Baku, July 31 (AZERTAC). French Ambassador in Baku Pascal Meunier and the embassy`s attaché for culture and cooperation Vincent Lorenzini have today visited Azerbaijan Institute of Tourism (ATI). 

They met ATI`s rector, professor Jafar Jafarov who briefed them on the institute`s activities and international relations.

He said Azerbaijan Institute of Tourism was established under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2006.

Mr Jafarov noted there were seven departments at the institute, with more than 1,300 students studying here in Azeri, Russian and English languages.

He pointed out that ATI pays special attention to building and developing international relations. The rector spoke of close cooperation between ATI and Austrian Krems University of Applied Sciences.

Mr Jafarov said ATI was one of the winners of "Erasmus Mundus External Cooperation Window" programme by the European Union. “Under the program, ATI carries out the exchange program with sixteen higher educational institutions in Greece, France, Latvia, Bulgaria, Italy, Portugal and the Netherlands.”

Ambassador Meunier highlighted France`s tourism potential, saying his country was the most visited country in the world with almost 82 million foreign tourists. “The importance of tourism chiefly lies in the great diversity of natural sites, the beauty of landscapes, the authenticity of villages and the wealth of French cultural heritage (museums and historical monuments). France also ranks third after the United States and Spain among countries with the biggest revenue from tourism. According to official sources, with a record 81.4 million foreign visitors, France is well ahead of the United States (62.7 million), China (57.6 million), Spain (56.2 million) and Italy (46.1 million).”

He said while Paris is top of French destinations, Provence and the French Riviera, the Loire Valley, the Atlantic seaboard and South-West France still appeal as much to foreign visitors for whom France has been a favorite destination since the 1990s. “From the famous Châteaux of the Loire Valley to the wonderful calanques (creeks) of Marseille-Cassis or the Pilat Dune – the highest in Europe, tourist sites are hugely appealing. Some 38 of them are in fact inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, including the Mont-Saint-Michel and its Bay in Normandy, the Palace and Park of Versailles, Chartes Cathedral and the Historic Fortified City of Carcassonne,” the diplomat stated.

Mr Meunier said official figures show that in 2012 hotel occupancy reached a record high in the Paris region with more than 68 million guest nights. “The influx of a non-European clientele, especially from the U.S., the Middle East and Asia, was confirmed in hotels with guest nights rising 9.7% in 2012. It can in fact be seen that hotels which have opted for upmarket quality and to adopt new classification standards suited to the expectations of increasingly demanding clients enjoy higher occupancy rates than others. Two million people are employed in tourism activities, which account for more than 7% of French GDP and generate around €44 billion in revenue. The most highly starred hotels are seeing the greatest gain in occupancy. It should be pointed out that the Dutch are still by far the leading foreign clientele of caravan sites.”

The ambassador also touched upon prospects for cooperation between ATI and French universities. Mr Meunier said cooperation between ATI and Vatel International Hotel & Tourism Management Business School of France could make a huge contribution to Azerbaijan`s tourism infrastructure.