05 Jun 2009

Category: Europe Travel Insurance News

France 'holds on to title of most popular tourist destination'

France has been named as the world's most popular tourist destination, it has been announced.

In 2008, France recorded more than 80 million foreign visitors according to eTravel, holding on to the existing title.

Spain and the US were in runner up positions, but according to the travel website, they did not even come close in terms of numbers.

"Many tourists to France are repeat travellers and its borders with other countries make it easily accessible to a large mobile population," explained Rebecca Burns, writing for eTravel.

She went on to say that the country attracts travel insurance customers due to its ski resorts, national parks and a culture that many people would agree "encapsulates the best in art, cheese, music and wine".

Tourism is one of the French government's top priorities, she continued, accounting for 6.9 per cent of the country's gross domestic product.

According to the NHS, when travelling to Europe, a European Health Insurance Card should not be treated as a replacement for a travel insurance policy as it will not cover for loss of possessions, private medical care or things such as repatriation to the UK.