tehran says it has closed the strait, which Washington denies.

The numbers speak for themselves: barely six ship passages between Thursday evening and Friday morning, compared with about twenty per day at the start of July. The United States has also reinstated sanctions on Iranian oil from July 17.

Markets reacted calmly but clearly. Brent crude rose to around $79, about 9% above its pre-war level. The dollar strengthened against all major currencies, and yields rose: the 2-year U.S. yield reached 4.23%, the highest since February 2025. In other words, investors no longer expect rate cuts, but higher rates for a long time.

The timing could not be worse: this oil shock comes just as inflation was easing. In the euro area, inflation fell from 3.2% to 2.8% in June thanks to relief from oil, now jeopardized again.

The ECB, which raised rates in mid-June for the first time since 2023, refuses to commit to further moves, but the market prices in about a 70% chance of another hike in September. In the United States, several Federal Reserve officials already see a need for a rise.

Concretely, as long as traffic through Hormuz remains disrupted, the dollar is likely to stay strong and the euro under pressure, given Europe’s heavy energy import dependence. But there is no panic: Iranian strikes remain limited, Brent is far from the $120 levels reached in past crises, and many analysts expect the barrel to stay between $70 and $80 this summer.

A return to diplomacy (a Qatari delegation has already visited Tehran) could bring tensions down as quickly as they rose.

Exchange Rates: The Technical Update

The euro/dollar traded around 1.1404 on Monday’s open, down slightly from Thursday’s 1.1435. The euro sits in a paradoxical position: it should benefit from the ECB’s policy (a further rate hike in September is priced in at about 70%), yet that support is overwhelmed by two forces—the dollar’s status as a safe haven and high American rates (2-year at 4.23%). Since January, the euro has fallen about 2.8% against the greenback.

The next major event is the U.S. inflation release on Tuesday: if it surprises to the upside, the dollar will strengthen further ahead of the Fed meeting on July 29; if it comes in as expected (around 3.8%), the euro could catch a bit of a break.

Against the Swiss franc, the euro remains near its lows for the year, around 0.922. As long as geopolitics dominates, a rebound seems unlikely: even the calmer moments in June produced only small and short-lived gains.

Notably, the yen is not playing its usual safe-haven role. EUR/JPY sits near 184.4 and USD/JPY around 161.7. Japanese government bonds were even sold on Monday, signaling that the rate gap with the United States weighs more than risk aversion. Good news for companies paying suppliers in yen: current levels remain historically advantageous.

The Canadian dollar benefits from higher oil: EUR/CAD trades around 1.615, vs 1.62 on Thursday. The Bank of Canada will announce its decision on Wednesday, and keeping the rate at 2.25% is the consensus. It is caught between a slowing economy and energy-driven inflation. Canada, being a net oil exporter, sees oil’s rally support its revenues and therefore its currency.

Finally, the British pound is advancing quietly but surely: EUR/GBP has fallen back to around 0.852, from about 0.862 at the end of June. The pound benefits from attractive British rates for investors. The UK’s upcoming activity data this week will indicate whether this advantage remains.

	WEEKLY SUPPORTS		WEEKLY RESISTANCES
	S2	S1	R1	R2
EUR/USD	1.1180	1.1290	1.1520	1.1630
EUR/GBP	0.8350	0.8430	0.8600	0.8690
EUR/CHF	0.9035	0.9125	0.9310	0.9400
EUR/CAD	1.5830	1.5990	1.6310	1.6470
EUR/JPY	180.70	182.55	186.25	188.10

The weekly supports and resistances shown below indicate, respectively, the low and high points within which prices are expected to move during the week.

The information presented in this publication is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer to sell, or an invitation to buy; it should in no case be used as a basis or be considered an incentive to engage in any investment.

Mondial Change is a French financial institution, founded in 2015, specializing in the management of international payments and exchange-rate risk.

Mondial Change supports numerous players in tourism, travel agencies, tour operators, handling incoming groups…

www.mondialchange.com

Contact: [email protected]

How Destination Canada’s AI Boosts Tourism Attractiveness

August 10, 2026 by Amara Nambinga

Kananaskis, Alberta © Destination Canada

CroisiEurope

With Aurora AI and its Traveller Twin, Destination Canada makes access to tourism data easier and helps professionals better understand their audiences, test their projects, and steer their business decisions more quickly. Canada is simplifying access to its data through Aurora AI.

In tourism, data is a powerful driver of performance. Yet for tour operators, online agencies, destinations, or activity providers, extracting value from it can still demand significant time and resources.

With Aurora AI, Destination Canada aims to make this knowledge more easily accessible and directly usable. This AI ecosystem enables tourism professionals to query reliable data in natural language and rapidly obtain insights that inform their decisions.

The objective is concrete: reduce the time spent on research and analysis, better target travelers, and mitigate risks before investing in a new product or a marketing campaign.

Tourism data accessible in seconds

Fruit of Canada’s tourism know-how, Aurora AI rests on an unmatched understanding of travel information at global and national scales. Built by Destination Canada, Aurora AI is a knowledge network that uses Gemini Enterprise and is fueled by the Canadian Tourism Data Consortium. This consortium provides validated research, reliable data sets, and insights from Destination Canada’s partners, ensuring credibility and relevance. It was launched in 2024 and won the Best Use of Artificial Intelligence for Nonprofit or Non-commercial Purposes at the 2024 DataIQ AI Awards.

Launched in November 2025, Aurora AI combines natural language querying, predictive models, traveler simulation tools, and AI agents in an integrated system that learns, adapts, and responds.

The Traveller Twin to test a project before launch

Among the features offered, the Traveller Twin lets you simulate how different traveler profiles would react. It builds on the segmentation program of the Canadian Tourism Data Consortium, created from research conducted with real travelers in Destination Canada’s ten major markets, including France.

“Its French version, launched in May 2026 at Rendez-vous Canada, can notably assist tour operators and reservation platforms marketing the destination.” explains Cyrielle Bon, CEO of Destination Canada in France

A professional can, for example, propose a stay idea, a new product, an advertising message, or a campaign concept. The Traveller Twin then helps identify the most receptive audiences, better understand their expectations, and anticipate their reactions.

The tool can also be used to refine a sales pitch or support a recommendation with structured traveler insights. The aim is to adjust a project upstream, before mobilizing production budgets or media buying.

A tool in service of return on investment

By easing the research, targeting, and testing stages, Aurora AI can help improve the effectiveness of marketing investments. It isn’t about predicting consumer behavior with certainty, but about providing extra data to make more informed decisions.

For tourism companies, the potential benefits show up in several ways: shorter analysis time, more precisely targeted campaigns, products more aligned with travelers’ expectations, and resources focused on the most promising opportunities.

This deeper understanding of audiences also serves as a differentiator. In a sector where travelers increasingly seek highly personalized offerings, the ability to quickly tailor products and messages can become a real competitive edge.

Commercial results already observed

Several Canadian tourism companies have already used the Traveller Twin to evolve their offerings.

Brett Soberg, co-founder and captain of Eagle Wing Whale Watching explains: “We leaned on the tool to identify new interests among our visitors and to explore experiences that complement our usual excursions.” By expanding their portfolio, they doubled the number of their specialized tours.

At Bay of Fundy Adventures, founder Jordan Jamison also used Aurora AI: it helped them identify refined globetrotters as the segment with the strongest potential to book guided experiences and stay in the region. They shifted their strategy from promoting individual activities to promoting a destination conducive to immersive experiences. This new approach was accompanied by a 200% rise in bookings compared with the previous year.

These results illustrate how a better understanding of traveler expectations can translate into product evolution and improved business performance.

Consortium de Données Touristiques canadiennes © Destination Canada

A technological expertise serving the industry

Participate in the development of Aurora AI

Aurora AI is developing new agents and continuously innovating to meet the evolving needs of the tourism sector. We want to hear your feedback on your experiences with Aurora AI.

Please send your questions, comments, and ideas to the Data Consortium team by writing your feedback here.

China: Year of the Fire Horse Boosts Tourism Numbers [ABO]

July 2, 2026 by Amara Nambinga

Les autorités chinoises anticipent un record de 9,5 milliards de trajets passagers sur la période de 40 jours entourant les festivités du Nouvel An - DepositPhotos.com, yuliang11

CroisiEurope

As the chunyun period, the annual peak for travel tied to the Chinese New Year, has just begun in 2026, domestic tourism is experiencing the most spectacular yearly surge.

Rush to trains, to planes, to highways… The nine days of holidays granted to Chinese workers represent a golden opportunity to pack bags, hit the road, and visit family. And they indicate staggering crowds in transit hubs and at the legendary tourist sites.

Already, Chinese authorities are forecasting a record of 9.5 billion passenger trips over the 40-day period surrounding the festivities, up from 9.02 billion last year.

This speaks to the health of a sector that the government is keen to support in order to offset its tepid economic performance.

Also read: Young Chinese rediscover their traditions

Many foreign visitors

But resident populations are not the only ones elbowing their way through crowds and queuing for hours in shops.
From abroad, many visitors choose to come to China to experience the Spring Festival. Among them, the diaspora remains eager to return home.

Also read our series dedicated to diasporas
In the crowded streets of many cities, there are tastings of local specialties, traditional performances, festive customs, markets, popular parades, lit lanterns, etc. Immersion in a millennial culture is both vibrant and warm and guarantees a change of scenery. “It is also an ideal way to start the New Year,” newspapers claim.

For another proof of this momentum: according to data from the travel platform Qunar, the number of domestic flights booked during the New Year holidays by travelers with non-Chinese passports rose by nearly 30% year over year.

Korea, Singapore, Russia…

According to the head of public affairs at the travel platform Ctrip, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Japan and Russia are among the main origins of visitors.

It should be noted that visa exemption policies covering 76 countries are playing a decisive role in this rebound: bookings from Russia alone soared by 471%, while trips by Korean tourists rose by 95% during the Spring Festival period.

Starting February 17, 2026, the Middle Kingdom has decided to extend its visa-exemption policy to ordinary passport holders from Canada and the United Kingdom. A measure set to last through the end of 2026.

The Chinese outbound market is rebounding

A major bottleneck

This two-way flow of travel to and from China, one of the defining features of the 2026 Chinese New Year, should not obscure that people from other nationalities are also traveling, notably Vietnamese, Thai, and Singaporean travelers who are pouring into neighboring destinations of the Middle Kingdom and creating traffic jams all around the region, and a novelty: scattering into the mountains as well.

Snow, the White Gold, to attract both domestic and international tourists

Important and forward-looking: the development of mountain tourism is spectacular.

For populations in Southeast Asia, now is the ideal moment to come to China and breathe the mountain air, enjoying leisure activities such as hiking and taking in exceptional panoramas.

Among them, Sichuan emerges as the most popular destination for travelers from Singapore, Malaysia, but also Indonesia, Thailand and even Australia where winters are increasingly warm.

For example, the newspaper China Daily notes the success of the “Dagu Glacier scenic area,” which drew nearly 140,000 visitors. According to border crossing data, one and a half million travelers crossed the border on December 2, 2025, a 48% increase.

In Harbin, one of the world’s largest ice and snow parks, during the 2024-2025 season, 90 million visitors were welcomed, including many Russians, Japanese and Koreans—about 20,000 per day. A record celebrated with international awards and explained by new direct air links and the opening of new facilities and activities.

In any case, the city claims revenues around $22 billion USD! A performance reflected in the growing enthusiasm for skiing. Had the Chinese leader promised to put 400 million people on the pistes?

A five-year strategy

If the Chinese press attaches so much importance to these movements, according to a leading researcher at the Tongcheng Institute of Research, this dynamic can be explained by several factors, including the rising value of the Chinese passport, the proliferation of visa-exemption agreements, and the improvement of international air connections from numerous Chinese cities.

He also notes that Chinese culture is generating increasing interest among young people abroad. “The Chinese New Year, as the most important traditional festival, naturally attracts those who want to experience an authentic encounter at the heart of Chinese culture,” he explains.

Meanwhile, the tourism minister recalls that 2026 marks the starting point of a five-year tourism development plan designed to raise the offer to international standards. Sources www.xinhuanet.com

Finally, remember that after a 2025 year guided by the Wooden Snake, 2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse—a remarkable convergence that occurs only once every 60 years!

Josette Sicsic, journalist, consultant, lecturer, has been observing the shifts of the world for more than 25 years to analyze their impact on the tourism sector.

After developing Touriscopie for over two decades, she remains at the frontline of current events, decoding the present to forecast the future. On the site www.tourmag.com, in the Futuroscopy section, she publishes several times a week forward-looking and analytical articles.

Contact: 06 14 47 99 04

Email: [email protected]